I was interviewed by Authority Magazine earlier this month. If you would like to read the full interview, click HERE. If you prefer to read the abridged version, read on. Naturally, I'm responding to the question, what are my '5 Things Everyone Needs to Know About Cancer' from a nutrition perspective.
1. What you choose to eat and not eat can certainly influence cancer.
I’m not suggesting that cancer can necessarily be cured by food, but it absolutely can help mitigate side effects of treatment, augment the effects of therapy, increase your energy, strengthen your immune system, and increase your quality of life and sense of well-being. I frequently find food choices may paralyze a patient — fearing that they make a mistake eating the ‘wrong’ food, they choose to not eat at all. I would like to offer a different mindset and have patients use food as an empowering tool. While we don’t have control over everything, and that control can oftentimes be seen as shrinking away with cancer, use your food choices to have a say, take back some of that control, and empower yourself.
2. Focus more on what you want to include in your daily diet and less on what you’re aiming to limit or eliminate from your diet.
We have a tendency to state what we don’t eat, what we’re trying to limit or eliminate from our diet. I find it much more uplifting, positive, and even fun to instead focus on dietary goals that are adding healthful foods to your diet. For example, rather than focusing on never touching a grain of sugar again in your lifetime, think about nourishing foods you want to include daily — eating vegetables with 2 or more meals, including 25gm or more protein with each meal, and/or consuming 2 tbsp of a fiber booster such as sacha inchi seeds, chia seeds, or ground flax daily.
3. Determine what food patterns and portions are best for you based on your biochemistry.
Naturally, as a registered dietitian, my recommendations are based on evidence-based medicine. My goal is to use that evidence and also a patient’s blood result, stool results, hormone panels, genomics — any and all testing that help us to not create a generalized nutrition plan, but a personalized plan based on one’s own biochemistry. For example, we hear quite a bit about carbs — high carb, low carb, no carbs, which carbs, when to eat carbs, you name it. Simply knowing a patient’s hemoglobin A1C and fasting insulin markers provide us great insight to help better answer the carb questions for that particular patient. And if we have genomics data, that too can be incredibly helpful. I don’t believe there is a one size diet fits all, I think we will find we are best to modulate our diet based on our biochemistry.
4. Five foods that I recommend to include: broccoli sprouts, sacha inchi seeds, sardines, matcha, and kim chi.
It’s not easy to only list five amazing foods with anti-cancer potential. Why did I choose these five?
Broccoli sprouts or microgreens contain a concentrated amount of sulforaphane. Sulforaphane is an amazing protective phytochemical with antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-cancer properties. One ounce of broccoli sprouts or microgreens has the equivalent amount of sulforaphane as 24 cups of raw broccoli. Yes, 1 ounce microgreens = 24 cups broccoli?!! The enzyme myrosinase allows for synergy with sulforaphane. Myrosinase is found in mustard, radish, daikon, and wasabi. A great combo would be a broccoli/radish sprout or microgreen. Tiny, but mighty.
Sacha inchi seeds are certainly a favorite of mine — a mere two tablespoons provides 9 gm protein, 5 gm dietary fiber, and they’re rich in omega-3 fatty acids. Trifecta of three key nutritional components to include in the daily diet. They require no soaking or grinding, you can eat them as they are. I always travel with sacha inchi seeds.
Sardines, these small fish are nutritional powerhouses! They have been high on my list for years, but it has taken me over 50 years to truly eat them. I’m still working on developing my culinary love for sardines. My motivation? Sardines are rich in protein, vitamin B12, zinc, vitamin D, omega-3 fatty acids, and more. Sardines are an excellent option for eating lower on the food chain; opt for a product that is sustainably caught.
Matcha is powdered green tea comprised of ground tea leaves. Hence, matcha is particularly rich in antioxidants and protective polyphenols, namely EGCG. Do note that matcha is also higher in caffeine, similar to coffee. Additionally, matcha is higher in vitamin C, quercetin, chlorophyll, rutin, and theanine than traditional green tea. Generally speaking, drinking green tea or matcha regularly contributes various health properties. Opt for unsweetened varieties as many bottled, instant, and powdered versions contain added sugars.
Last, but not least — kim chi. Trying to add fermented foods to your diet to help diversify your microbiome? Two to four tablespoons of kim chi, a traditional Korean fermented cabbage, would help you attain that goal. Kim chi is an excellent source of probiotics and you even add 1 gram of dietary fiber in 3 tablespoons of kim chi. If you’re watching your sodium, however, be cautious. While the taste may not be for everyone, it’s definitely worth a try — even a bite or two.
5. Modifying or improving your diet doesn’t have to happen by tomorrow. Be patient with yourself and acknowledge your ‘wins’.
I’ll share a story with you about Lulu (name changed for confidentiality). When I met Lulu and asked about her diet, she looked at me as if she were embarrassed and said, “Natalie, honestly, I start my day with a cup of coffee and likely a pastry. I typically skip lunch, and I’m pretty content with a slice of pizza, glass of red wine, and a Snickers bar for dinner.” Is this the best anti-cancer diet? No. Was Lulu going to be eating 6+ servings vegetables, protein with each meal, matcha, broccoli sprouts, etc. tomorrow? No. Lulu was an amazingly social being who generated so much energy from her friends, her ‘village’. I simply made it a mission of mine to always introduce myself to each new friend I met and asked them all to please do me a favor for Lulu and make her a healthful vegetable dish that they thought she would truly enjoy. Fast forward, months later, Lulu’s diet had radically transformed; her diet was now 180 degrees different from the day I met her. This didn’t happen overnight, but over time. And for Lulu, using her village to support and care for her, was a key component to her success.
Hope you enjoyed the read and perhaps found one (or more) foods or concepts to explore. If you would like to read the full interview, click HERE.
In Health,
Natalie