More studies show diet and nutrition are important in fighting cancer

While exercising and eating well is not only important for staying healthy, research shows it may also give you an upper hand in the fight against cancer.

The latest study funded by the Canadian Cancer Society followed people who were prescribed a 3-year exercise program after treatment for colorectal cancer. It found that those who received the program had both a 28% lower risk of recurrence of the disease and new cancer — plus, a 37% lower risk of death.

Jennifer Bires, a specialist in psychological oncology and executive director of the Peterson Life with Cancer program at Inova’s Schar Cancer Institute, said studies on other forms of cancer, such as melanoma, are also showing the importance of diet and exercise during treatment.

“Incorporating a healthy lifestyle before you get cancer, during treatment or even into survivorship, can be a really key component of increasing quality of life, longevity and feeling better,” Bires said.

She said both exercise and nutrition have been shown to help with fatigue, quality of life, and adhering to treatment.

Bires noted that the field has shifted, as more cancer doctors include diet and exercise to patient treatment plans. According to Bires, one issue — historically — is research money not being available for studies on the effects of nutrition and working out following cancer treatment.

“I think what’s complicated is that food is not a drug company, and so oftentimes there’s not a lot of funding for research in these areas, but definitely people are becoming more and more interested, and we’re seeing more and more data come out on the impact of a healthy diet and nutrition and how it can impact prevention as well as treatment,” Bires said.

When it comes to exercise, Bires recommends those battling cancer should keep moving as much as they can during treatment, and that they get back to it as fast as they can after completing treatment.

“Whether it’s doing walking, gentle weight lifting, yoga and stretching, moving our bodies is really important for a number of reasons,” Bires said.

Bires added that more data is showing inflammatory foods and foods with additives don’t help those fighting cancer, but that whole foods — including vegetables, fruits and whole grains — do.

“I do imagine that we’re going to see more and more studies coming out that show how nutrition and the gut microbiome impacts treatment and really quality of life while receiving treatment into survivorship,” Bires said.

Another important way to help yourself during a cancer battle is by lowering stress levels, Bires said.

She said when it comes to starting an exercise and diet routine, whether it be during cancer treatment or to prevent cancer, it’s okay to start out small.

“Maybe start with going on a walk each day or replacing one unprocessed food with a vegetable or fruit, and also creating some accountability. Anytime that we can exercise with friends or share recipes and really creating some accountability, that can be helpful for some of these habits,” she said.

Bires said there isn’t one strategy for getting started that works for everyone, but instead the goal is to begin “creating habits.” Also, don’t let missed days derail your plan entirely.

“We’re all going to miss days or have missteps, but we want to make sure that we’re doing these things the majority of the time,” Bires said.

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