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More and more it is proven that everything we eat is reflected in our health, everyone knows the importance of diet and its great influence on people’s health, but the question is what happens inside the intestine? In the intestine live microorganisms that make up the intestinal flora and that affect the proper functioning of the body, whether at the mental level, in the cardiovascular part, weight gain, sleep, so food should be consumed not in quantity but with quality to nourish these microorganisms through your diet.
Intestinal microbes carry out a process whereby the food we consume transforms it into enzymes, hormones, vitamins, and other metabolites that influence all the internal processes of our organs and on which many chronic diseases depend.
At birth, the intestinal tract is colonized by microorganisms and bacteria that generate different processes in the body, so we must pay attention to the daily diet and that is the way to improve the intestinal microbiota, so we must include daily prebiotics and probiotics.
Prebiotics serve as food for the beneficial bacteria that we harbor in our intestines, probiotics can improve intestinal transit, helping to reduce constipation or diarrhea and improve certain disorders associated with irritable bowel syndrome.
Probiotic foods contain live microorganisms, and their objective is to maintain or improve the intestinal microbiota, probiotics are found in fermented foods such as dairy products (natural yoghurt and kefir), in pickled vegetables, such as pickles, sauerkraut, carrots, tomatoes etc., and in the sourdough bread.
There are other foods that contain some of the probiotic bacteria of our intestinal flora, so they selectively contribute to its regeneration. Fruits, vegetables, and seeds which are a source of natural bacteria that are very beneficial for our body.
Legumes also have natural probiotics: As we can see, there are foods rich in bacteria that help regenerate the intestinal flora, as well as keep it healthy. With an active and healthy intestinal flora, we will be able to improve our health and feel good about ourselves.
Likewise, it is true that these vast communities of microbes are the basis for good health and well-being besides the proper functioning of the body. Our daily diet, our environment and our lifestyle depend on this, most importantly in shaping your gut microbiome than genetics.
We must try to use more herbs and spices; in the same way it is advisable to use a variety of vegetables and green leaves instead of using a single type of lettuce for salads. Adding a variety of fruits to breakfast, adding several different vegetables, and eating more nuts, seeds, beans, and grains is good for the microbiome, so the “good” microbes get plenty of fiber.
Just as there are good foods that help us care for and protect our intestinal flora, there are also others that do not, such as highly processed foods such as sausages, sauces, ice cream, alcohol, sugary soft drinks, etc., since these have too many chemicals, dyes and preservatives.
To conclude, we must remember that there are foods that favor the growth of the “good” bacteria in the intestine so they can fight the “bad” ones, ensuring a perfect balance of the intestinal flora that strengthens our defenses and our health.
References:
Alícia, F. (2020, 28th April). La dieta que beneficia más a nuestra microbiota intestinal. La Vanguardia. Taken from, https://www.lavanguardia.com/comer/tendencias/20200426/48687625425/microbiota-intestinal-alimentos-dieta-fundacion-alicia.html
Ponce, I. G. (2021, 25th January). Qué alimentos pueden cuidar la flora intestinal. CuidatePlus. Taken from, https://cuidateplus.marca.com/alimentacion/nutricion/2021/01/21/alimentos-cuidar-flora-intestinal-175883.html
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Studies in the last two decades have suggested that the regular use of aspirin can have another important benefit: lowering the risk of suffering some types of cancer or dying because of them. In addition, to being an analgesic, anti-inflammatory and antipyretic, it helps, according to research, to prevent the heart attack and stroke, it also reduces mortality from cardiovascular disease, reduces the risk of depression in older people, fights arthritis and rheumatic fever, prevents the formation of clots. Moreover, it is recommended in patients with retinopathy. Also, the list is longer thanks to its beneficial role in cancer.
According to the researchers, “aspirin has been proposed as a treatment to reduce cancer mortality because it can slow the growth of the disease through the inhibition of cyclooxygenase 2, which promotes inflammation and cell proliferation, and platelet aggregation, which can delay the metastatic spread of cancer.
Aspirin may slow this spread of cancer cells through inhibition of platelet aggregation, in other words, the use of aspirin seems to reduce the risk of colorectal cancers that produce large amounts of COX-2.
It is said that aspirin causes bleeding in the intestinal tract and in the brain; although, as a matter of fact, this has not been proven. The proven benefits of this drug go beyond than this hypothesis, but so far no study has observed an increased risk of serious bleeding or a threat to patients life, but, in the same way, patients should first consult their doctors about the suitability for starting its consumption, especially patients diagnosed with cancer, who should talk to their doctors to be evaluated and see the possibility of taking low-dose aspirin as part of their antitumor treatment.
References:
ABC.es. (2016, April 21st). Tomar aspirina incrementa en hasta un 20% la supervivencia en el cáncer. abc. Taken from, https://www.abc.es/salud/enfermedades/abci-tomar-aspirina-incrementa-hasta-20-por-ciento-supervivencia-cancer-201604202121_noticia.html
Aspirina para reducir el riesgo de cáncer. (2017, 23 febrero). Instituto Nacional del Cáncer. Taken from, https://www.cancer.gov/espanol/cancer/causas-prevencion/investigacion/aspirina
López, J. (2013, January 8th). La aspirina podría aumentar la supervivencia de pacientes mayores con cáncer de colon | Somos Pacientes. Somos Pacientes | La Comunidad de Asociaciones de Pacientes. Taken from, https://www.somospacientes.com/noticias/avances/la-aspirina-podria-aumentar-la-supervivencia-de-los-pacientes-mayores-con-cancer-de-colon/
Matey, P. (2019, October 20th). Un nuevo beneficio de la aspirina en el cáncer. alimente.elconfidencial.com. Taken from, https://www.alimente.elconfidencial.com/bienestar/2019-10-20/aspirina-aumenta-la-supervivencia-en-cancer-del-tracto-biliar_2289523/
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The basis of treatments aims to eradicate cancer cells, so we must fight to achieve the metabolic reprogramming of our body, new treatments are currently being developed based on nutritional strategies such as the keto or ketogenic. These diets are composed mainly of fatty acids, proteins, and carbohydrates. When the keto diet is used as an adjuvant in immunotherapy the results are much better than those that do not since this diet maximizes the therapeutic effectiveness in the treatment.
This is how the ketogenic or keto diet reduces oxidative stress, inflammation and cell signaling that occurs in response to insulin, so we must remember that the metabolism of cancer cells is altered, and this generates an increase in glucose in our body, for this reason we must understand that nutrition in immunotherapy treatment is very important and it is highly recommended to follow a ketogenic diet during treatment to further enhance the results.
The keto or ketogenic diet is characterized by the supply of high level of fat, an adequate protein requirement and the restriction of the flow of carbohydrates, which works as an adjuvant in the treatment and makes your organism react more easily and quickly to the treatment.
Due to the need to improve the health of our body progressively, dietitians and doctors have created treatments such as calorie restriction, already known for its aging and whose main objective is to reduce calorie intake, thus reducing glucose intake.
Caloric restriction directly affects numerous processes involved in the pathogenesis of cancer and there are several beneficial effects obtained on tumor regression, thus the keto diet is considered a positive alternative to improve cancer treatment and prognosis.
With the keto or ketogenic diet, we seek to reduce carbohydrates to also reduce the glucose levels and this works as fuel for cancer cells. With this diet the body gets into ketosis helping to deplete cancer cells of its energy supply, when this happens, the body becomes incredibly efficient and manages to convert all the fat into energy.
According to the aforementioned, it is necessary to take care of the diet during the immunotherapy treatment, including in fruits diets that do not have a high glycemic index, such as strawberries and blueberries, protein, vegetables, and fats. Also, including fiber, probiotics, and other recommendations given by your nutritional advisor; this to potentiate your treatment.
References:
Europa Press. (2019, 14th August). Un estudio sugiere el efecto anticancerígeno de la dieta cetogénica. infosalus.com. Taken from https://www.infosalus.com/nutricion/noticia-estudio-sugiere-efecto-anticancerigeno-dieta-cetogenica-20190814080842.html
Dieta keto y cáncer. (2021, 8th May). Dietfarma. Taken from https://www.dietfarma.com/dietas/dieta-keto-y-cancer
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In fact, “Man is what he eats” and this is important to the proper functioning of the intestine where the microbes are essential for health, therefore, sugar affects the intestinal microbiome, can cause weight gain, prediabetes and metabolic diseases, then we must take care of the food to protect the microbiomes that help with our immune system, it has been discovered that the consumption of sugar is the responsible of the elimination in the body of the filamentous bacteria which protect the cells Th17 which are the ones that regulate insulin in the body, which is why it regulates obesity and many chronic diseases that affect health.
Hence the importance of including probiotics in our diet which take care of the intestinal microbiome, in other words, they help the bacteria found in the intestine, which collaborate with the digestion and good absorption of food, it is believed that the microbiome of each person is unique and they play an important role in the body by being related to the immune system, which protects us from infections and diseases, if at any time this system is altered for any reason it could be bad for health, also affecting metabolism, in addition these alterations could affect the development of some type of cancer modifying the way in which the body reacts to these cancers and their treatments, since some cancer treatments use inflammation that can sometimes enhance the effectiveness of the treatments.
Day after day the relationship between the human microbiome and the development of cancer is studied, microbes can also stimulate the inflammatory reactions that cause cancer.
Currently we must consider that food is very important to maintain a healthy body, it is not only about how much food we consume but what we eat since everything has to do with a greater risk of acquiring chronic diseases, due to the high sugar consumption and constant inflammation considering that the immune system would have to be active much longer, thus it prevents the normal functioning of the body.
Generally, if we do not take care of the food that we acquire in our daily diet, we can somehow modify the microbiota that is in the intestine which has many important functions in our body and which help prevent inflammation that can affect our health. They help control cholesterol and glucose, weakening in this way the immune system.
Tumors are avid devourers of glucose, the essential fuel of cells, that is how, despite much research, there is still no proof that sugar increases the risk of cancer, it is known that it feeds it, but knowing how feeding cancer cells is still a challenge, in the same way it is recommended in immunotherapy treatment to deprive tumor cells of sugar, and therefore having a low-carbohydrate diet since this could improve the prognosis of cancer.
References:
Leitch, C. (2022, 4 September). Sugar Disrupts the Microbiome, Altering Immunity. Labroots. Taken on September 10 in 2022, from https://www.labroots.com/trending/microbiology/23504/sugar-disrupts-microbiome-altering-immunity
El Microbioma y Cáncer. (s. f.). CancerQuest. Taken on September 10 in 2022, from https://www.cancerquest.org/es/biologia-del-cancer/microbioma?gclid=Cj0KCQjw39uYBhCLARIsAD_SzMT3vHnnPHtnpsSE3QiKhbvttB13B-XISb3t_jKUGLaY9Y0vgTkX2BEaAjGHEALw_wcB
El azúcar y el cáncer. (s. f.). Taken on September 10 in 2022, from://www.ayudaalpacienteoncologico.org.ve/guias/21/el-azucar-y-el-cancer/
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It is very important that patients undergoing immunotherapy treatments have an excellent diet since the body could incorporate and process nutrients, minerals, and vitamins to generate repair processes.
We must improve and take care of the food that is eaten in the daily diet to maintain the necessary energy and vitality. In the same way, it is recommended to avoid sugar as much as possible in all its varieties, nor consume sugar substitutes such as Splenda and stevia. The consume of sugar can be harmful for the body since the microbes in our intestine are essential for our health and are affected by what we eat and when we increase the consume of sugar, we can change the composition of the gut microbiome. Sugar is also known to be the main cause of chronic diseases, prediabetes and metabolic diseases, diet and microbiome are related to the prevention of metabolic diseases and obesity.
We must keep in mind that food, healthiness, and well-being are the most important aspects in our life. Overall, we increasingly seek to improve our health, but especially when we must fight a disease such as cancer, and this includes consuming natural ingredients, healthy without artificial additives such as dyes. We can include foods that are highly rich in fibers, vitamins, or antioxidants, it is necessary to raise awareness about the importance of consuming nutrients with a high content of components that help to enhance our immunotherapy, thus, bringing an improvement in the state nutritional value. Also, it is important to mention that fruits, vegetables, and minerals are good examples where we can find nutrients, natural vitamins in combination with immunotherapy treatment, which help us increase the immune response of our body, in this way, we would have the ability to attack cancer cells.
Most cancer patients try various types of diet to improve the results of their treatments, some of them are the highly vegetarian or vegan diet, macrobiotic diet, ketogenic diet and intermittent fasting among others, as well as part of fiber, this diet includes dietary supplements, vitamin C, probiotics, melatonin, oral glutamine.
DIET RICH IN FIBER
It has been shown that cancer patients who consume a diet rich in fiber can live longer without cancer cells growing, so it is recommended to consume more fruits, vegetables, legumes, and whole grains to meet sufficient fiber benefits. Fiber helps not only to improve the intestinal part but also to improve health.
It is also true that probiotics improve the response in cancer treatments and the side effects of their immunotherapy treatment, for this reason the consumption of these is increasingly recommended, this is how intestinal microbes influence the response to treatment of immunotherapy, so it is advisable to consume probiotics, as well as include a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, legumes and whole grains, accompanied by physical activity, in order to obtain a better response to treatments.
The intestinal microbiota plays an important role in our health and is highly related to nutrition and metabolism. This interaction between the microorganisms that exist in the intestine is responsible for producing energy and vitamins, as well as helping to absorb iron and calcium found in the colon.
The intestinal microbiota has a function of protection against other germs, as well as helping the development of the immune system, which is increasingly recommended to include probiotics and prebiotics in the daily diet to help your body even more.
Intestinal bacteria are responsible for the proper functioning of the immune system, which is why taking care of the intestinal flora is so important due to in this way we can help the immune system to attack cancer and prevent not only infections but also metabolic and chronic diseases.
KETO DIET
The keto diet is a low-carbohydrate, high-fat eating plan that offers various health benefits. Also, in certain cases, starting a keto diet can prevent and/or control various complications associated with diseases such as cancer, diabetes, and Alzheimer’s.
The keto diet is a positive factor in preventing cancer. In addition, this diet is effective in reducing risk factors such as body fat, high blood pressure, high blood sugar levels, and HDL cholesterol levels. For this reason, it is extremely important to control these risk factors, since they are the cause of developing diseases such as Epilepsy, Cancer, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and Cerebrovascular Accidents.
Generally, improving and changing your diet is a very helpful factor to enhance your immunotherapy treatment. Besides, improving your diet is important for reducing risk factors such as body fat, high blood pressure, high blood sugar levels, and HDL cholesterol levels. For this reason, it is extremely important to control these risk factors through diet and minimize the side effects of their treatment.
The ketogenic diet is highly recommended and can be used as a complementary treatment in immunotherapy, due to the great contribution in reducing the levels of insulin and circulating glucose in your body.
The main objective in the ketogenic diet is to replace carbohydrates with a portion of healthy fats for the body as well as proteins and thus obtain a therapeutic effect against cancer, in this way with the ketogenic diet we implement an anticancer therapy by feeding healthy cells and weakening or starving the ill ones.
Below is an example of a keto diet that you can follow to improve your health and enhance your immunotherapy treatment.
KETOGENIC DIET
Ketosis produces a metabolic state similar to fasting, favoring a hostile environment for cancer cells without denying the body all the nutrients it needs. In many ways this hostile environment is achieved by the same mechanisms, such as low glucose levels and the inability of cancer cells to use ketone bodies for fuel.
The Ketogenic Diet is a special high-fat, low-carbohydrate, moderate-protein diet that is carefully controlled. The word “Ketogenic” means that a chemical, called ketones, is produced in the body.
This diet involves drastically reducing carbohydrates and replacing them with fat. This decrease puts the body into a metabolic state called ketosis.
When this happens, the body becomes incredibly efficient at converting all fat into energy. It also converts fat into ketones within the liver, which can supply more energy to the brain.
Ketogenic diets can cause reductions in blood sugar and insulin levels. This, along with increased ketones, provides numerous health benefits, turning your fats into fuel while you eat the food you love.
There are other foods that are highly recommended during and after your immunotherapy treatment, such as:
CAMU CAMU
Camu camu (Myrciaria dubia) is a native fruit from the Brazilian and Peruvian Amazon, which has been generating great attention by many researchers, due to its richness in components of interest for health, one of its main properties is its antioxidant functions for the prevention of cancer, due to its high percentage of anthocyanin, a substance that prevents the appearance of malignant cells in the human body. The consumption of this fruit is recommended since it is a great help in the prevention and treatment of prostate, pancreatic, liver and colon cancer, among others.
This fruit contains many natural antioxidant compounds and nutrients, so it is of great benefit to your diet during and after your treatment, as it is also used to prevent and heal various chronic and degenerative diseases, such as arthritis, type 2 diabetes, some types of cancer and cardiovascular problems.
This fruit, camu camu, provides richer natural nutrients of vitamin C.
The leaves also contain antioxidant and potentially anti-carcinogenic compounds, and the seeds may also have medicinal value for the prevention of various diseases of the immune system.
BLUEBERRIES
Studies have shown the properties of blueberries and their benefits in the prevention and how they help in the treatment against cancer.
Many investigations have found that the polyphenolic extracts of blueberries inhibit the growth and proliferation of the tumor cells such as breast, colon, prostate, lung and even esophageal.
Due to its antioxidant attributes, recent research has been carried out showing that this fruit helps fight against harmful substances generated by the body and strengthens the defense against cancer. We must keep in mind that there are approximately 100 billion bacteria in the intestine, which together are called the intestinal microbiota. These are mostly not harmful, rather they are beneficial and important for your health.
In the same way, it is recommended to eat other foods that help you feel better during this process, such as taking green tea, turmeric, turkey tail mushroom, black cumin seed oil, FOS prebiotics, vitamin E and vitamin D3. among others.
References:
Alemana, C. C. (2021, 6th August). Probióticos: Qué son y cómo benefician a la salud. Clínica Alemana. https://www.clinicaalemana.cl/articulos/detalle/2021/probioticos-que-son-y-como-benefician-a-la-salud
elEconomista.es. (2008, 11th February). Las propiedades anticancerígenas de los arándanos y las uvas. https://www.eleconomista.es/nutricion/noticias/360439/02/08/Las-propiedades-anticancerigenas-de-los-arandanos-y-las-uvas.html
Kneubuhler, T. (2020, 31st August). Camu camu: el fantástico potencial de la naturaleza para la alimentación. Duas Rodas. https://www.duasrodas.com/es/camu-camu-el-fantastico-potencial-de-la-naturaleza-para-la-alimentacion/
P, E. (2021, 28 December). Una dieta rica en fibra ayuda a contener al melanoma. El Periódico de Aragón. Recuperado 7 de septiembre de 2022, de https://www.elperiodicodearagon.com/salud/2021/12/28/dieta-rica-fibra-ayuda-contener-61096128.html
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In response to the study by Bessede, et al in regards to acetaminophen significantly reducing the response to immunotherapy, many have asked what they can take. First, I must mention that acetaminophen is not an anti-inflammatory, so it is not a great option for pain. If the patient can take a Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory (NSAID), such as aspirin, ibuprofen, naproxen, or celecoxib. These medications can help with pain and have anti-cancer properties that can improve the response to immunotherapy. Hopefully, you have read this in my book.
The other issue is patients with more serious pain need narcotic pain medications. Many of these, such as Norco, contains a combination of acetaminophen and hydrocodone. Patients must be extremely careful because I run into cases where they take acetaminophen and don’t even realize it. Even knowing about the acetaminophen study, some patients believe that taking just one or two Tylenol is not harmful. However, look closely at the study, and as little as one or two Tylenol may completely negate the effects of immunotherapy. I also have patients whose doctor says it is safe to take acetaminophen. Please know that doctors are human and have not read or know every study. Before this study, none of us knew the potential problems. However, it is important to get this information out to educate patients and doctors alike. Please discuss this with your doctor, but ensure they have seen the study. Doctors who have reached out to me have been surprised about this study.
In addition, just an FYI. Though we know many things that can help the response to immunotherapy, one study looking back at patients who had better response rates saw two things in common, they took aspirin and anti-histamines.
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