TY - JOUR
T1 - “We’re Just Not Prepared for Eating Over Our Whole Life”
T2 - A Mixed Methods Approach to Understanding Dietary Behaviors Among Longer Term Cancer Survivors
AU - Klassen, Ann Carroll
AU - Smith, Katherine Clegg
AU - Shuster, Michelle
AU - Coa, Kisha I.
AU - Caulfield, Laura E.
AU - Helzlsouer, Kathy J.
AU - Peairs, Kimberly S.
AU - Shockney, Lillie D.
AU - Stoney, Dara
AU - Hannum, Susan
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2017, © The Author(s) 2017.
PY - 2018/6/1
Y1 - 2018/6/1
N2 - Background: In many countries, there are growing numbers of persons living with a prior diagnosis of cancer, due to the aging population and more successful strategies for treatment. There is also growing evidence of the importance of healthful diet and weight management for survivorship, yet many long-term cancer survivors are not successfully following recommendations. Methods: We explored this issue in a mixed methods study with 53 adult survivors of 3 cancers (breast, prostate, and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma), living in Maryland. Participants provided three 24-hour dietary recalls, and results were used to classify respondents on 2 metrics of healthful eating (the Healthy Eating Index 2010, and a 9-item index based on current dietary recommendations). Recalls were also used to guide in-depth qualitative discussions with participants regarding self-assessment of dietary behaviors, healthful eating, and diet’s importance in cancer prevention and survivorship. Results: Survivors following a more healthful diet were more likely to be female, have greater socioeconomic resources, more years since diagnosis, normal weight, and no smoking history. Qualitative discussions revealed a more nuanced understanding of dietary strategies among healthful eaters, as well as the importance of household members in dietary decision making. Discussion: Most survivors had received little nutrition counseling as part of their cancer care, highlighting the importance of holistic, household-oriented nutrition education for maintaining health among long-term cancer survivors.
AB - Background: In many countries, there are growing numbers of persons living with a prior diagnosis of cancer, due to the aging population and more successful strategies for treatment. There is also growing evidence of the importance of healthful diet and weight management for survivorship, yet many long-term cancer survivors are not successfully following recommendations. Methods: We explored this issue in a mixed methods study with 53 adult survivors of 3 cancers (breast, prostate, and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma), living in Maryland. Participants provided three 24-hour dietary recalls, and results were used to classify respondents on 2 metrics of healthful eating (the Healthy Eating Index 2010, and a 9-item index based on current dietary recommendations). Recalls were also used to guide in-depth qualitative discussions with participants regarding self-assessment of dietary behaviors, healthful eating, and diet’s importance in cancer prevention and survivorship. Results: Survivors following a more healthful diet were more likely to be female, have greater socioeconomic resources, more years since diagnosis, normal weight, and no smoking history. Qualitative discussions revealed a more nuanced understanding of dietary strategies among healthful eaters, as well as the importance of household members in dietary decision making. Discussion: Most survivors had received little nutrition counseling as part of their cancer care, highlighting the importance of holistic, household-oriented nutrition education for maintaining health among long-term cancer survivors.
KW - cancer survivorship
KW - clinician behavior
KW - dietary assessment
KW - mixed methods
KW - nutrition education
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85044554617&partnerID=8YFLogxK
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U2 - 10.1177/1534735417731515
DO - 10.1177/1534735417731515
M3 - Article
C2 - 28971702
AN - SCOPUS:85044554617
SN - 1534-7354
VL - 17
SP - 350
EP - 362
JO - Integrative Cancer Therapies
JF - Integrative Cancer Therapies
IS - 2
ER -