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Comments

  • rayhope
    rayhope Member Posts: 75
    edited November 2009

    Thanks,Anne.

  • Yazmin
    Yazmin Member Posts: 218
    edited November 2009

    And here's more good news about green tea:

    http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2004/04/040401075242.htm

    (I read in a Mayo Clinic article that loose green tea contains more antioxidants than tea bags, but I cannot find it right now).

  • vivre
    vivre Member Posts: 881
    edited November 2009

    check out

    www.sereneteaz.com

    They have an unbelievable selection of loose leaf, in every flavor imaginable, black, white and green, decaf and caf. The only problem is deciding what to try. I put a couple of flavors on my Christmas list last year. Of course, my DH only had to drive to their shop, but they do mailorder.

    They also have steeping time, and water temp listed for different teas. That is where I learned that whites and greens can be resteeped and become decaf.

  • RunswithScissors
    RunswithScissors Member Posts: 69
    edited November 2009

    When the naturopath I saw recommended green tea, she told me that the bag has to be steeped up to 3  times before you get the  beneficial part of the tea.  So technically, you could chuck the first steep with all the caffeine in it. 

     But I just can't stand the taste ...no matter how many times it steeps.   I did find a green chai I can deal with, finally.  

    Anyone else know of nice green tea blends that taste better than plain? 

  • CrunchyPoodleMama
    CrunchyPoodleMama Member Posts: 312
    edited November 2009

    I'm convinced my former addiction to not just coffee but Coke Zero was a big factor in why I got bc. There would be days that I drank 6 or more 16.9oz bottles of Coke Zero... on top of multiple cups of coffee with a ton of sugar, Splenda, and chemical-preserved creamer.

    I've heard that thing about coffee being possibly good for cancer... but I'm not taking any chances on it. I went cold-turkey on both the Coke Zero and coffee.

    I have organic Swiss Water processed decaf, but I'm trying to steer clear even of that until I know I'm "over" the addiction.

    I did buy two different kinds of herbal coffee substitute. One is Teecino (I'm sure I butchered the spelling), the Vanilla Nut flavor. It's made of organic chicory, dates, almonds, and other stuff like that. You brew it just like you brew coffee... I sweeten with a couple of drops of stevia, and (unfortunately) I put a wee bit of organic milk in it too. It took about one cup of it to get used to it... now I love it! Not only is it naturally caffeine-free, but it's non-acidic too.

    The other kind I'm trying is Dandy Blend. It's also made from chicory etc. but it also has dandelion root (which is good for you, for reasons I can't remember off the top of my head!). You just mix it with hot water like instant coffee (instead of brewing it). It's growing on me too! In fact now that I'm writing about it, I'm craving some, so I'm going to go make myself a steaming hot cup of it... perfect for the cold, rainy day here!

  • RunswithScissors
    RunswithScissors Member Posts: 69
    edited November 2009

    This recipe for Chocolate Bark has been a lifesaver during my chocolate attacks.  Sweetened with stevia, you keep it in the freezer, and it only takes a little bite to cure the craving: 

    "The basic recipe is just the coconut oil, cocoa powder, and stevia. All the rest can be played with and varied depending on your particular favorite chocolate bar combo.

    I added the cayenne in after I watched Chocolat with Johnny Depp. Now I wouldn't make it without the cayenne. Use enough to give it zing, but not enough to overpower the chocolate.

    Ingredients:

    • 1 1/2 cups virgin coconut oil
    • 6 well-rounded tbsp cocoa powder, or freshly crushed cocoa nibs
    • stevia to taste (about 1 1/2 tsp of the white, or a few shakes of the white stevia and 1 1/2 tsp of the green herbal stevia)
    • 1 tsp vanilla extract (I've also played with alcohol free flavorings and found lemon and almond to be very good)
    • 1/2 tsp cayenne
    "Goodies" to sprinkle on bottom of pan, add any combo of these to taste:
    • goji berries
    • roasted or dried nuts, I particularly like pecans
    • shredded, dried coconut
    • cocoa nibs
    • raisins
    • whatever your heart desires
    Directions:

    Chill in the freezer for 10 minutes a metal cookie sheet (with sides) or a couple of glass large baking pans. I also line my cookie sheet with wax paper. You'll need to have a flat space reserved in your freezer so the chocolate will form level.

    Warm the coconut oil gently to liquid form. Add in the cocoa powder, stevia, vanilla, and cayenne. Stir with a fork and blend well.

    Sprinkle any of your goodies on the bottom of your cold pan, then pour the chocolate mixture over top and level off.

    Put it in your freezer for at least 10 minutes. Then remove, pull the chocolate carefully off the wax paper, break it into snack-sized portions, put into a large plastic bag, and return to storage in the freezer."

    The recipe came from http://turkishdiet.blogspot.com
  • Mom_of_boys
    Mom_of_boys Member Posts: 101
    edited November 2009

    Crunchy... First, good luck with the results.  Second, if you and others can kick the diet soda habit... then I can, too!  I'm officially on the tea train.

    Pill... Sounds delicious.  I'll definitely print this out and give it a try.

    I know there was a discussion just a short while ago, but I can't find it.  Is stevia the sweetener of choice for your tea?

  • PS73
    PS73 Member Posts: 171
    edited November 2009

    Hi gals.  For those of you who sent me emails and posts regarding my biopsy, thank you so much.  Wanted to say that I got my results and it was benign!  The calc was considered 'post operative' stuff.  Not sure but am glad to have it out.  So, Im  breathing again.  What a friggin nightmare. 

    Wanted to add my 2 cents about sweetners...  My favorite is Erythritol - it has a low glycemic index and is practically calorie free and is 1.5x less sweet than sucrose.  It is used by diabetics and imo it tastes the cleanest.  Its the only sugar alcohol that is completely excreted from your body.  Also, the way I stopped putting sugar into my coffee is by making the coffee weak and mixing it with loose indian tea to give it more flavor/spice.  Sounds gross but if you have a coffee press, you can literally put ANYTHING into it with your coffee or loose tea, ginger, lemon peel, spices like cinnamon which is great for lowering your glycemic index, even turmeric.  List goes on and on and on.  Just my two cents.  :)

    Congrats to those who are feeling healthy and happy! xo

  • PS73
    PS73 Member Posts: 171
    edited November 2009

    omg pill that sounds delicious!!!

  • Mom_of_boys
    Mom_of_boys Member Posts: 101
    edited November 2009

    PS73....  Cool!!!  Huge congrats on the results.  Thanks also for the suggestion on the sweetener.

  • lottie
    lottie Member Posts: 160
    edited November 2009

    Hi Ladies - I wonder if any of you are familiar with possible side effects of L Glutamine and Alpha Lipolic Acid. I'm taking both except for the day prior and 4 days after each chemo. I'm 1/2 way through a set of 6 TC treatments. I have a nasty rash that's appeared after my 2nd, and now my 3rd tx ... little red welts in various places, fingers, arms, rib cage, sternum, around my mastectomy scar, ... there's an area on my right index finger that almost looks like a burn. I've eliminated a new coconut moisturizing cream I'd been using, been careful around cleaning products, use only Dr. Bonner's castile soaps and use Ecos brand laundry soap -- very mild. I don't want to eliminate the supplements because I think they're helping me, but, I'm not sure what else could be doing this unless it's just a plain old side effect of either cytoxan or taxotere. If this episode goes like the last one, the rash will fade in the days before my next tx. Still, any clues or advice would be appreciated. I just got out of the shower and took a good look @ myself and it looks horrible -- feels fine, but, I'm concerned.

    Many thanks. Sorry to just jump in with a question but, I know you ladies have lots of good information.

    Thank you

    Lottie 

  • seaotter
    seaotter Member Posts: 642
    edited November 2009

    Welcome Lottie!!!! I have no answer but may someone else will. Just wanted to say welcome!!!

    PS73 I am soooooooo happy for you. Now you can breath!!!!!

    Blessings, Patty

  • RunswithScissors
    RunswithScissors Member Posts: 69
    edited November 2009

    Hi Lottie,

    I am on abraxane, the same drug as taxotere, but in a different solution. I am getting weird spots that look like hives - red, raised, itchy, ranging in size.  I put derma e on it - (a vit e gel) and it goes away until I have my next weekly tx, and then it comes back again. 

    I don't take the supplements you mentioned.

    The nurse who does my infusion says it's not from the chemo.  Maybe it is something else that my immune system can't seem to kick right now...  but I'm not so sure.

     

  • Springtime
    Springtime Member Posts: 3,372
    edited November 2009

    Lottie, my bet is the spots are from chemo, (I got them) not Lipoic acid and L-glutamine. I'd keep taking those if I was you. the L-Glut stopped me from experiencing peripheral Neuropathy. When I stopped, it would come back. I needed to take it for a couple months past last chemo. my Osteopath has me on it again now, just for good health I suppose!

     I also used to drink soda, but now if I have a swig of DHs, it seems like a toxic liquid to me. Blech. 

    I steep green tea for at least 10 min, and then drink within 2 hours.

    Spring. 

  • lottie
    lottie Member Posts: 160
    edited November 2009

    Thanks for all of this ladies. I have stopped the supplements just to see what happens after a few days, but, I tend to think this is a chemo-related allergic reaction to something that wouldn't normally be a problem if I were not getting dosed. 

  • Mom_of_boys
    Mom_of_boys Member Posts: 101
    edited November 2009
    Lottie... I'm certainly NO expert and would run it by your onc, but it sounds like taxotere toxicity to me.  I had "burns" on my hands, wrists and halfway up my arm.  My onc didn't want me on any supplements while I was on chemo.  So, I didn't have anything there to interact.  I used Aquaphor and took Benadryl which seemed to do the trick. Hope that helps a wee bit.
  • Merilee
    Merilee Member Posts: 734
    edited November 2009

    chocolate....incoming munchie attack

  • vivre
    vivre Member Posts: 881
    edited November 2009

    Glad to see more teatotlers! It is so good for you. I have not had a diet coke in 2 years now and I do not miss it at all. I think that is one thing that we all definitely need to cut out, completely.

    Pill-thanks for the chocalate recipe. I plan to try it for sure. It sounds great, and since I will not give up on choc, but hate all the soya lecicrap in it, this recipe may be just what I have been looking for. Organic cocoa is easy to find, and I like the idea of controlling the sugar.

    Lottie, do not stop your supplements. Did you see the link deni(I think) posted the other day that showed the importance of supplements during chemo? Also read what Dr. Ray Strand says about the importance of supplements during chemo.  I think that the stuff coming out is a kind of detox. If your liver is overworked with detoxing, which it is with chemo, stuff will come out through your skin, which is your largest organ because your liver is overworked. Try using a liver detox support such as advaclear by Metagenics. You usually have to get it from a doctor, but I found it online at LuckyVitamin. Remember, you want these toxins to come out so it is good that they seem to be doing so. Keep using the coconut oil too, as it will soothe, and is a great detox for your skin, with no carcinogens like all those lotions. When I started iodine I also had lots of spots and thought I had poison ivy. But after reading the detox symptoms, I realized that the iodine was chelating out toxins through my skin. So it is a good thing! Iodine is such a great natural chemo. It is too bad they do not use it instead of all the toxic stuff.

  • Merilee
    Merilee Member Posts: 734
    edited November 2009

    Didn't have any cocoa but just made freezer bon bons using coconut oil, coconut and a bit of agave.

    Life is good.

  • rgiuff
    rgiuff Member Posts: 339
    edited November 2009

    Pill, I like Yogi antioxidant tea which is sold at stores like Trader Joe's and Whole Foods.  I too hate the taste of the plain green tea, but I bought a huge box of it at BJs and now have to use it up.  I mix a bag of it with another type of green tea, like jasmine or Yogi and sometimes add a squeeze of lemon juice.  And thanks for that chocolate recipe.  Sounds yummy!

  • deni63
    deni63 Member Posts: 372
    edited November 2009

    Yum - I am liking all of these dessert recipes! You guys should also look at raw food recipes for desserts. They have lots of nuts, coconut, raw cocoa (or cacao) and are sweetened with either agave, honey or stevia. They are amazing. When I have an occassion that needs a dessert, such as a birthday or the holidays, I often will make one of these desserts. I can make an awesome "cheesecake" made mostly out of cashews. If anyone is interested in a recipe, I will post. There are also these "congo bars" that are nuts, coconut, chocolate sauce, etc - DELICIOUS and no guilt!

  • my560sel
    my560sel Member Posts: 399
    edited November 2009

    Mmmmm, Merilee, that sounds soooo good! I also noted the recipe for Chocolate Bark - that'll cure my sweet cravings for sure! Can't wait to make it !

    Wish me luck ladies, I'm going for my 1st ever Naturpath app't tomorrow! I'm so excited - I want this to work out so badly, please pray that she has some answers for me and that I can finally get on the road to a better way of taking care of myself and beating this BC into the ground!

    Edited to add: Deni, I for one would like the cheesecake recipe and anything else you have that's guilt free!

    Hugs to all,

    Terri

  • deni63
    deni63 Member Posts: 372
    edited November 2009

    Good luck Terri! Let us know how it works out. Hope all goes well!

  • rgiuff
    rgiuff Member Posts: 339
    edited November 2009

    Good luck Terri, let us know how it goes!

  • RunswithScissors
    RunswithScissors Member Posts: 69
    edited November 2009

    I hope you learn lots, Terri. So glad you found someone...

    Off topic - I visited Montreal once - what a lovely city...  

  • seaotter
    seaotter Member Posts: 642
    edited November 2009

    Terri I will be praying for you!!!!!!

    As far as drinking all this green tea (I'm drowning) doesn't the capsule work just as well?

    I need help. What kind of calcium and magnesium are you ladies taking? I have been drinking Osteo Calm. The taste is different with each bottle so I want to try something different. It taste bad too Yell. Thanks

    Patty

  • my560sel
    my560sel Member Posts: 399
    edited November 2009

    Thanks everyone....I'm keeping my fingers crossed!

    Pill - Yes, Montreal is a great place to live. I'm sure you must have visited what we call 'Old Montreal" it's truly a throw back in time with it's cobblestone streets and quaint shops....

    Terri

  • fairy49
    fairy49 Member Posts: 536
    edited November 2009

    Good Luck Terri!!! Keep us posted!!

    L

    ox

  • Mom_of_boys
    Mom_of_boys Member Posts: 101
    edited November 2009

    Terri... Good luck!  Let us know how it went.

    Patty... The kind of magnesium (glycinate) I'm taking is called Pure Encapsulations.  It has 120 mg in it.  I'm taking 3 daily.  I, also, have the same question about the green tea capsules.

    Merilee... Life is good?  Hey, that's my line.  I even have several t-shirts that says that very thing on it!  Cool

  • MTG
    MTG Member Posts: 337
    edited November 2009

    Hi Ladies. Been reading your thread like mad ! I just finished radiation a week and a half ago (used apple cider vinegar so minimal problems; will post reasearch if anyone's interested) and was trying to avoid Tamoxifen but right now I dont know. Meet with gyno (who is very anti cancer treatment; feels it's over treated) on Friday and med onc after that so will likely decide very soon. Keeping lists about CoQ10, Resevetrol, Iodine,  DIM and dark green veg supplements. Boy there's a lot to learn !!! And thanks to all for researching, sharing and posting.

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