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Health Information
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Saturday, October 11, 2008
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Find
more information about this topic from either the Web or the world's best
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 Glossary
- Anorexia:
- Loss of appetite
for food.
-
- Antiemetic:
- A drug used to
control nausea and vomiting.
- Biological
therapy (immunotherapy):
- Treatment to stimulate
or restore the ability of the immune system to fight infection
and disease. This treatment uses products from the body's
natural defense system to destroy cancer cells.
- Calorie:
- Calories measure
the energy your body gets from food. Your body needs calories
as "fuel" to perform all of its functions, such as breathing,
circulating the blood, and physical activity. When you are
sick, your body may need extra calories to fight fever or
other problems.
- Carbohydrate:
- One of the three
nutrients that supply calories (energy) to the body. Carbohydrates
are needed for normal body function. There are two basic kinds
of carbohydrates: simple (sugars) and complex (starches and
fiber).
- Chemotherapy:
- The use of drugs
to stop cancer cells from growing in size or number.
- Dehydration:
- When the body
loses too much water to work well. Severe diarrhea or vomiting
can cause dehydration.
- Diet:
- The food you eat,
including both liquids and solids.
- Dietary fat:
- One of the three
nutrients that supply calories (energy) to the body. Fat also
helps the body absorb certain vitamins. Small amounts of fat
are necessary for normal body function. Foods high in fat
are also high in calories.
- Diuretics:
- Drugs that help
the body get rid of water and salt.
- Dyspepsia/indigestion:
- Upset stomach.
- Dysphagia:
- Difficulty in
swallowing.
- Edema:
- The buildup of
excess fluid within the tissues.
- Electrolytes:
- A general term
for the minerals necessary to give the body the proper fluid
balance.
- Fortified:
- A food is fortified
when extra nutrients are added.
- Gastrointestinal
(GI):
- Having to do with
the digestive tract, which includes the mouth, esophagus,
stomach, and intestines.
- Glucose:
- A simple sugar
occurring in some fruits and honey; the sugar found in blood.
- Immunotherapy:
- See biological
therapy.
- Infection:
- When germs enter
the body and produce disease, the disease is called an infection.
Infections can occur in any part of the body. They cause a
fever and other problems, depending on the site of the infection.
When the body's natural defense system is strong, it can often
fight the entering germs and prevent infection. Cancer treatment
can weaken the natural defense system, but good nutrition
can help make it stronger.
- Intravenous
(IV) feeding:
- When a person
receives some of the nutrients he or she needs through a needle
in a vein. IV feeding occurs when a person is unable to eat
solid food, such as right after surgery.
- Lactose intolerance:
- Lactose is a sugar
in milk. After some types of surgery you may no longer be
able to digest lactose easily. This lactose intolerance may
go away over time. There are special milk products without
lactose.
- Malnutrition:
- When the body
receives too few of the essential nutrients.
- Minerals:
- Nutrients required
by the body in small amounts such as iron, calcium, and potassium.
- Nutrient:
- The part of the
food you eat that the body uses to grow, function, and stay
alive. The major classes of nutrients that the body needs
are proteins, carbohydrates, minerals, fats, and vitamins.
- Nutrition:
- A three-part process
that gives the body the nutrients it needs. First, you eat
or drink food. Second, the body breaks the food down into
nutrients. Third, the nutrients travel through the bloodstream
to different parts of the body where they are used as "fuel."
To give your body proper nutrition, you have to eat or drink
enough of the foods that contain key nutrients.
- Potassium:
- A mineral the
body needs for fluid balance and other essential functions.
- Protein:
- One of the three
nutrients that supply calories (energy) to the body. The protein
we eat becomes a part of our muscle, bone, skin, and blood.
- Radiation therapy:
- Treatment with
high-energy x-rays to kill or damage cancer cells. External
radiation therapy is the use of a machine to aim high-energy
x-rays at the cancer. Internal radiation therapy is the placement
of radioactive material inside the body as close as possible
to the cancer.
- Registered
dietitian:
- A professional
who plans diet programs for proper nutrition.
- Sodium:
- A mineral required
by the body to keep body fluids in balance; too much sodium
can cause you to retain water.
- Total parenteral
nutrition (TPN):
- When a person
receives all of the nutrients needed through a needle in a
vein. TPN may be used when the mouth, the stomach, or the
bowel are sore from cancer treatment.
- Vitamins:
- Key nutrients
that the body needs to grow and stay strong. The best sources
of vitamins, such as vitamins A, B, and C, are the foods we
eat.
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