Stomach Cancer Nutrition
Stomach cancer, also called gastric cancer, occurs when cells in the stomach or its lining mutate and grow uncontrollably. This mutation can occur spontaneously, or occur as a result of genetic factors.
If you or a loved one has recently been diagnosed with stomach cancer, you may be concerned about proper nutrition during treatment, particularly since a major side effect of stomach cancer treatment is a loss of appetite.
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Appetite Loss
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People with stomach cancer often experience a serious lack of appetite after their diagnosis or while they're being treated. This can be due to a variety of factors; patients may be upset by their diagnosis, depressed, or overwhelmed, or they may be experiencing a lack of appetite as a side effect of chemotherapy or surgery.
If this is the case, you may not be getting proper nourishment, including the nutrients and vitamins you need to regain your health. For a loss of appetite as a result of a cancer diagnosis, experts at healthcastle.com recommend eating small meals throughout the day and keeping ready-to-eat snacks on hand. It may also be easier to regain your appetite if you eat with friends or treat yourself to healthy but calorie-rich foods you enjoy.
What to Eat
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If you're losing weight as a result of your stomach cancer, it may be helpful for you to eat many small meals throughout the day, and add calorie-rich foods to your regular meals where ever you can. To add calories, try putting peanut butter on your morning toast, dressings on your salads, or cheese on pizza or pasta dishes. Anywhere you can add a few extra calories can be helpful for putting on weight.
Other healthy, nourishing snack options include string cheese, full-fat yogurt and milk, and hard boiled eggs. If you're concerned about a healthy diet plan and you have stomach cancer, speak to your oncologist or a registered dietician about forming a customized diet plan that's palatable for you and easy to follow.
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Vitamin Supplements
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One side effect of appetite loss is a vitamin deficiency. Malnourishment will make it more difficult for your body to tolerate cancer treatments and can make you feel weak and fatigued. In particular, if you have had surgery to treat your stomach cancer, you may not be absorbing enough nutrients through the lining of your stomach.
If this is the case, your doctor may recommend you take calcium, vitamin D, or iron supplements, or you may be prescribed vitamin B12 injections. However, if you do have stomach cancer, speak to your doctor before adding a vitamin supplement to your daily diet.
Support
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Patients with cancer---and stomach cancer, in particular---often have difficult relationships with food. While a healthy, balanced, calorie-rich diet is nourishing and can help them tolerate treatment, cancer patients may not feel physically able to give their body the foods it needs.
In such cases, a support network may be helpful to keep a nutrition plan on track. Eating favorite meals with friends and family may help cancer patients enjoy eating. Patients may also want to enlist a doctor or dietician to help them create and follow a meal plan.
Food Journals
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For some patients, writing in a daily food journal may be a useful tool for keeping a nutritious diet while battling stomach cancer. In a food journal, write when your treatments are, what you eat every day and how it makes you feel. Share this information with your doctor.
This can help you determine what foods make you sick or don't interact well with your treatments. It can also help you determine the circumstances under which you're able to eat the most healthy foods.
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