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I don't eat anything that farts

Writer's picture: Cynthia Chin-LeeCynthia Chin-Lee


This cutting board says it all. My brother-in-law Phil of Vancouver, WA made this for me.
This cutting board says it all. My brother-in-law Phil of Vancouver, WA made this for me.

I just went on a short trip to Portland, OR and Vancouver, WA and I wrote this post about how and what I eat because I stayed with family and friends, who aren’t plant-based and may have wondered what a strange person I’ve become. 


Those of us  who follow the Nutritional Oncology Research Institute (NORI) protocol eat quite differently from omnivores and a bit differently from even a regular plant-based eater. Also, because my cancer is “not detectable,” I’m definitely not as strict as I once was during my first year of diagnosis and treatment.




Breakfast

The founder and director of NORI, Mark I. Simon advises everyone, regardless of cancer status, to eat fruit only for breakfast. And if you are trying to manage an active or aggressive cancer, Mark says to try to get 90 percent of your calories from fruit, which has the lowest levels of the amino acids that feed cancer, (cysteine and methionine). So those big American breakfasts advertised in Denny’s commercials? Eggs and bacon, sausage, toast, pancakes? You can toss that idea.


 

Regardless of cancer status, eat fruit only for breakfast.

 



Photo of fruit, glorious fruit

If you have the time, making a smoothie of berries, apples, oranges, and some almond milk is tasty. Often I just eat a few oranges or my favorite: fresh pineapple. I also enjoy making baked apples or pears with a dab of maple syrup and a dash of cinnamon and a walnut in the center (bake at 350 degrees in a baking pan with about a cup of water to keep the fruit moist).


I drink green tea or decaf coffee, too, with some honey, medicinal mushroom extract (reishi or turkey tail), and almond milk. Almost all mushrooms (button, shitake, cremini, portabella, oyster, lion’s mane) have anti-cancer properties with reishi and turkey tail as some of the most popular medicinal mushrooms.


Cyndi enjoying a waterfall in Oregon

Lunch

I eat lunch in two stages: an appetizer of fruit and then the rest of the meal. I wait about 30 minutes between my appetizer of fruit and the rest of the meal. Why? Mark Simon advises separating fruit from other foods because of food combining guidelines. Foods digest at different rates and your stomach uses different digestive enzymes depending on the type of food you’re having. Thus if you don’t want a traffic jam in your stomach or undigested food, take a look at the food combining guidelines:


  • Fruit alone

  • Water alone (away from food)

  • Pair protein with non-starchy vegetables (tofu and bok choy, for example)

  • Pair starches with healthy fats and vegetables (baked potato and salsa)


A half-hour after my fruit appetizer (which is usually only one fruit, not a fruit salad) such as a bowl of mango slices, I eat my lunch which is:


  • Plant-based

  • Low-protein


Plant-based because I’m trying to avoid cysteine and methionine, the two amino acids found in highest levels in poultry, fish, meat, eggs, and dairy products. Low-protein because even though meat and seafood are highest in cysteine and methionine, even plant foods like beans, tofu, nuts, and seeds have cysteine and methionine. 


If you have an active and aggressive cancer, you will want to avoid higher-protein plant foods. 


Some low-protein plant-based meal ideas:


  • Baked potato and salsa

  • Brown rice and sauteed vegetables

  • Pasta with mushrooms, tomatoes, and onion

  • Baked or boiled sweet potato and a salad

  • Glass noodles (mung bean vermicelli) stir fried with onion, garlic, ginger, and bok choy


Since I’m on a less restrictive diet now that I don’t have detectable cancer (knock on wood), I may have avocado toast, hash browns, and fried rice (no eggs or meat).


Dinner

Dinner is similar to lunch but I don’t have a fruit appetizer. Also I often have a dessert of a few squares of 70 percent or more of dark chocolate (reasonably priced at Trader Joes).


Weekend Meals

NORI folks often cycle their low and moderate methionine/cysteine days. By cycling I mean that we are on low-methionine and low-cysteine foods for five days and then relax a little and eat moderate methionine and cysteine foods on two days. You can see the methionine and cysteine charts here. Generally it’s easy to remember this schedule because the five weekdays (Monday to Friday) are low methionine/cysteine days and weekends (Saturday and Sunday), we ease up. Yes, I go wild (tongue in cheek) and have quinoa and tofu, bread and even a blueberry walnut muffin.


Enjoying the sunset in Portland, OR
Enjoying the sunset in Portland, OR


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