When Michelle Jones (not her real name), a busy professional living in Brooklyn, New York, was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in December 2005, she hardly thought that her path to recovery would mean biweekly trips to the farmers’ market or reading about industrial agriculture. Michelle’s story of treatment and discovery shares an intensely personal quest to combat disease through healthy eating.
Adult Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma is a disease in which malignant (cancer) cells form in the lymph system. According to the Lymphoma Information Network, its causes are still unknown, although genetic and environmental risk factors have been associated with its development. The American Cancer Society estimates that 53,370 cases of NHL will be diagnosed in the U.S. this year, 28,190 of those cases being women.
For the thirty-nine-year-old professional designer, the concept of illness couldn’t have been more remote. With a busy career and social life, Michelle exudes energy. There’s no hint of illness about her slight frame and youthful appearance. Nonetheless, she found herself facing a serious disease.
In Michelle’s case, her cancer was diagnosed as indolent, or slow growing. Her doctors at Beth Israel Medical Center recommended “watchful waiting,” in which a patient’s condition is closely observed without giving any medical treatment until symptoms appear or change. While the news meant that she wouldn’t be undergoing radiation or chemotherapy, it also left Michelle wondering exactly she should do. She felt like a time bomb. An independent thinker with a competitive nature, the idea of sitting by and waiting did not seem like a take-charge approach to getting, and staying, well. She decided to go beyond what traditional medicine could offer her which really wasn’t much at this point. She began with the Beth Israel Continuum for Health and Healing, recommended by her oncologist, where physicians specialize in holistic medicine. Although her doctor made suggestions as to alternatives she might consider, including diet, yoga, meditation, and acupuncture, it was Michelle’s job to pursue a course. “When I visited the integrative medicine MD I realized that I had to take responsibility for my own healing process. He didn’t treat me like a passive patient; he asked me what I was going to do about it. That’s when it hit me that doctors don’t really heal you, they just guide you in the healing process.”
“I researched everything. Almost everything I read directed me to diet as the source of wellness—as well as illness.” Michelle’s bookshelves grew with cookbooks and nutrition guides. Healing With Whole Foods: Asian Traditions and Modern Nutrition, by Paul Pitchford, is a favorite. “My preference is to eat more like our great grandparents might have eaten, or what they call a whole food diet, and I’m not talking about the store.”
Michelle’s focus became the nutritional quality of foods and the elimination of non-nutritionally significant foods from her diet. “More green food for beta-carotene. Lots of fiber, whole grains, complete protein, and good natural fats. Just food as close as possible to its original state, which is its most nutritional state, and food that is best for building immune strength.”
As Michelle’s knowledge of nutritional health increased, so did her interest in everything about food. “I read about U.S. food production/processing and agricultural practices and realized that illness aside, I didn’t approve.” In the case of cancer, environmental pollutants are just as suspect as pesticides. The heavy reliance on chemicals and petroleum products for transport and large-scale growing conflicted with her health concerns. The source of food became as important as the items on her grocery list. “My food sources are the Union Square and Grand Army farmers’ markets, along with the local food coop.” By shopping at the farmers’ markets and cooperatives, she is able to find whole foods that are from small, local sources. By making this switch, she is able to eliminate most industrially processed and refined foods. She feels better about what she’s eating, knowing that it came from a farm and not an animal factory.
For a busy professional, eating a whole foods diet has necessarily meant changes in lifestyle. “Eating whole foods puts a new spin on the urban social life. So much of our socializing centers around grabbing some food and eating in restaurants, which is something that I do less and less of.” That hasn’t meant any less socializing or eating, just more cooking in with friends.
She’s finding a whole local culture in her Brooklyn neighborhood around the local and seasonal food that she’s tapping into. Many restaurants and cafés are committed to serving quality ingredients from local food sources, and a publication called Edible Brooklyn is dedicated to local food culture. By shopping at the farmers’ markets, she’s also become more aware of the people and places involved in her diet. “Evolutionary Organics, a farm in New Paltz [upstate, New York] is my favorite.” You can find them and other organic farms at Certified Naturally Grown.
“Paying attention to diet and nutrition, mental and spiritual exercise is a more active approach to wellness that I enjoy. It’s empowering to see eating as an opportunity to enrich or even heal the body. I do spend a lot of time, energy, and money with food preparation, but that is what is important to me.” And it seems to be working. Michelle’s last visit to the oncologist showed that tumor involvement had subsided. So that while her doctors watch and wait, she’s taking charge.
Michelle’s not waiting around for evidence or statistics. She’s doing what makes sense to her and what is making her feel well and empowered and responsible. “This spring I’m going to start designing urban culinary roof gardens. We all have something to contribute. I’m a landscape architect, so this is my contribution.” By showing others how they can grow food in their small city spaces, she hopes to bring whole foods home.
