Feeling guilty/and like a bad mom!!

KP1970

Feeling guilty/and like a bad mom!!

KP1970

It has been 18 months since my diagnosis and while I have been trying to eat healthy since then, I admit to probably eating more sugar than I should (I have a HUGE sweet tooth and always have). I bought a few books about getting the sugar out of your diet and the dangers of using artificial sweeteners (which I have also done) and now I am feeling like 1) my breast cancer was probably caused by all the sugar I have eaten over the years and 2) I have not only done harm to myself but possibly my three young children (I have given them treats made with Splenda, for example).

I am so depressed after reading these books. One of them is written by Dr. Joseph Mercola. I am going to check out his website; he has another book on how to eat (not just telling about the dangers of sugar and other "junk" in our diet). In the meantime, I have been taking notice of the ingredient lists in various foods I buy for my family and I am shocked at the fact that so many "healthy" foods that I have been buying (thinking that I am doing a great thing for my family) are loaded with sugar! Who would have thought that there is high fructose corn syrup in 100% whole wheat bread??! That HFCS seems to be in a lot of things and from what I've read, it is WAY worse than regular table sugar!

Do any of you follow a special diet or have any recommendations/advice?  What CAN we eat???! :-O

LaughingWater

I'm all for eating better and have been making healthy changes myself, but I wouldn't blame yourself for your breast cancer.  Until tons of well-run studies (not theories and limited studies) are done and have proven without a doubt that Food X causes cancer, I'm going to point the finger at DNA.

I work Superfoods into my diet, try to keep my calorie intake reasonable (which includes modifying favorite recipes), exercise and try not to cheat myself of sleep.    Everything else, I figure, is beyond my control.

NancyD

Yes, HFC is in everything, but I doubt it has played directly into breast cancer...other things like obesity, yes, and maybe THAT has contributed to BC. But a healthy exercise regimen can counter that. I think one of the other insideous ingredients we have to watch out for in prepared foods is all the soy that is in there.

The jury is still out on whether it acts as an estrogen substitute and plays havoc with ER+ BC, but if I can reduce or elminate it from my diet, I will be happier. Untill a few years ago, the soy that they put in our foods now was considered a manufacturing byproduct...waste from other uses of soy. Then they started using it as a filler, and soybean oil became prolific. I don't worry about the small amounts of soy emulsifier that's used in many foods, but when the first things listed on the salad dressing label is soybean oil, I put it down and look for one that doesn't use it.