Cows milk

[Bray]

I have recently been in touch with a functional medical practitioner who has studied oncology from a diet perspective. She has told me that once you have a cancer You should cut dairy out of your diet as cows milk can accelerate cancer growth. I am trying this as there are a lot of other milks out there to try . Takes a bit of getting used to and I miss cheese . I am posting this to see if anyone else knows about it or has tried it . Personally I think anything is worth a try . Xx

[OvacomeSupport Partner My Ovacome Team]

Dear Bray,

Thank you very much for your post. I just wanted to share some information about milk and cancer from Cancer Research UK which considers the evidence that is available about this: cancerresearchuk.org/about-....

Macmillan Cancer Support also have some information about this which I hope will be helpful: macmillan.org.uk/cancer-inf...

Please don’t hesitate to get in touch if we can help with any further information about this or if you would like to talk anything through.

Best wishes,

Cathryn

Support Services

[Bray in reply to OvacomeSupport]

Thank you for the link to the articles on cancer and dairy. I am not suggesting that dairy causes cancer and thus no need to cut it out if you are healthy . However once you have an active cancer some studies have suggested that dairy can fuel the spread . I know that the main cancer research organisations do not support this but until they can offer a cure I think we have to look at all possibilities .

[Lovedogs41 in reply to Bray]

Hello

I have cut out dairy as I have researched myself than it can cause inflammation,which you don’t want when you have cancer,as like you say it can cause growth via IGF1,this is due to cows being given hormones for milk production.

I have swapped to oat milk.

[Bray in reply to Lovedogs41]

Yes I have found oat milk to be a good alternative . It makes a nice rice pudding xx

[Lovedogs41 in reply to Bray]

Yes I find it fine in coffee and on cerealI’m not so keen in a cup of tea so I’ve swapped to green tea instead which is also really good for you I’ve read.

[organicinna in reply to Bray]

Yes me too find that oat milk mist pleasant from all others alternative milks for me. Its also wicks very well in sick foam in my milk wicker, especially "barista" version. But we still using lactose free milks as a easy digest version. And we have 3 cats , so they given lactose free milk. Now am willing to try oat milk only, because I just had first reoccurrence and realised am eating lots of milk products like cheeses, yougurt , cream ( in sups mainly ...

[Tillymint61 in reply to Bray]

Please show a link to the studies that support your post. In order to give a balanced view it is important to do so. Thanks

[Lyndy]

I prefer to drink organic milk, mainly because I don’t like the thought of the poor cows being given hormones and antibiotics.

[organicinna in reply to Lyndy]

If you can trust label "organic" entirely. ..?))

[Lyndy in reply to organicinna]

Yes to use the label organic the product has to meet very strict standards laid down by the Soil Association x

[organicinna in reply to Lyndy]

Yes Lyndy , i sort of know that but still sceptical 😁, the was also lots of tv documentaries about "organic" foods and how producers tricking buyers etc.. Saying that still buying organic when i can, especially eggs, meats...

[Bray]

Yes that’s right Lyndy green tea is good but apparently in order to do good you need 6 cups a day I found that too many to drink so you can buy green tea tablets to augment it .xx

[organicinna in reply to Bray]

Am sometimes drink 6 cups of green tea a day...i love it all day long. Am buying big leaf loose nice green on Amazon .Recently switched to organic red bush tea , because its has such a nice intense red colour and i belive red is good ( apart from red meats perhaps ..😊

[Bray in reply to organicinna]

Yes red is supposed to be good as it contains a substance called querticine which is anti cancer . But yes avoid red meats xx

[Horsesrock]

I do the whole cancer diet thing. I sub cows milk with oat or almond (the latter a bit dodge from an environmental point of view). I think not eating sugar is the main thing. Best of luck x

[mrstadpole]

Very good information from the Ovacome link.I have found this aspect difficult as when you read that so many foods are bad for you if you have cancer.I tend to go along with a good ,healthy and balanced diet so that you avoid other conditions such a osteoporosis,heart disease etc which can make living conditions much worse.Also so many of these super foods e.g turmeric are needed in such large quantities to be useful.

[Lyndy in reply to mrstadpole]

Exactly x

[Cropcrop]

I would just add a note to remind us all of the importance of calcium for our bones when reducing or eliminating dairy intake. As we all know, our oestrogen levels drop following the removal of our ovaries and our ability to maintain strong bones reduces so it’s so important to try to have a healthy intake from our diet to reduce bone density loss,

There are alternatives to dairy that can help with the maintenance of calcium in our bodies some of these are:

Dark, leafy, green vegetables. Nuts and seeds.

Canned salmon and sardines.

Dried figs.

Soy, almond and rice milk.

Tofu.

Beans and lentils.

Edamame beans (soy)

All of these I really like and have them alongside dairy.

I think as long as we have a well balanced and healthy diet we can help ourselves to flourish.

Stay as well as is possible lovely ladies ❤️Xx Jane

[K95m]

Dear Bray

Yes there is plenty of evidence regarding meat and dairy fuelling cancer. The WHO classes meat and processed meat as class 1 carcinogens and put it in the same vein as smoking.

Most organisations don’t go along with this, indeed some cancer charities in America have direct links in the form of sponserships with the meat and dairy industry.

There is a terrible reluctance to to even consider that what we are eating may be contributing to cancers, heart disease and other modern day illnesses. It’s something I cannot fathom !!

If your interested in diet and cancer then I recommend 2 books that really show that there is a link :

1. The China Study by T. Colin Campbell.

1. How not to die by Docoter Michael Gregor.

Good luck

Kay

[bamboo89 in reply to K95m]

I wish I'd found Dr. Michael Greger's stuff years before I got cancer - he's a very good source of information regarding food and its impact on human health (including heart and vascular disease) generally, regardless of cancer.

M

[bamboo89]

I gave up processed foods and dairy (along with chicken, meat and eggs, more or less) just after my debulking surgery in early 2018, went more or less vegan. I did it to try to change my gut bacteria, since research seems to suggest there may be a metabolic disorder connection with cancer, and the range of gut bacteria a person has makes an impact. I still miss cheese hugely, but I discovered it was cheese in particular and dairy generally that was causing my aura migraines, with which I'd been absolutely plagued for the preceding few years, and which now does not occur at all UNLESS I give in to temptation and eat a little cheese... I use organic soya milk instead, don't even notice it in my Earl Grey tea either, though I found almond (too nutty) and oat milk (too sweet) not quite such good substitutes.

I do now eat some meat occasionally, chicken very, very rarely, an egg maybe once a month at most, and I do include a lot more vegetable/fruit and other foods that are anti angiogenic to try to slow the cancer proliferation down; I tend to eat more seafood than previously, along with a lot more pulses, nuts, seeds and beans. There is some evidence from the US regarding regular egg and chicken consumption and a more rapid reappearance of a person's cancer, but it's quite difficult to separate out the fact that American foodstuffs may contain substances which they don't contain in the UK, and it may be those causing the problem rather than the animal protein itself, so the picture is by no means clear.

Whether what I have done has made any difference I can't say - I was stage 4b at diagnosis in January 2018, and went two years after surgery with no treatment at all, having refused adjuvant chemo, although I have since had chemotherapy. Leaving out dairy was, though, the best thing I ever did because it got rid of the awful migraines - every cloud, I suppose🤔

Miriam

[Ruebacelle]

Hi. Don't know about that but cow dairy is the most acidic. I gave it up 20 years ago and do Soy milk and goat or sheep yogurt

[OvacomeSupport Partner My Ovacome Team]

Hi everyone

Thank you for all your replies and for sharing your thoughts on this topic. We recognise that diet is very much an individual choice, and that different approaches work for different people. if you are considering cutting out certain food groups, you can ask your oncologist or clinical nurse specialist for a referral to a specialist dietitian who will be able to ensure that you continue to get the nutrients you need. Here is some more information on the subjects discussed, which I hope may be helpful:

The World Cancer Research Fund have some resources on Cancer Prevention Recommendations which can be found here: wcrf.org/diet-and-cancer/ca... - These recommendations come from their most recent Expert Report and from the conclusions of an independent panel of experts. One of their recommendations is to ‘Eat no more than moderate amounts of red meat and little, if any, processed meat’, with more details about the evidence behind this available here: wcrf.org/dietandcancer/limi... - Please note that these recommendations have been written with cancer prevention in mind, rather than focusing on people who already have been diagnosed with cancer.

Cancer Research UK also have some information about red meat that may be of interest: cancerresearchuk.org/about-... - This explains the link between consumption of processed meats and increased risk of primary colorectal cancer.

In addition, regarding IGF1 in dairy products, the Committee of Carcinogenicity explained in 2018 that ‘Very few of the available studies in humans have linked cancer risk, diet and circulating IGF-1 concentrations. Where it has been investigated, there is no evidence of any association between milk or dairy consumption and cancer risk.’ If you are interested in reading further details on this, please visit: assets.publishing.service.g...

If anyone is interested in learning more about the evidence base for certain dietary approaches, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with our support team. You can call our support line on 0800 008 7054 or 07503 682 311, message us through this forum, or send us an email via [e-mail]. We’re here Monday – Friday, 10am – 5pm.

Best wishes

Annie – Ovacome support

[bluepeterella]

I was vegan for a while, even though not so now I can't bear the taste of cow's milk since. Cheese is a different matter! I like the milk substitutes but the list of ingredients puts me off, for example most oat milk is made with rapeseed oil, yeuch.

Since my last recurrence I had terrible digestive issues, and started drinking raw goat's milk kefir every morning to counter this, and I'm now addicted. I found it quite hard to balance the dairy aspect with the healthy microbiome aspect, but I've come to the conclusion not to think too hard about it. It's all a bit of a lottery in the end.

[K95m]

Hi Bray

If you have Netflix then there are 3 very good documentaries on there that I really recommend you have a look at:

1. . Cowspiracy.

2. What the Health.

3. Seaspiracy.

[Bray in reply to K95m]

Thanks I do have Netflix I will have a look xx

[K95m]

What the health is about food and health. The other 2 docs are mainly about the effects of meat and dairy on the planet .

[SopSinger]

I've never cut out, or even reduced, dairy, and I've been cancer free for almost 16 years. I completed chemo in November 2006.