The importance of eating well

You may know that eating well is important for your overall health and wellbeing, but not be aware of all the benefits. Good nutrition can:

• give you more energy and strength
• help you achieve or maintain a healthy weight 
• improve your mood
• help prevent or reduce the risk of some conditions, such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes and even some cancers.

What to eat

The Australian Dietary Guidelines provide advice on eating for health and wellbeing for the general population. They were developed by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC). 

The key recommendations from the Australian Dietary Guidelines are outlined below. Following these guidelines will help ensure you eat well and may reduce your risk of developing some cancers. It is also important to be as physically active as possible.

For more information on physical activity, see How important is exercise? and Exercise for people living with cancer.

What to drink

Fluids are essential for the body to function. All the organs, tissues and cells in your body need fluids to keep working properly. As a general guide, you should aim to drink at least 8–10 glasses of fluid per day. Most of this should be plain water, but fluid from soups, smoothies, milk, fruit juices, or ice cubes is also good. Tea and coffee also provide fluid, but they may cause you to urinate (pee) more often. 

Alcohol may lead to weight gain and increase the risk of heart disease, type 2 diabetes and several cancers, such as bowel and breast cancers. When it comes to cancer risk, there is no safe level of alcohol use. For healthy people who drink alcohol, Cancer Council recommends you follow the NHMRC guidelines and have no more than 10 standard drinks a week and no more than 4 standard drinks on any one day (see the Department of Health's standard drinks guide).

General guidelines for healthy eating

The Australian Dietary Guidelines set out 5 key recommendations for adults. People with cancer may need to be more flexible about their food choices and ask their doctor about breastfeeding.

Five key recommendations for healthy eating

1. Achieve and maintain a healthy weight by being physically active and choosing nutritious food and drinks to meet your energy needs.
2. Enjoy a wide variety of nutritious foods from the 5 food groups every day (see diagram below).
3. Limit your intake of alcohol and foods containing saturated fat, added salt and added sugars.
4. Encourage, support and promote breastfeeding.
5. Care for your food – prepare and store it safely.

Foods to limit

• Use small amounts of fats such as butter and cooking oils. Choose varieties that are low in saturated and trans fats.
• If you choose to eat fast food, processed meats and sweets and drink alcohol, only have them sometimes and in small amounts.

The diagram below is based on the NHMRC’s Australian Guide to Healthy Eating diagram. Aim to eat a wide variety of foods from the 5 food groups and drink plenty of water. For more details, visit Eat For Health.

^{Note: At the time of this information’s publication, the Australian Dietary Guidelines were under review.}

Eating and drinking during cancer treatment

Cancer and its treatment both place extra demands on the body. Research shows that eating well before, during and after cancer treatment can help:

• improve quality of life by giving you more energy, keeping your muscles strong, helping you stay a healthy weight, and boosting mood
• your body cope with the side effects of treatment, improve how well treatment works, reduce length of hospital stays, and speed up recovery
• heal wounds and rebuild damaged tissues after surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy and other treatments
• improve your immune system and ability to fight infections
• reduce the risk of cancer coming back (recurrence).

During treatment, the side effects of cancer and its treatment may make it hard to eat enough or you may have trouble eating some foods.

You may need to be more flexible with what you eat. This may mean that the foods you are able to eat are quite different to those in your normal diet and perhaps not foods that are recommended as part of a healthy diet.

Your food choices may be different from the Australian Dietary Guidelines before, during and after cancer treatment.

Alcohol can also interact with some medicines. Check with your doctors before drinking wine, beer or spirits during cancer treatment.

How to eat well after a cancer diagnosis

During cancer treatment and recovery, you may need to adapt what you eat to help meet your body’s changing needs.