High Calorie,
High Protein Diet
for cancer and other health conditions
When your goal is to optimize your nutrition status, following a high-calorie, high-protein diet can be beneficial to heal and getting strong. Particularly if you have lost weight, are underweight, and when your body is burning more calories and protein than usual.
Based on evidence-based medicine, many cancers often increase resting energy expenditure meaning the body burns more calories. Hence the risk of losing muscle mass if the person with cancer is not meeting the calorie and protein demands (1, 2, 3).
Other health conditions, such as HIV, AIDS, and wounds, such as pressure injuries and burns, increase your body's need for protein and calories due to metabolic demands, repair tissues and cells, and recover faster.
When your body uses large amounts of energy, you may lose or have difficulty gaining weight. Adding extra calories and protein to your diet may help you maintain strength and gain or stop unintended weight loss.
Unintended weight loss during cancer treatment means one needs more calories and protein.
Choosing foods rich in nutrients, vitamins, and minerals and higher in protein and calories can help you increase your calorie intake while still eating a healthy diet.
According to a 2020 study published in the National Library of Medicine, too much weight loss can affect the cancer patient's quality of life. In addition, rapid weight loss can delay cancer treatment.
It is important to emphasize that a high-calorie diet does not mean unhealthy calories but rather the opposite. One must choose foods to nourish the body and help heal it.
According to medical studies, maintaining adequate body weight and preserving lean body mass through adequate nutrition benefit patients with cancer. In addition, adequate protein intake is essential during all stages of cancer treatment, recovery, and long-term survival (4).
Generally, people who have more muscle mass tend to have less severe side effects of cancer treatment (5). Therefore, adding foods high in protein to every meal and snack is very important.
Though you might not feel like eating with a poor appetite, it's important to do what you can to maintain your calorie, protein, and fluid intake during cancer treatment.
Strategies to Eat More Calories and Nutrients
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Eat small, frequent meals every 3 hours.
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Prepare homemade shakes and smoothies.
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Drink oral nutrition supplements.
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Choose nutrient-dense foods and increase the amount of healthy fats, proteins, and carbohydrates in your meals and beverages.
Adding More Carbohydrates
Choose complex carbohydrates, limit added sugars, and incorporate a variety of whole plant-based foods. Complex carbohydrates are rich in fiber, vitamins, and minerals.
The best complex carbohydrates are whole grains, starchy vegetables, beans, and legumes.
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Add sides of potatoes, sweet potatoes, and butternut squash to meals.
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Eat more whole grains like quinoa, amaranth, wild rice and oats.
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Beans, lentils, and chickpeas to your favorite meals.
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Add slices of whole grain bread or toast to eggs, oatmeal, pasta, and other meals.
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Add maple syrup and fruits like bananas and berries to toast, pancakes, and waffles.
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Eat warm cereals like oatmeal, cream of wheat, cream of rice, grits, porridge, and cornmeal.
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Eat cold cereals like buckwheat, soy and wheat flakes, barley, rice, and corn cereals.
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Eat fruits in all forms including fresh fruit and cold pressed juices.
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Add fruits like bananas, raisins, or berries to cereals, oatmeal, and yogurt.
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Eat pancakes, waffles, empanadas, crackers, tortillas, injera, cornbread, granola, and other foods made from whole grains.
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Natural sweeteners such as honey, maple, agave syrup, and others like jam, and preserves add extra calories.
Adding More Fats
Choose healthier monounsaturated and omega-3 fats, such as nuts, seeds, olives, avocado, salmon, sardines, cod, tuna, and others - these bring positive effects to your body, including fighting inflammation.
Fat provides more calories in fewer bites—Try adding extra portions of fats to your foods.
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Add spreads like guacamole, hummus, cream cheese, and grass-fed butter to foods.
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Add nut butter to soft bread, toast, oatmeal, yogurt, and peanut butter to smoothies.
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Add nuts and seeds to oatmeal, Greek yogurt, and other foods.
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Add sour cream to mashed potatoes, tacos, salads, beans, deviled eggs, and plantains.
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Add more olive oil and avocado oil when preparing meals; dip bread in oils.
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Add olive oil or avocado oil-based dressings and mayonnaise to salads like tuna, chicken, egg, potato salads, sandwiches, and green salads.
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Add grass-fed or plant-based butter to steamed vegetables, potatoes, scrambled eggs, bread, oatmeal, grits, pasta, and other foods.
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Choose higher-calorie versions of your favorite food.
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Whole milk, full-fat Greek yogurt, and whole eggs are more suitable for eating more nutrients and calories.
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Adding More Protein
Protein is an essential macronutrient made of amino acids, and our body uses it to repair and rebuild tissues and muscle and keeps us strong.
Eating healthy protein sources like beans, nuts, fish, and poultry instead of red meats and processed meats can lower the risk of several diseases, including cancer (8).
Eggs are an excellent complete protein source. They are rich in choline, vitamin D, A, and B vitamins, and provide iron, zinc, and phosphorus minerals.
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Scrambled eggs with potatoes, vegetables, and cheese.
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Fried eggs cooked in oil or butter.
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Add hard-boiled eggs to sandwiches and make salads like egg and potato salad.
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Omelets or quiches, and add spinach, onions, mushrooms, peppers, and other vegetables.
Fish adds complete protein, and some will add extra omega-3.
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Try fish tacos, stir-fried salmon, shrimp with rice, mackerel with potatoes, and so on.
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Make tuna salad, salmon salad, fish soup, prepare sardines, and more.
Beans, lentils, and peas are excellent protein, fiber, minerals, and vitamin sources.
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Add them to casseroles, salads, and quesadillas, and make white bean dip.
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Make lentil soup, bean soup, minestrone, and other soups.
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Add sides of chickpeas, white beans, lentils, kidney beans, and black beans or refried beans to your favorite meals.
Nut butter such as peanut and almond butter are high in heart-healthy fats and good protein sources, making them helpful to include more protein in their diets. They contain vitamin E, niacin, folate, potassium, magnesium, zinc, and fiber, among other nutrients.
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Peanut butter sandwich - add bananas and honey.
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Nut butter with crackers, bananas, apples, or celery.
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Add nut butter to smoothies, Greek yogurt, and oatmeal.
Cheese is rich in protein, calcium, phosphorous, and fat, making it a great nutrient-dense choice.
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Add cheese to eggs, potatoes, beans, and sandwiches.
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Make quesadillas with veggies, and snack on cheese with fruit.
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Add cheese to omelets and quiches.
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Combine cottage cheese with peaches and nectarines.
Greek yogurt is favorable to include in the diet since it provides protein, calcium, phosphorous, vitamin B12, and riboflavin. It is also rich in selenium and zinc, which are required for optimal immune function, and probiotics which help have a healthy gut.
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Top Greek yogurt with fruits, nuts, seeds, and peanut butter.
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Add it to smoothies and shakes.
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Substitute for mayonnaise and try it in tuna salad, chicken salad, and pasta salads.
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Make homemade dressings or top tacos, chili, and potatoes instead of sour cream.
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Add it to soups and curries to get creamy textures.
Soybeans / edamame contain protein and are rich in molybdenum, vitamin K1, folate, copper, thiamine, phosphorus, and manganese.
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Tofu and tempeh— Stir-fry and add to salads or mix with rice and vegetables.
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Soy milk—make milkshakes, and custards, prepare cereals and cocoa milk.
Chicken and turkey provide high-quality protein and are healthy choices in a balanced diet.
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Make a chicken salad, fajita, roasted chicken with herbs, and chicken vegetable soup.
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Prepare turkey patties, ground turkey, turkey sandwich, roasted turkey legs, and turkey meatloaf, and add turkey to salads, tacos, and pasta dishes.
Smoothies and Protein Shake
Smoothies and shakes can give essential nutrients and enough calories and protein.
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Mix plant-based or grass-fed milk with your favorite fruits, greens, nuts, and seeds.
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Add protein powder, Greek yogurt, and nut butter to shakes to get extra protein.
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Add avocado oil, flaxseeds, hemp seeds, and avocado to get extra healthy fats.
Foods and Drinks to Avoid
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If you have dietary restrictions, you should exclude foods your body can't process. For example, if you have a milk allergy, you should not use dairy products to increase your protein intake.
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Limit added sugars and processed foods.
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Avoid choosing ultra-processed foods and beverages.
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Even though they have high-calorie content, they have poor nutritional value, such as soft drinks, chips, cookies, sugary breakfast cereals, sausage and other processed meats, fast foods, instant noodles, candy, ice cream, fries, packaged pastries, and more. Eating foods like these will increase the risk of diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, and other diseases.
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Solid fats should be limited, and trans fats from ultra-processed foods like chips and fast foods should be avoided as much as possible.
Related
Nutrition Therapy for Cancer Side Effects
References
2. Peterson, Sarah J, and Marisa Mozer. “Differentiating Sarcopenia and Cachexia Among Patients With Cancer.” (2017)
3. Nguyen, Thi Yen Vi et al. “Comparison of Resting Energy Expenditure Between Cancer Subjects and Healthy Controls: A Meta-Analysis.” Nutrition and cancer vol. 68,3 (2016)
4. Doyle, Colleen et al. “Nutrition and physical activity during and after cancer treatment: an American Cancer Society guide for informed choices.” CA: a cancer journal for clinicians vol. 56,6 (2006)
5. Pin, Fabrizio et al. “Preservation of muscle mass as a strategy to reduce the toxic effects of cancer chemotherapy on body composition.” (2018)
6. Head, Barbara A et al. “The relationship between weight loss and health-related quality of life in persons treated for head and neck cancer.
7. Genton, L, and C Pichard. “Protein catabolism and requirements in severe illness.” International journal for vitamin and nutrition research.
8. Farvid, Maryam S et al. “Consumption of red meat and processed meat and cancer incidence: a systematic review and meta-analysis of prospective studies.” European journal of epidemiology vol. 36,9 (2021)