THE WORST ADVICE FOR CANCER SURVIVORS TO FOLLOW

“This is why you got cancer…”

“This is what you should do about it…”

“This is how you get rid of your cancer…”

“This is what you need to eat for your cancer…”

Cancer survivors are given advice left and right about what they should be doing—too often by bystanders who are woefully unqualified to be offering unsolicited advice.

Unfortunately, this information is more harmful than helpful, and in many ways, the worst advice cancer survivors receive stop you from healing, recovering well, or improving your survival.

My doctors haven’t told me what I should eat.
But my friends tell me I should avoid sugar.
Google suggests an alkaline diet
Social media keeps pushing me to herbal remedies, eating only organic, and constantly juicing.
I’m so confused with all the information I just don’t know what to do.

With all this information as a cancer survivor, it can be hard to know what to do.

Therefore, to best help you I will break down the the most common worst advice cancer survivors get

and explain why it is not true so that you don’t feel anymore confusion and explain what to do instead so that you can feel at peace with your day to day.

⚠ Worst Advice: “You need to do alternative medicine To Fight Cancer”

It can be tempting to do alternative therapy, but having worked with cancer survivors who chose the alternative medicine route,

I can tell you that unfortunately, they never get healed, and their cancer (in the long run) always gets worse.

But don’t just believe me, these results are also found in the scientific literature.

Most cancer survivors who choose to do only alternative do not make it past the two-year mark, have significantly less 5-year survival, and significantly greater tumor growth.

While this is what evidence-based medicine shows, I will never tell anyone what to do, as I understand the decision to go through with chemo is not easy,

but every time I hear someone suggest it, all I can think about is one of my previous online coaching clients.

She chose the route of alternative medicine instead of going through chemo.

She went to the best holistic medical center in her state, recognized even worldwide.

During this time, she underwent:
- 40 days of water fasting.
- was given low dosages of chemo
- low dosages of insulin
- IV fluids pumped through her, including high dosages of vitamin C
- hyperbaric therapy
- being fed nothing but soups.

She was told not to exercise and was monitored constantly. However, because of her treatment

-she developed arrhythmia
-her blood sugar was getting dangerously low
-she was weak and fatigued
-she lost a dangerous amount of muscle mass

Her cancer got worse, and even though she felt better after her treatment was over, two weeks later, her symptoms were back, her neck was swollen, and her cancer had grown from stage III to stage IV.

I tell you this to bring caution to this myth.

This is one of the worst pieces of cancer advice that can negatively affect your life, and once you do, there may not be any turning back.

She was a successful, highly-educated doctor, who was fooled by marketing and fell into desperation.

She had all the money in the world that could “pay” for the expensive “life-saving” alternative treatment.

But in the end, it didn’t do anything, and what we see in research is consistent with this.

I understand this is not easy to hear, but if you want to learn more information click here.

Doing alternative medicine can decrease your cancer survival and stop you from healing if not done alongside conventional medicine.

⚠ Worst Advice: “You can’t eat carbs or fruits because Sugars Cause & Feed Cancer”

I’m not going to sugar coat this one 😉

SUGAR IS NOT A CAUSE FOR CANCER.

When you look at the overall body of evidence, you will see that:

All cells need sugar, including cancer cells — this doesn’t mean it makes them grow.
Cancer cells adapt — so if you don’t feed them carbs, they will just find another source to “fuel” them.
This should go without saying, but you are not a rat or a Petri dish, and your body is more complicated than what you see in a dish.
The association you actually see is with obesity—not sugar.
Carrying too much fat releases proteins called adipokines that can damage DNA and cause tumors.
Naturally occurring sugars found in fruits, vegetables, and whole grains are all needed to help maintain muscle and weight during cancer treatment and have been shown to help fight cancer.

Being overweight or obese is linked to an increased risk of at least 13 different types of cancer, including breast, liver, and colon cancer.

And before you freak out:

No.

Sugar does not cause obesity, and sugar does not make you fat. However, it does not mean it does not contribute to obesity.

And the sugar in fruit especially does not make you fat either.

But, if you are struggling with belly fat and want to lose weight, check out my article on how to lose belly fat after chemo

Avoiding sugar—and especially avoiding fruits because of the sugar—is bad advice. Cancer survivors who eat more fruits and vegetables heal and recover better from cancer.

⚠ Worst Advice: “You Can only eat organic when you are going through cancer and you need to detox the chemo through juicing”

Let me start off by saying fruits and vegetables are incredible for you!

And if you want to improve your health, you should eat more fruits and vegetables.

That being said, no—you do not need to eat only organic or juice.

If that is the only way you can currently feed yourself because of the way the cancer has affected your head and neck, that is ok.

But for anyone else, juicing is not necessary. In fact, you will get more benefits from eating the actual fruit itself.

So, instead of worrying about whether or not you should juice, focus on getting two fruits and three vegetables a day.

What type of fruit and vegetables doesn’t really matter, but emphasizing red, green, orange, and yellow fruits and veggies seem to be the best.

Overall, the benefits of fruits and vegetables seem to come from their cancer-fighting properties and fiber, but if you are looking for healthy food to add to your grocery list, click here to learn about 67 foods than can help fight cancer.

⚠Worst Advice: “Soy Causes Cancer and is Bad For Hormone-Positive Breast Cancer Survivors”

Contrary to what social media will tell you, soy is actually extremely healthy for you, and women who eat soy have better survival.

Soy foods are naturally cholesterol-free, low in saturated fat, and high in fiber.

In fact, studies show that a lifelong diet rich in soy foods reduces the risk of breast cancer in women.

The idea that soy is bad is because soy contains isoflavones.

Isoflavones are plant estrogen that can “mimic” estrogen in humans.

However, food sources of soy don't contain high enough levels of isoflavones to increase the risk of breast cancer.

So, there is no reason to worry about soy and breast cancer risk.

But what can increase your risk of breast cancer is isoflavone supplements.

Soy or isoflavone supplements, on the other hand, contain higher levels of isoflavones, which, in some cases, have been associated with an increased risk of breast cancer.

One of the major benefits of eating soy is that it is high in fiber and high in protein, which can be tremendous for maintaining muscle mass, increasing energy, and improving your overall health.

Getting enough protein is essential for fighting cancer. If you are struggling with that, check out my blog on how to get enough protein to fight off cancer.

⚠Worst Advice: “Positive attitude is enough to cure cancer”

A positive attitude does increase your survival, but not because it magically helps guide cells to help fight cancer,

but rather, having a positive attitude can help you reduce stress, increase your faith and hope, and help you strive for a healthier lifestyle.

It gives you a reason and a purpose to keep pushing forward, rather than “giving up.”

So, working on having a positive attitude through cancer treatment is good, but it is dangerous to rely only on a positive attitude.

Your body needs the right medicine to help you cure and fight off cancer.

Proper medication and therapy are the foremost priority when it comes to fighting cancer, but your positive attitude is your foremost priority to help fight off the challenges cancer brings.

That being said, finding peace, learning how to live a healthy lifestyle, and knowing that what you are doing is working all help make the process easier.

⚠ Worst Advice: “It Doesn’t matter what you eat as long as you do eat”

Your lifestyle does have an impact on your cancer survival, and eating the right foods is part of your survival.

About 45% of all cancer deaths could have been prevented with proper lifestyle changes, such as:

Abstaining from tobacco
Eating a healthy diet
Exercising
Getting Vaccinated
Using protection during sexual intercourse
Wearing sunscreen
Getting enough sunlight
Avoiding pollution
Maintaining a healthy body weight

And more, but when it comes to nutrition, what you eat and drink does matter.

Recent research has shown that cancer survivors who eat more processed food have higher rates of death.

This has been shown in:

lung
prostate
colorectal

Cancer survivors. In addition, other research has shown that high rates of processed food increase risk of cardiovascular disease by 65% in cancer survivors.

Yet, it is amazing how many times I have heard oncologist tell their patients

“Eat whatever and drink whatever you want. Continue eating what you were eating before.”

Not realizing that words have power and that what you eat can increase the risk of recurrence.

I’ve heard oncologists tell their patients to eat McDonalds and drink beer to maintain their weight. This is one of the worst things you can tell a cancer survivor.

That advice has never been considered healthy.

How does it become healthy now?

⚠ Worst Advice: “You need to rest. You shouldn’t Exert yourself.”

30 years ago—and even sometimes today—it was common for oncologists to advise cancer survivors to rest and avoid exerting themselves,

but as research grows, we now know this is some of the deadliest, worst advice one could give a cancer survivor.

The more sedentary you are—meaning, the less you exert yourself—the worse your side effects are.

For example:

Sitting is associated with worse cancer survival when compared to patients who exercise.
Loss of muscle mass is associated with poor survival.
Men and women with lower fitness capacity have a high risk of early death.
Muscular weakness increases risk of poor survival after

So, yes, “rest” and “don’t exercise” is terrible advice—some of the worst you can receive.

Further research is now showing that

It’s not a matter of whether exercise is good for cancer survivors but rather how you should exercise.

So, to get the best results, focus on the following tips we provide for all of our online coaching clients:

After surgery/radiation:

1. Follow the surgeon’s guidelines, get cleared for exercise, and ask if you can still exercise other parts of your body.

For example, if it was upper-body surgery, can you still do leg exercises? And if it was lower-body surgery, can you do upper-body exercises?

2. “Rest" does not mean “be sedentary”.

9/10 times, walking is still acceptable after surgery. Even after a hysterectomy, walking can help you prevent blood clots.

3. Monitor for signs and symptoms of lymphedema or flare-ups, and wear proper clothing, including loose-fitting clothing that does not irritate the surgical site and compression sleeves when needed.

If you have bone metastases:

1. Exercise with a certified cancer exercise trainer, exercise physiologist, or physical therapist who has experience in cancer care. Look for CETI or ACSM certifications for cancer care.

2. Avoid bending, twisting, and vigorous or heavy lifting on areas where metastases has occurred. Weight-bearing exercises in these areas should be avoided.

If you have an ostomy bag:

1. Make sure it's empty before exercise.

2. Clean the area before and after training.

3. Do seated exercises and avoid vigorous movements.

Lastly

When it comes to exercise and safety, there can be many special considerations to keep in mind, but this shouldn't stop you from exercising.

The best way to keep you healthy and safe is to work with a trained professional to best help you:

Create a plan so that you don’t have to and can focus on healing and recovering.
Keep you motivated and accountable so that so that you can reach your goals and see results faster.
Help you exercise in the safest, most effective way during and after treatment so that you don’t have to worry about taking more medication.

A proper exercise routine can decrease fatigue by 60%,

A proper diet can help you improve your survival.

Adequate sleep can improve your quality of life.

All three of these are the pillars of my online coaching.

So if you are ready to: