JOURNAL ON NUTRITION AND CHEMOTHERAPY (original) (raw)

Chemotherapy is the use of drugs or chemicals to treat cancer. Our bodies are made up of billions of cells, each with a special function. Some cells make up organs in the body, such as the heart, lungs, and kidneys. Other cells perform specific functions, such as fighting an infection or carrying oxygen to your tissues. In a healthy body, these normal cells work together. However, normal cells sometimes change into abnormal, or cancer, cells. Cancer cells do not work properly to help the body. They grow out of control and harm or crowd normal cells. Cancer cells also can break away and travel to other parts of the body. This may produce side effects that can affect eating, such as: Loss of appetite, Feeling sick (nausea), feeling tired (fatigue), having a sore mouth, having a sore throat and trouble swallowing, having a dry mouth, Changes in taste and smell and Constipation or diarrhoea. Good nutrition can: help you to cope better with treatment side effects and to recover sooner, help wounds and damaged tissues to heal better. This is important before and after surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy or other medical treatment, improve your body's immune system, its natural defence, so you are better able to fight infection and help you to maintain muscle strength, stay a healthy weight, and have enough energy for everyday tasks and to feel better in yourself. The following are the recommendation to cope with the side effects of chemotherapy; Good nutrition should be practiced during chemotherapy and radiotherapy because these treatment methods may lead to loss of nutrients from the body hence impaired nutrition i.e. high calorie, high protein ,low fat, low salt and a lot of fruits and vegetables, A lot of water to be encouraged that's 2 litres per day to help in removing chemical toxins from the body and replace water lost during the treatment, Physical activity for 30-45 minutes to be encouraged to prevent other complications such as overweight, obesity, The side effects of chemotherapy should be treated to avoid impaired nutrition of the people on the treatment and Monthly checkup of anthropometrics to be done to check the abnormalities. Good nutrition restores good health to those on chemotherapy.