Ovarian Cancer Diet

Are you at greater risk for getting ovarian cancer? If so, you probably already know that you can try and reduce your chances of getting the disease by having babies, breastfeeding and using birth control pills. But you can also reduce your risk of getting ovarian cancer by following the ovarian cancer diet. What is an ovarian cancer diet? It is simply a diet that helps prevent ovarian cancer tumors from developing. And if you already have ovarian cancer, a proper ovarian cancer diet will help control some of your symptoms. More details on the type of ovarian cancer diet you should follow are provided below.

Increase Your Consumption of Fruits and Vegetables

The first most essential element of the ovarian cancer diet is increasing how many fruits and vegetables you eat. You will want to take special note of carrots and tomatoes, as these foods have the nutrients carotene and lycopene, which have been shown to be excellent at fighting cancer. As far as how many fruits and vegetables you need to eat, some studies have indicated that just one serving of each everyday can reduce your risk. However, one serving of fruits and vegetables is not only too few for an ovarian cancer diet, it is too few even for a regular diet. So, try to get in at least 5 or 6, as this is what is recommended by the Food Pyramid.

Drink Tea

Tea is good for the ovarian cancer diet because it contains the flavoid Apigenin, which have been shown to lower one’s risk of getting the disease. Tea has also been shown to be beneficial at preventing other cancers as well. However, try to limit the use of sugar or sweeteners for your tea. Instead, consider drinking teas that do not need a sweetener, (such as green tea), or use honey.

Decrease Your Dairy Consumption

A good ovarian cancer diet will limit how much dairy a woman eats. Try to eat less than two servings of dairy each day. If calcium is a concern, you can consider taking a multi-vitamin or getting a calcium supplement.

Don’t Eat Too Much Fat

An ovarian cancer diet should not contain foods that have a lot of saturated fat in them. If you must eat fat, eat a little bit of polyunsaturated fat or monounsaturated fat. Polyunsaturated fat can be found in salmon and corn, while monounsaturated fat can be found in nuts and olive oil. These fats not only add flavor to your food, but they also help keep you full while the build-up of bad cholesterol in your blood.

Consider Ginkgo Biloba

The final element of the ovarian cancer diet involves consumption of the herbal supplement Ginkgo Biloba. In recent studies this herb has been shown to significantly reduce a woman’s ovarian cancer risk. And best of all, this herb is readily available at most health food stores. However, make sure you let your doctor know you are taking it, since even herbs can cause complications in people.

Ovarian Cancer Symptoms

The symptoms of ovarian cancer are usually pretty easy to spot. Symptoms include problems with digestion, abdominal pains and swelling, problems with gas and regularly experiences nausea. These are the signs that you will first see, as the cancer develops more symptoms will be seen.

Ovarian Cancer Survival Rates

It’s a shame but only 35 percent of women who get ovarian cancer will survive the terrible cancer. Researchers however are searching for a new drug which will increase the chance of ovarian cancer suffers surviving, initial research has been positive however it will be some time before they find a drug that cures cancer completely.