Friday, 8 June 2012

Creating a Nutrition Journal Benefits Cancer Patients -by Guest Blogger: Jillian McKee

Jillian McKee wrote this brief description on the benefits of using a food log during cancer treatment.  This is something that Jillian feels strongly about and she asked me to post it here.  Please take the time to read it.  Hope you enjoy! You can read more from Jillian at The Mesothelioma Cancer Alliance's Google + page and for more genreal info. go here: http://www.mesothelioma.com/blog  Thanks Jillian!

Creating a Nutrition Journal Benefits Cancer Patients


Bumping up the mesothelioma survival rate and the survival rate of other cancers is a top priority for many physicians and oncologists.  Because of this, medical experts have worked closely together to come up with every possible action that can be taken to increase quality of life, improve emotional stability, and strengthen the body of people fighting cancer.

A nutritious diet plays a big role in helping a person to achieve each one of these things.  Each of these things is important because it improves the overall quality of a person’s life and also boosts the person physically and mentally and this is important in order for a cancer patient to be strong enough to keep up with required treatments.

Creating a nutrition journal can help cancer patients keep an accurate record of the healthy foods they are eating.  Nutrition journals may be handwritten or they be logged on a computer for ease and convenience.  A journal can track the progress of the person’s treatments, as well as amounts of exercise he or she is able to get each week, and the types of meals that are consumed.  Adding recipes, snacks, and blended drinks that are consumed will help the person to remain inspired and motivated as he or she records progress and is able to tell which foods made the biggest positive impact on how the person feels physically.

There are multiple healthy foods that will increase energy and will help to clean the digestive system and jumpstart the metabolism.  With this increased energy, the person can begin to consider participating in more exercise routines to strengthen and tone muscles.  This is a proactive and positive way to fight cancer, along with taking treatments and following physician’s orders.

Writing a journal is also a healthy way of gaining new coping skills.  When people record their activities, their food consumptions, and begin to notice which foods play a part in helping them to feel better, this boosts confidence and esteem and motivates the individual to keep battling the disease.  Many times, cancer patients become physically depleted and this can hurt a person’s chances for survival because the body lacks strength to go through the treatments or to respond well to the treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation.

The National Cancer Institute has a list of recommended super foods that help patients to feel better and to gain physical benefits from eating better foods.  The site also provides up-to-date information on the latest news of how nutritious foods impact the body of a person who has cancer.  Researching and beginning a nutrition journal is a great way to take steps to eating healthier to get healthier.

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