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How to Increase Appetite During Chemotherapy

For many people, chemotherapy is the best option for a positive outcome when battling cancer. People justly dread the possible side effects they may experience while undergoing chemotherapy. While management of side effects during chemotherapy has improved greatly over the years, loss of appetite is still one common consequence of chemotherapy. There are many possible reasons behind the loss of appetite. Possible side effects of chemotherapy include a loss of taste or even a bitter or metallic taste in your mouth. You can take steps to increase your appetite during chemotherapy.

Things You'll Need

  • High protein foods
  • Plastic utensils
  • Nutrient dense liquids
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Instructions

  1. Increasing Appetite

    • 1

      Fix a well balanced breakfast. Try to include toast with peanut butter or eggs or other high protein items. Your appetite will probably wane as they day goes on, so starting off strong will help you the rest of the day.

    • 2

      Plan to snack throughout the day, rather than eat two or three big meals. After breakfast, have a small snack every two to three hours. This will seem much easier to handle than a big meal and will still get calories in your system.

      Try to eat high calorie or high protein snacks. Dried peas or beans, muffin, nuts and yogurt are all good snacks you can have throughout the day.

    • 3

      Keep the food in your meals at room temperature. This will help make their taste more appealing.

    • 4

      Use plastic utensils when eating your meals. Patients who suffer from the side effect of a metallic taste in their mouth will find this helps.

    • 5

      Drink beverages that are high in nutrients with your meals. Drinks like milk, milkshakes and juice are high in nutrients and will help you get the needed calories.

    Preparing Food

    • 6

      Marinate meats in mixes with sweet fruit juice, Italian seasoning or sweet wine to make them more appealing and tasty.

    • 7

      Add seasoning or spices to increase the taste of foods. If you're a patient who has experienced the side effect of lack of taste, this will help make foods more appealing. Oregano, basil and rosemary are good spices to try.

    • 8

      Use onion, ham or bacon when preparing vegetables. This will heighten the taste.

    • 9

      Buy and use tart foods, such as lemons and oranges. You can eat them alone or use them in food for increased taste.

    • 10

      Chew gum or suck on a hard, mint candy before meals. This will help increase taste as well.

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