Taking antioxidants during treatment is one of the most hotly debated subjects in the oncology world! Many physicians in the oncology community recommend that patients undergoing chemotherapy and radiation avoid supplements that are high in antioxidants altogether or limit them during "off" cycles of treatment. This recommendation is basd on a handful of studies suggesting that high dose antioxidants may interfere with certain types of treatment. Too many B vitamins for example, may reduce the effectiveness of platinum based chemotherapies.

The truth is, we just don't have definitive research on all of the drug interactions, so many physicians feel it best to avoid recommending anything in the first place. The flipside of this issue is that we do have some research to show that certain antioxidants can support someone during chemo, reducing side effects and improving quality of life.

When the cancer literature databases from 1965 through 2003 were reviewed, researchers found that of the 280 peer reviewed studies, 50 of them involved human clinical, randomized or observational trials. From those 50 studies, a total of 8, 521 patients participated and took various antioxidants, including a diet rich in antioxidant plants. The findings led the authors to conclude that antioxidants do not interfere with treatment and in some cases, may actually be beneficial to the patient. In 15 of these studies, 3,738 patients who took non-prescription antioxidants and other nutrients had increased survival.

That said, it is important to remember that more studies have surfaced, showing there can be interactions between isolated nutrients and chemotherapy. This research has found that high levels of isolated nutrients may create an imbalanced situation that might lead to some negative effects. Based on these updated findings, the supplement regimen I now recommend for cancer patients includes a whole food based foundational product along with specific isolated nutrients--depending on what type of treatment protocol is being used and where the patient is at in their treatment cycle.

The bottom line: Supplementing your diet during cancer treatment just makes sense - but it is prudent to use whole food supplements in addition to some isolated nutrients as determined by your supplement savvy health care provider. No studies have ever shown that plant-based foods or food supplements cause negative interactions with cancer treatments.



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