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Before my cancer diagnosis, I typically breakfasted on two cups of coffee and a chocolate chip muffin. My lunch was usually a slice of pizza and a diet cola. For my mid-afternoon snack, I grabbed some cookies or a chocolate bar. My favorite dinner was pasta and salad. I thought I was treating my body well, especially because I also ran regularly in Central Park. But the same doctor who told me there was so much I could do to heal, also kick-started my education about nutrition. No more refined sugar, white flour, and artificial ingredients found in mass-produced candy, pastries, and colas. Now I fill my shopping cart with lots of organic fruits and vegetables, organic fresh fish, cancer-fighting spices, and raw nuts and seeds.

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All the food choices I recommend have been scientifically proven to promote health and healing. Very important: Buy organic foods whenever possible! And don’t expect to be perfect. It can take time to alter long-established food habits, but as you eat more healthfully, you will feel physically and emotionally better. I know that what I do and don’t eat has played a huge role in my recovery and continued good health.

 

CANCER DEFENSE DIET INFORMATION

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Here are highlights from the Cancer Defense Diet information handout, which I give to all my clients:

• Essential foods to eat include: berries, broccoli, cabbage, green tea, nuts, and turmeric, an essential anti-cancer element.

• Foods to avoid include: soda, artificial coloring and flavoring, packaged cakes and cookies, candy bars, non-organic canned foods, margarine, preservatives, refined sugars and other sweeteners, including artificial sweeteners, and processed foods.

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Stock your kitchen with the foods listed below to create a nutritional program that’s easy to maintain. Most supermarkets today offer organic food options. Your first and preferred choice should always be to buy organic.

• Vegetables, including “super-veggies,” e.g., brocolli, brussel sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, and kale. (Eat daily, as they contain powerful cancer destroying and prevention molecules).

• Fruits, including “super-fruits,” e.g., blueberries, cherries, mangos, papaya, and pomegranate. (As with vegetables, eat in abundance.)

• Legumes: all types of beans, peas, and lentils. (All are very nutritious, low fat, and cholesterol-free.)

• Organic whole grains. Discover amaranth, steel-cut oats, quinoa, brown rice, and wild rice.

• Organic raw, unsalted nuts and seeds. (Some types are better than others for cancer prevention.)

• Herbs and spices, including ginger to help digestion, and especially turmeric, an important ingredient in Indian food and an essential anti-cancer element which you can add to soups, salads, and chicken or meat recipes. (Combine with black pepper for added potency.) Most herbs and spices aid in stopping cancer cell spread and promoting their death. 

• Organic dairy and dairy substitutes in moderation.

• Organic condiments, vinegars, and oils, especially coconut, extra-virgin olive, and flaxseed oils.

• Organic eggs, meat, and poultry for non-vegetarians (in moderation).

• Best fish for cancer prevention — sardines and wild salmon, either fresh or canned (in olive oil).

• Organic packaged and canned goods, including beans, vegetable stock, dried lentils, and tomatoes. (As with the frozen produce below, great to have on hand for days when you can’t get out and buy fresh.)

• Organic frozen vegetables (for vegetables soups or to combine with rice and/or beans) and frozen berries (for delicious, stomach-filling smoothies).

• Beverages — Green tea is one of the best fighters of cancer. Include freshly blended vegetable juices, as much purified water as you can drink, green tea (two to three cups per day), and coffee (one cup per day, depending on type of cancer and your condition).

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Learn more about the benefits of Cancer Coaching here