Help! with Diet For ER+/Pr+!!!

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Can anyone recommend a good book on recipes and diet for ER+/PR+?? Can I have low fat dairy? What about Caffeine? There is so much conflicting information on the web!!!! What foods do I need to avoid?? Thank you!!!

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  • Septmom
    Septmom Member Posts: 150
    edited May 2014

    Good questions! I have been wondering the same thing. I have cut down on wheat/gluten to reduce inflammation. No processed foods. I cut out dairy but started eating lowfat organic plain Greek yogurt to increase my protein during my taxol chemo and surgery. I was eating a ton of beans/legumes and it was hard getting my protein levels up during chemo. I have heard we need to cut out sugar. But I plan on seeing a naturopath next month to help me with diet and supplements. I would love to know of any good books on this topic. 

  • matsgirlie
    matsgirlie Member Posts: 54
    edited May 2014

    im doing the same thing but have cut out sugar and caffeine just want to make sure im on the right track! share what your naturopath has to say!!

  • juneping
    juneping Member Posts: 1,594
    edited May 2014

    i would start from this website...it didn't specify er/pr + but you can click on the food and it would tell you to eat more or in moderation. i like this website a lot.

    http://foodforbreastcancer.com/

  • Lenn13ka
    Lenn13ka Member Posts: 313
    edited May 2014

    The Whole Food Guide for Breast Cancer Survivors - A Nutritional Approach to Preventing Recurrence by Edward Bauman is an excellent book. It helped me understand  a lot about the right diet for breast cancer , including estrogen positive.

  • aussielovergirl
    aussielovergirl Member Posts: 46
    edited May 2014


    I've asked to see a nutritionist to ask some of these questions too.   Should meet her next week.  From what I have read it is important to get your alkaline/vs acidic levels correct and eat food that helps maintain an alkaline system.   I've also been told to avoid soy products.  But in general, we all know... eat leafy greens, eat dark berries, cut out sugar, fat, processed foods.. etc... I've added green tea every morning, aloe vera juice, and hibiscus tea.

  • MelissaDallas
    MelissaDallas Member Posts: 7,268
    edited May 2014

    Aussielover, your body self-regulates ph and the alkaline/acid thing is not true. My oncologists & breast surgeons (at an NCI cancer center)  have told me one serving of soy a day is fine, preferably not the soy protein isolate, but natural, such as tofu or edamame. Studies still show survival to be greater in women who eat soy and low-fat (NOT full fat) dairy. There is not a magic diet. The most important things are fruits & veggies, exercise, and most of all, maintaining a healthy body weight-however you can manage that and what works for you.

  • matsgirlie
    matsgirlie Member Posts: 54
    edited May 2014

    I'm finding pretty much everything has mixed findings. one expert will say no caffeine, then another will say coffee prevented recurrences in women in sweden; or red wine prevents recurrence and then again don't drink alcohol. same goes for dairy and soy and sugar. ugh! Im starting to realize no one really knows. . .

  • kuriatas
    kuriatas Member Posts: 11
    edited May 2014

    I like a book called "Fight Now: Eat and Live Proactively Against Breast Cancer" by Aaron Tabor, MD

    which gives you some quick things you can do immediately while you work out what changes you will be making for the future.  I also like the website www.foodforbreastcancer.org.  

    Also check out the FOCC diet, which stands for flax oil cottage cheese.  I was very intrigued by the information I found on this regimen, and since I liked mixing yogurt with fruit and nuts for breakfast anyway, I have just substituted the FOCC mixture for the yogurt and add a little stevia and cocoa along with berries and walnuts.  There are quite a few websites which talk about exactly what to use and how to mix correctly, just google FOCC diet.

  • gemini4
    gemini4 Member Posts: 532
    edited May 2014

    re coffee, there was a study in the last year that indicated better tamoxifen absorption/effectiveness among women who drink two cups of coffee daily.  Works for me!  :-)

  • cp418
    cp418 Member Posts: 7,079
    edited May 2014

    Recent articles have reported a link of high fat diets to estrogen positive breast cancers.  You can GOOGLE to find more articles.   http://www.medicaldaily.com/breast-cancer-risk-upped-high-fat-diet-tumors-related-estrogen-receptors-most-common-275640

    Also, I recently learned that using Almond Milk in smoothies neutralizes the acidity of many fruits such as berries.  This was in regards to patients with GI issues for acid-reflux and heart burn.

  • alaskamama
    alaskamama Member Posts: 91
    edited May 2014

    I also have found the foods for breast cancer website helpful, along with the book The Cancer-Fighting Kitchen. I'm with y'all on the basics -- avoid sugar, processed foods, simple carbs; eat fresh fruits and veggies, low-fat and hormone-free protein, etc. -- but my inspiration and creativity are flagging. I also am struggling with chronic inflammation (sigh) and am on some hateful drugs to control it. I believe the situation calls for a new cookbook.

    So.... Does anyone have suggestions for a good anti-inflammatory diet book?

    Many thanks in advance.

  • SpecialK
    SpecialK Member Posts: 16,486
    edited May 2014

    alaskamama - The Virgin Diet Cookbook is an anti-inflammatory food sensitivity book - it has made a huge difference for me, but I will warn you it requires a lot of dedication.  I have been doing it since the first of January and have lost 22 pounds and no longer have any joint pain from AIs.

  • alaskamama
    alaskamama Member Posts: 91
    edited May 2014

    Thanks, Special! I just looked it up and am intrigued ... I do love me some eggs but I suppose I could use some good dairy-free recipes. I have no food allergies and don't need to lose weight but I really want to address inflammation. 

    I had to laugh at the reviewer who said the cost of one recipe works out to about $60 to feed a family of four. I have always tried to feed my family well but sometimes I weigh how much it's really worth it.... today I passed up $8 organic powdered milk (needed 2 T for a bread recipe) in favor of $5 regular powdered milk. Am now angsting about whether that $3 was worth the potential risk! But with $5 organic eggs, $4/pound organic apples, $4 organic dark chocolate (the other things in my basket) where does it end...?? I wish insurance would cover some of the food we're eating to try to reduce our need for drugs and interventions!

  • alaskamama
    alaskamama Member Posts: 91
    edited May 2014

    kuriatas: the Fight Now book sounds interesting -- when I googled it I only found a kindle edition. Do you know if you can get it in tangible form?

  • SpecialK
    SpecialK Member Posts: 16,486
    edited May 2014

    alaskamama - my former boss did this eating plan to reduce inflammation - she is a licensed medical technologist in transfusion services and had pretty severe hand pain from arthritis - she needed to maintain manual dexterity to maintain her license. She has no pain at all now, this worked very well for her. I had typical AI induced joint pain, and it took about four months before it subsided. The weight I have lost was weight gained from steroids during chemo and on Femara and Arimidex. I now weigh less than before diagnosis. Initially I spent more for food that was organic and to stock up on thing I didn't    normally buy, but now that has dropped off because I spend no money on anything processed or from the list of things I no longer eat. This would be harder to do if I was feeding a family, but it is just my husband and I. My grocery bill is pretty much the same as it was before.

  • juneping
    juneping Member Posts: 1,594
    edited May 2014

    my grocery bill is 3x more than before. i am only feeding myself and i bring lunch to work. 

    i ate out more often and didn't bring lunch before dx...

    i think i end up spending less money on food after all.

  • yensmiles
    yensmiles Member Posts: 260
    edited May 2014

    alaskamama, i think the organic food would pay off in the long run when you feel healthier and your whole family is healthier! :)

    and concerning anti-inflammation, I've been using turmeric (powder for cooking and raw root) daily since diagnosis, and also supplements of fish oil, and i find that i have a lot less "aches" in my body/legs which happens when i'm on my feet for two long or sit cross-legged on the floor for hours (i like working on my laptop that way, and watching tv too). I think it's the anti-inflammatory effect of these two things which helped.

    Curcumin(in turmeric) is anti-cancer, so it's a lovely addition to my diet! Try using it! 

  • alaskamama
    alaskamama Member Posts: 91
    edited May 2014

    Special -- I ordered it!

    Yen and June et al... yes, I also figure there's some savings due to not eating out or buying lattes or anything ... and I'm committed to eating and feeding my family well. Still, there's this funny emotional thing where some days I feel like I can't afford it and some days I feel like I can't afford not to do it.... 

    Thanks for the encouragement. I cook with a lot of curry-type spices and eat a lot of salmon. I realize these sources provide my body orders of magnitude less in terms of quantity than supplements, but I'm not quite ready to commit to supplements.

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