When we see patients prior to their chemo infusion, one thing we always ask about is their side effects. Commonly, chemo causes nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, decreased appetite, mouth sores or soreness, and weight loss. While we often adjust medications for these symptoms but we have 5 general guidelines that we always recommend that can help people feel better overall.
Here are our top 5 recommendations:
Eat smaller and more frequent meals. A big meal is harder to digest. Eating bland foods and drinking less fluid while eating helps improve overall food intake. Sometimes if you drink a lot with meals, you become too full for the food.
Hydrate between meals. This is always our mantra: Hydration, hydration, hydration. Keeping up your fluids between meals helps digestion. Hydration helps carry nutrients to your cells, keep bacteria out of your bladder, and prevent constipation.
Choose calorie rich foods. Chemo can result in low appetite and poor nutrition. Make sure the meals you can eat are full of calories, protein, and healthy fats. Adding protein shakes or smoothies are sometimes easier to digest, soothe the lining of your GI tract, and help keep your calorie count up.
Avoid spice, grease, salt, and acidic foods. These kinds of food irritate the lining of your GI tract and can cause mouth sores, nausea, stomach upset and diarrhea.
Think positively. “Chemo is your ally” That’s a quote from one of our breast cancer survivors. There is power in positive thinking and choosing to see chemo as healing- instead of toxic - can help the process. There are even some studies that show people who think they will have nausea prior are more likely to experience nausea and vomiting during treatment and the opposite is true.
Please take a look at our Field Guide to Nutrition During Chemotherapy for more guidance and thorough information on supporting your body with nutrition.