AS lifestyle changes

I would be interested in the lifestyle changes guys on AS may have made since being diagnosed with PCa.

Have you changed your diet, increased exercise, lost weight, taken supplements, meditate, etc.? Or, maybe you simply monitor your PSA?

Thanks.

My observation is that most men who either use AS or decide to treat often have similar lifestyle changes. Most want to make healthful changes in diet, exercise, weight control, stress relief, etc. Most also orient themselves psychology to living with cancer. Most men who have been treated never really know whether the treatment has cured them and, by definition, AS means living with cancer, hopefully, for the long term.

I think it's best not to fret too much about lifestyle changes while in Active Surveillance. I know I'm not.

Lose weight? Check. People (like me) who need to lose weight should do so regardless of AS.

Cut back on too much alcohol? Check. That's something many guys should do even if they are not on AS.

Eat healthier? Ditto. Most of us should be eating better.

Supplements? Good idea no matter what your health.

Exercise? Everybody should.

I could go on and on. My position is that all of us on AS should simply focus on getting healthier through proper eating, avoiding tobacco, responsible use of alcohol, and exercise. Otherwise, there's no silver bullet; there's no magic formula to extend AS. The closest thing to it is eating properly and working to stay as healthy as possible.

Post Edited (Cigar56) : 2/2/2016 5:13:57 PM (GMT-7)

In November of 2014 I went on a gluten free diet and in December of 2014 I had a biopsy done and was declared a Gleason 6. My PSA was 7 November 2014 and dropped to 5.4 in March 2015. In September 2015 my PSA was 9 I went on a Dairy and red meat free diet. November 2015 PSA 10.5 I then added no eggs, chicken, and turkey to the diet. December 2015 Biopsy was negative for cancer. Do I still have cancer my guess is yes but I will continue on with the diet. Just did a PSA today I hope that it goes down in numbers.
I have gluten sensitivity, II diabetes, acid reflux, and PCA. Since I started the gluten free part of the diet I have lost 41 pounds.

Captaindd said...
In November of 2014 I went on a gluten free diet and in December of 2014 I had a biopsy done and was declared a Gleason 6. My PSA was 7 November 2014 and dropped to 5.4 in March 2015. In September 2015 my PSA was 9 I went on a Dairy and red meat free diet. November 2015 PSA 10.5 I then added no eggs, chicken, and turkey to the diet. December 2015 Biopsy was negative for cancer. Do I still have cancer my guess is yes but I will continue on with the diet. Just did a PSA today I hope that it goes down in numbers.
I have gluten sensitivity, II diabetes, acid reflux, and PCA. Since I started the gluten free part of the diet I have lost 41 pounds.

That's remarkable, Capt. Congratulations on your success to date, I hope it continues for you.

I went on a similar diet, no long after dx, and achieved an impressive (to me - lol) decrease in PSA of over 50%. However, I did not continue on that diet, on account of the weight loss was becoming a big problem for me, kind of frightful, really. Was 30 lbs overweight, when I went of the diet, am now 30 lbs underweight (at least, afraid to get on a scale these days -lol).

It seems to me that when I was on that diet, I was probably protein-deficient. From Sept until Jan, I was doing heavy labor 6 days a week. At first it was difficult, and I got kidney stones, which I suspected was because most of my protein was from nuts and seeds, which are high in calcium oxylate. I test high for calcium oxylate, and also for crystals in my urine, and really don't want a repeat episode of the kidney stones (so painful - OUCH!).

So my question for you is can you give me more specifics on what you do eat? I added a little dairy to my diet after the weight loss (just plain goat yogurt), and now also a very tiny bit of sheep feta, and pecorino de romano cheese, as they make my diet so much more tasty.

After the kidney stone episode put me in the ER in Sept., I added meat in small quantities, as an alternative to nuts/seeds for protein. At first the results were good, felt much stronger, hard work not a problem. Early on, even had a nice drop in PSA. However, without giving it any real thought, I started eating more and more meat and romano cheese. Last two PSA tests (just got latest result an hour ago) were not good. Substantial increase since 12/1, although today's result was almost same as month before (and I have cut way back on meat and cheese in the past month), but a little worse. The month when PSA went up a lot, I was eating a lot of chicken, have cut that out mostly, but not entirely, on a account I often visit the ex, and she likes to fee me, but totally does not get my diet. Still, hard to turn down her hospitality, as she is a great cook.

So can you inform me a little more about what you do eat? Without meat, cheese, dairy, poultry, what is your protein source? What about carbs? Fat?

Post Edited (Jaybee_007) : 2/3/2016 4:16:49 PM (GMT-7)