Food therapy

Yes, food as medicine, medicine as food. Again, I am writing from personal experience. Experience from just only me, so proceed with caution!

Before cancer, I have been a sort of health nut. When working overseas, I have always cooked with organic ingredients and avoided so-called harmful stuff like sugar and artificial ingredients. That habit continues when I returned to Malaysia. I think I kept well physically too. But cancer still came, I guess food has less to do with my type of cancer. That is why when people give me advice on diet, I usually heard it all before, I was living the organic and sort of macrobiotic lifestyle before cancer! Yin Yang of food and diet; I knew that ;)

The first book I read when I was first diagnosed with cancer was books by Dr Chris Teo of CACARE, Macrobiotic Diet of Michio Kushi, Dr Lai of Lapis Lazuli Light, Gerson Therapy and recipe book of June Kahong Lim of Eco-Wood Cuisine. Yes, I am well informed. Not only that, I took to their advise enthusiastically.

I turned vegan overnite; avoiding even oil, sugar and salt, and only organic stuff! Many of my friends wondered how I cope. But their diet is not alien to me, and I find them palatable. Brown rice with blanched vege are my diet during the initial days.

Did it help?

What I am sure are they gave me great joy because I felt I am in control and the taste is not that bad. When I was better, I even cooked them myself (will put up some photos of dishes I cooked at flicker.com!).

But did it really help?

I am not sure. Maybe it has. Maybe it helped to keep the tumours are bay for a time. I was diagnosed in March, and had brain seizure and breathlessness in May. The breathlessness was due to tumours filling up my lungs, and I was already full steam on my vegan diet then. Maybe the cancer was too advanced for the diet change?

I remembered telling Dr Kana I am no fundamentalist. I am no food taliban. I will change if the vegan diet doesn't work.

I started to take meat and outside food in September 2005. Then I had brain seizure in October and my condition deteorated. Some friends it could be due to my easing of my strict diet. I doubt it. I think it's because Iressa was loosing its hold on the cancer cells...

Where am I now?

During the past 2 months, my weight fell from 45kg in October to just 39kg early March before my first chemo session. Breathlessness has returned gradually, and gripped tightly early March. I could hardly walk and was panting at the slightest exertion. My appetite slowly spiraling down; even good food don't appeal when you are breathless!

I took the decision to abandon the strict diet and throw out any feeling of guilt when eating so-called "forbidden" food. It is working because I have gained weight. I am now around 41kg since I eat, in moderation, food that I have avoided for more than a year. It is working for me, for now.

As I have mentioned, I am no food taliban. I know what worked before, if they don't work now, I will abandon that diet, but that doesn't mean I won't return to them again when the time is right and my body is ready for them.

For now, eating in moderation meat, tropical fruits (which many cancer diet advised against. A qigung master especially warned against durian!), outside food, sugar-laden pastry seems to be ok with me. I am gaining weight, energy and vitality. I know this is helped also by the chemotherapy.

Food purist, Dr Teo or followers of macrobiotics may cringe at my current choice of diet. But hey, I am listening to my body and it seems to like these now! I like this article by Dr Gayek.

So I am shelving the cancer diet therapies for now. Bon Appetite!