Making changes to your lifestyle following treatment for cancer can help prevent cancer recurrence and decreases risk of other chronic health problems. The pillars of lifestyle change include food choice, movement, stress management, sleep, social connection and avoiding risky substances.  After a cancer diagnosis many people want to change their lifestyle to help prevent future health problems. It can seem overwhelming. Focus on what has the most meaning to you.  Here are some ideas and resources.  

Food Choice

The foods we choose to eat are important for health reasons but can also have deep meaning for personal, psychological and cultural reasons. 

• Focus on plant-based foods including plenty of vegetables and fruit, whole grains.  This would include diet patterns such as a Mediterranean diet, DASH diet or an anti-inflammatory diet. 
• Include a variety of whole foods with many colors to help make sure you get plenty of vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients.
• Try to include at least 5 servings of vegetables and fruits a day.  It would be hard to eat too many vegetables. 
• Including plenty of fiber from whole grains, vegetables, fruit and legumes.
• Limit added sugar to no mor than 6 tsp for women and 9 tsp for men.  One medium chocolate chip cookie has about 2 tsp of sugar.  A 12-oz can of a soft drink has about 10 tsp of sugar.  Added sugar does not include the sugar found in fruit.  
• Avoid refined grain products such as processed bread products
• Limit processed meat such as hot dogs, deli meats or sausage.   
• If you eat red meat, limit the amount of beef, pork or lamb to more than 18 ounces of cooked meat a week.
• Focus on healthy fats such as olive oil, plant sources of oil and omega 3 fatty acids. Limit fats that are solid at room temperature.
• Omega 3 fatty acids can be found in fatty fish such as salmon and sardines.  Other sources include walnuts and flax seed.
• Soy foods may improve outcomes after breast cancer.  But avoid soy supplements and processed soy foods such as soy “hot dogs”. 
• Beverages such as coffee, tea and green tea contain phytonutrients that may be helpful.  Avoid adding sugar or creamer.
• It is important to enjoy your food choices. 
• Supplements may be helpful, harmful or have no benefit. Supplements do not replace a healthy diet. Please share what supplements you are taking with your cancer care team.  If you are interested in adding supplements such as vitamins or natural products consider an integrative medicine consultation.