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The goal of my nutrition program is to provide proper nutritional support for the cancer patient that will increase quality weight gain and improve blood count, immune function, digestion, and assimilation while at the same time inhibiting (or at least not feeding) the cancer.
The Importance of Good Digestion
The condition of the tongue is a reliable indicator of a person's health. A tongue that displays a white or yellow coating indicates poor digestion. A flabby tongue with bad breath signals a torpid liver. A clean, moist tongue is a sign of good digestion.
Nutrient absorption may be impaired because of a weakened gastrointestinal tract, and this results in poor digestion. Because of the many functions of the gastrointestinal tract, it is a vital component in maintaining good health and promoting healing. Its foremost function is to absorb nutrients, including vitamins and minerals that fuel the body by the process of digestion. It also contains a major part of the body's detoxification system as well as antibodies that act as the first line of defense against infection.
Everything we put into our bodies has an effect upon us. It can be good or bad, immediate or long-term, predictable or not, but one way or another there will be an effect. This is important to remember as you read the nutritional guidelines in this chapter because it will help you to understand the importance of proper nutrition, a fundamental aspect of good health that cannot be emphasized enough.
Nutritional Guidelines
Many of the diets recommended for treating cancer focus on the cancer and not on the individual. The variations in these diets are staggering and confusingone says eat vegan with raw foods only; another suggests vegan with cooked foods; some eliminate fruits; most ban eggs, dairy, and meat. I recommend a diet that supports optimal personal health, a diet designed specifically for each individual's well-being and healing. Among my clients I have seen the need for very diverse dietary requirements. Although I believe that a vegetarian diet is morally, ethically, and generally a healthier diet, it is not appropriate for every-

 
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