On Nutrition

One aspect of my life that I have power over is what I choose to put into my body. As a stage IV cancer survivor, I believe that food is one of the strongest therapies that I have to help keep the weed of cancer in check.

Friends and family ask me if I am still following the Gerson Therapy. I have never been able to follow the full recommended therapy to the letter, but I have taken principles from what I understand to be the philosophy and basic fundamentals of the dietary approach to healing. First off, I believe that my body is capable of fighting my cancer.

After my initial diagnosis of Melanoma in 1998, I lived in remission for nine years without chemo or any other therapy. To me this means that my body was keeping this cancer weed in check. I was vegetarian and generally ate very well. I was athletic and also drank alcohol but not to an excessive degree. I believe that I without knowing that I still had cancer in my system, I was helping my body to keep it in check via the choices I was making in my diet.

The principles that I follow from the Gerson therapy include

• drink as much fresh organic fruit juice as is reasonable, for me this is about 4 cups daily
• eat a vegetarian diet consisting primarily of fresh and organic fruit, vegetables, and grains
  
• follow an 80/20 ratio of allowing myself to eat 20% of things which are not vegetarian organic things, such as sushi
• avoid refined sugars and flour most of the time
• avoid alcohol
• avoid taking prescription and over the counter drugs when possible
• use appropriate dietary supplements, guided by Gerson therapy recommendations
  
• use coffee enemas twice daily, when possible, to assist the gut with elimination of waste products and toxins
  

I do not see this path a way to "save myself" but rather as a way to enjoy a healthier and possibly longer life. I do not have any hard evidence that following this regiment is helping my body, but I believe that choosing to put primarily fresh organic foods into my body will increase my quality of life, even if it does not prolong my life.

The 80/20 rule lets me justify stepping away from the rules of my diet for a special occasion, or even an occasional craving for Afghani pizza. Flexibility and taking pleasure in eating are equally important to me as putting healthy food into my body daily.