How to Use The Budwig Cancer Protocol

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budwig cancer protocol

How to Use the Budwig Cancer Protocol

Hippocrates is credited with saying “Let medicine be thy food and let food be thy medicine” (7). Dr. Johanna Budwig, however, is known for implementing this belief and making it a reality in her medical practices.

Dr. Budwig was one of the world’s leading researchers on fats and oils in the 1950s when she made an observation involving the main components in conventional drug treatment for cancer patients (1, 4). This observation led her to an astonishingly simple theory that cottage cheese and flaxseed oil can be therapeutic in the prevention and treatment of cancer.

Numerous testimonials provide support that the Budwig cancer protocol is an effective treatment. Could the Budwig cancer protocol be right for you?

Dr. Budwig’s Discoveries

The combination of cottage cheese and flaxseed oil might seem like a perplexing alternative health treatment in which you might question the origin of its discovery. Dr. Budwig researched the biochemical consequences of fats and oils in maintaining the healthy functioning of our bodies.

While working for the German Federal Health Office researching the pathogenesis of chronic illness and disease, Dr. Budwig learned that cancer treating drugs contain sulfur containing compounds known as sulfhydryl groups. In particular, cottage cheese contains two sulfhydryl groups: cysteine and methionine amino acids. (4)

Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids:

Known today as PUFAs or polyunsaturated fatty acids, Dr. Budwig stood on the shoulder of Nobel Prize winner Otto Warburg who recognized that cellular respiration was partially dependent on an unknown fatty acid. Dr. Budwig found that polyunsaturated fatty acids are the main components which form cellular membranes. (4)

The integrity of a cell’s membrane is critical to the proper functioning of a cell. Cellular membranes play a role in vital life processes such as cellular respiration, determining which substances are allowed in or out of a cell and enable a cell to successfully divide and multiply.

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EFA’s and Cell Membrane Support

Dr. Budwig recognized two essential polyunsaturated fatty acids: (4)

  1. Linoleic Acid (LA): Commonly referred to as omega-6 fatty acids. Often found in a higher ratio compared to omega-3 fatty acids.
  2. Linolenic Acid (LNA): Commonly referred to as omega-3 fatty acids. Omega 3 fatty acids are typically found in a smaller ratio compared to omega-6 fatty acids in the average diet. Omega 3 polyunsaturated fatty acids have been recognized for their anticancer properties and roles in preventing sickness and disease (3).

Energy Stimulating Lipoproteins

When the sulfhydryl containing amino acids bind with unsaturated fatty acids, a chemical reaction occurs forming a lipoprotein (3, 4). Normally these fatty acids are not water soluble and are not selected to pass a cell’s membrane.

When found in the proper concentration with sulfhydryl groups, the combination of these two components energizes the life of a cell allowing for vital life processes to occur.

Cells Are the Batteries for Life:

Without a charged battery in your car, how efficient will your car run and what will you do? You will reach for your stored jumper cables and connect the lifeless battery to the good battery. An electrical current will recharge the failed car battery and soon enough your car will be running once again.

Consider each of the cells in your body similar to the battery in a car. Just like a car battery, our cells require electrical energy to run and a voltage to stabilize the energy supply needed to function properly in all of our body’s functions which contribute to life’s biological processes.

Healthy Fats and Oils for Oxygen Supply

The combination of the sulfur protein found in cottage cheese and the fats found in flaxseed oil supply cells with a cellular voltage required to undergo cellular respiration and bring oxygen into cells.

Dr. Budwig documented a green and yellowish substance in place of hemoglobin in serious cancer patients compared to healthy individuals. She learned that this lack of hemoglobin which carries healthy red oxygen to tissue was linked to the growth and spread of cancer. (1, 2, 5)

After these cancer patients followed 3 months of her strict diet protocol, the appearance of this oxygen deprived substance was replaced with bright red, oxygenated hemoglobin. Patients also reported the disappearance of symptoms including weakness and anemia. (1, 6)

Throughout Dr. Budwig’s research and testing of her own protocol for healing individuals with various stages of cancer, anecdotal evidence supports the effectiveness of the treatment. All forms of cancer including prostate, lung, colon, breast, ovarian, brain, pancreas and melanoma can be reversed naturally following a strict diet and lifestyle practices. Depending on the severity and stage of the cancer, the Budwig Diet Protocol can have an immediate effect on reversing cancer formation. (1)

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Make the Budwig Diet Protocol a Lifestyle

The Budwig Diet protocol is more than a diet, it is a lifestyle. Dr. Budwig recommended specific lifestyle approaches to reduce your risk of developing cancer as well as an alternative therapy for treating and curing cancer. Her protocol recommends the use and avoidance of certain foods and practices. The following is a list of guidelines for using the Budwig Diet protocol to heal cancer: (1)

  • Avoid contaminated water such as bottled and tap water.
  • Receive adequate amounts of sunshine.
  • Avoid all processed foods containing preservatives, chemicals and foods which have had all nutrients extracted.
  • Avoid sugar, meat and animal fats such as butter.
  • Consume only fresh, organic foods and consume immediately following preparation.
  • Avoid stressors and practice deep breathing, laughing, daily exercise and synthetic supplements.
  • Prepare fresh flaxseed meal and consume with 15 minutes of grinding.
  • Always mix cottage cheese and flaxseed oil in a 2:1 ratio and blend until no visible oil remains floating.
  • Only add foods and seasonings in following mixture

Dr. Budwig advised patients suffering from severe terminal illness to consume upwards of 6 to 8 tablespoons of flax oil daily in combination with the proper ratio of cottage cheese. She advised that others seeking to prevent cancer could consume this quark recipe by taking maintaining a daily consumption of 1 tablespoon flaxseed oil in a quark mixture. (1)

pumpkin spice tarts

Sun Exposure is Vital to Healing Cancer

Despite the fact that conventional medical practices often recommend the avoidance of sun, the Budwig Diet protocol strongly advises this practice. Not only did Dr. Budwig believe, as do many therapists and doctors in support of alternative therapies believe today, the sun stimulates vigor and vitality both psychologically and biologically.

The sun’s rays are a source of photons which attract electrons in our bodies thereby creating a magnetic field. This energy helps to feed the cellular voltage previously mentioned. Dr. Budwig also believed that the sun promotes function of important glandular organs including the pancreas, gallbladder and salivary glands. (1)

vitamin d deficiency, Vitamin D Deficiency: Common Symptoms and Solutions

Limiting Toxins is Vital to Healing Cancer

When Dr. Budwig compiled her research before the turn of the 21st century, she strongly advocated against the consumption of foods produced from man. The Budwig Diet protocol requires strict adherence to removing all sources of toxins in your environment in order to heal from cancer.

Before refined vegetable oils were labeled for the trans fats they contained, Dr. Budwig understood the relationship that these man created fats had on the pathogenesis of cancer. Trans fats enable the suffocation of our cells by equipping our bodies with the wrong tools for the job. Chemically processed fats and oils have a different chemical structure than natural fats which prevents the body from receiving the essential fats and oils they demand. (6)

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Modern World Recommendations

Today’s world is not only marked by the continued use of trans fats in our diets, but new technological advances only seem to hasten our race for the pathogenesis of disease and cancer. Blue light from smartphone use at night inhibits the release of melatonin and inhibits the healthy function for circadian rhythm needed for deep sleep to heal our minds, bodies and spirits (8).

Keeping up with life’s demands has us reaching for prepackaged foods zapped of their nutrient value and fad diets falsely teach people that all fats are created equal and should be avoided. Changing times has prompted additional recommendations for following the Budwig Diet today.

Today Dr. Budwig would likely advise the strict avoidance of genetically modified foods from our diets. If manipulating the chemical structure of vegetable oils aids in the destruction of our cells and their ability to successfully divide, we cannot understand what health consequences genetically modified foods will have in our cells and our whole body.

Other Alternative Cancer Treatments

Other cancer treatment diets have stemmed from the Budwig Diet such as the Cellect protocol and the Bill Henderson protocol (1, 2, 4). These diets and lifestyle treatment protocols all share in the main goals at helping the body heal from cancer. The effectiveness by which these treatments rid the body of cancer involves the following underlying assumptions. Cancer can develop from a complex series of problems involving:

  1. Lack of Oxygen Supply to Cells.
  2. Weakened Immune System.
  3. Mitochondrial Dysfunction and glycolytic adaptation
  4. Excessive acidity
  5. Toxic accumulation of carcinogens.

Cancer researchers recommend additional practices when following the Budwig Diet to heal cancer.  This includes practices such as the ketogenic diet, cleansing strategies, green juicing and advanced therapies.

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Use Quality Flaxseed Oil

An important part of the Budwig Diet is choosing quality flaxseed oil. Barleans cold pressed flax oil is a high-quality product contained in a dark bottle in the refrigerated section of your market. Be sure to never use the oil past its expiration date.

Unless curing stomach or intestinal cancer, it is not recommended to purchase flax oil containing added lignans (only naturally formed) because researchers debate whether or not this oil is more susceptible to becoming rancid with an undetectable taste. Grinding your own flaxseeds is the best strategy to receiving the fiber benefits of lignans (1).

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Choose a High-Quality Cottage Cheese

The sulfur protein component found in cottage cheese is necessary in making the oil water soluble so that it can pass through the cell membrane. Nancy’s brand of organic, low fat cottage cheese is an excellent choice as it also contains beneficial probiotics and enzymes which may help some dairy sensitive individuals to better tolerate the protein in the cheese.

Purchasing anything less than a high-quality cottage cheese inhibits the chemical reaction from occurring. Added preservatives and hormones in lower grade cheeses coupled with high heat pasteurization processes ruin the quality sulfur containing protein.

Alternatives for those with Dairy Sensitivities

If you are highly sensitive or intolerant to dairy, alternates to cottage cheese may have the same beneficial effect. Try using a raw milk product and choose goat’s milk instead of cow’s milk. If Nancy’s cottage cheese brand does not work for you, substitute the cottage cheese with organic kefir instead.

Dr. Budwig did note that the substitution of a yogurt instead of milk may require up to 3 times the serving size as it might contain less of the desired sulfur protein. Clinical research is still needed to compare the health benefits for substituting yogurt for milk or cottage cheese in making quark. (1)

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Instructions for Preparing Quark

A single dose of quark is considered 1 tablespoon of flax oil and 2 tablespoons of cottage cheese for every 100 lbs. of an individual. Adjust the recipe according to dosage and for its intended purpose to treat the severity of symptoms.

  1. Add 1 tablespoon of cold pressed flaxseed oil into a glass container.
  2. Add in 2 tablespoons of organic, grass-fed cottage cheese to flaxseed oil.
  3. Using an immersion blender, never by hand, blend the two foods for 1 minute. A whipped cream like consistency will result.
  4. Grind 2 tablespoons of either golden or brown flaxseeds in a coffee grinder for 1 minute. An airy, fluffy appearance will result.
  5. Mix-ins including ground flaxseeds, organic fruits, nuts and seasonings can be added last for a tasty meal.
  6. You can also look for fermented raw goat’s milk yogurt and you can use chia seeds instead of flax.
  7. I also recommend adding in anti-inflammatory herbs such turmeric, cinnamon and a pinch of black pepper.

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Reverse Cancer Naturally

Dr. Budwig played a major role in influencing the scientific and medical community. Only in the last 50 years since her findings have researchers questioned the vital importance which fats and oils have in maintaining the health of our bodies (4).

You can prevent and reverse cancer naturally by implementing strategies of the Budwig Cancer Protocol. Don’t give another 50 years of sickness and disease to medical research in order for you to stay within the boundary lines of optimal health and healing.

If you want to work with a functional health coach, I recommend this article with tips on how to find a great coach. Our website offers long-distance functional health coaching programs with our world-class team of health coaches. For further support with your health and other goals, just reach out—our fantastic coaches are here to support your journey.

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Sources For This Article Include:

1. Cancer Tutor Link Here
2. Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center Link Here
3. Cockbain AJ, Toogood GJ, and Hull MA. Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids for the treatment and prevention of colorectal cancer. Gut. 2012 Jan;61(1):135-49. PMID: 21490374
4. Mannion C, et al. Components of an Anticancer Diet: Dietary Recommendations, Restrictions and Supplements of the Bill Henderson Protocol. Nutrients. 2011 Jan;3(1):1-26. PMCID: 3257729
5. The Health Wyze Report Link Here
6. Budwig Center: Dr. Budwig Discovered the Answer to Cancer Link Here
7. National Library of Medicine Link Here
8. Oh JH, et al. Analysis of circadian properties and healthy levels of blue light from smartphones at night. Sci Rep. 2015 Jun;5:11325. PMID: 26085126

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Dr. Jockers

Dr David Jockers is passionate about seeing people reach their health potential in mind, body and spirit. He is the host of the popular “Dr Jockers Functional Nutrition” podcast and the author of the best-selling books, “The Keto Metabolic Breakthrough” and “The Fasting Transformation.”

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  1. This is a very informative article. Pass on buying flax seed oil though. Instead make it yourself with a seed press machine and buy the seeds in bulk. A machine can cost from 375-500$ on ebay. You will come out ahead in the lung run and have the freshest possible flax oil without any additives. Then use a fermented cottage cheese or quark.

      1. Hi Dr. Jockers, Yes, this is a really helpful article. It’s why I came to your site. Thank you.

        As for the “Einstein quotation,” however, you may wish to reconsider featuring it on this page. it can’t be established that Einstein said those words–despite that quotation being popular on Facebook.
        You can read about this quotation here: https://quoteinvestigator.com/2012/05/16/everything-energy/
        It seems to be attributed to a channeled entity named Bashar.

  2. Appreciated your reference to Bill Henderson (deceased last year). I am using his protocol. Objection to your blender photo in the procedure noted. HAND immersion blending is specified in your text and Bill Henderson’s protocol, NOT power blender. And mention should be made that the lactose qualities of the cottage cheese are altered by the flaxseed oil mix. Dairy intolerant individuals should be able to handle this. Interested readers should research “Beating Cancer Gently” by Bill Henderson.

  3. I am so confused…all my reading about the use of flax oil, flax seeds when you have a estrogen dominate condition, or cancer ( endometrial) is controversial… No one says the same thing! Some say it should not be used, and others say it will help.

    I am just diagnosed with grade1 endo cancer, and I was going to use the Budwig protocol along with a mostly raw green smoothie diet….now I don’t know if that is the way to go…any ideas, or suggestions?

    I have not seen the surgery doctors yet…appt May 23rd….wanting to be as healthy as I can be before I make any decisions.

    1. Ray Peat’s thoughts on Budwig Protocol-

      RP: One of the oldest treatments for cancer was enemas. Thousands of years ago, doctors were recommending regular enemas to treat cancer and a few hundred years ago laxatives became a standard feature of cancer treatment. Just about 60 or 70 years ago Max Gerson cured his own migraines with a change of diet. In the 20th century, he was the most famous advocate of a mostly vegetable diet, but he did use liver – liver juice was one of his components – and typically a good dose of thyroid was part of his program. And so it was a nutritionally rational program, but he twice in his book in capital letters said ‘absolutely no oils’. His followers have changed the book and I think they were influenced by Johanna Budwig and her flax oil and cottage cheese diet. In 1954, before Budwig had started writing about cancer, a Mexican professor had an article in Prevention magazine advocating – I think it was – a cup of linseed oil a day as a purge, in the tradition of getting the intestine as clean as possible. And when you drink that much of a highly unsaturated oil, the unsaturated fatty acids are converted to prostaglandins and cause intense contraction and secretion of the intestine. So it’s a very quick {through? thrill?} kind of laxative. That was changed in Budwig’s writing several years later to think of the linseed oil as a nutritional factor rather than as a laxative. And to the extent that it works as a laxative, it’s very likely helpful. But the rest of her program was curds – cottage cheese, basically – and that’s a very soothing, safe diet that happens to be less able to promote endotoxin than other proteins. I think there are reasons that the vegetables, when you juice them, you get lots of minerals that allow you to assimilate the sugars that are present in leafy and other vegetables. So the Gerson diet and the Ludwig diet had some very rational factors. Basically, keeping the intestine clean and keeping the thyroid function up I think are the most important.

      Endotoxin – Kmud, November 19 2010

  4. I am so confused. Some websites say to use 2% fat cottage cheese for Budwig protocol while others say 4% fat cottage cheese. Don’t know which one is right.

  5. Is it Ok to prepare a larger (say 2 -3 servings) amount of the cottage cheese/flax seed oil mixture in the morning and then consume it at breakfast, lunch, and dinner? Or must it be prepared fresh each time?

    1. Hey Barbara this is a great question, Fresh is ideal because it is still fully emulsified right after blending. Making a day’s worth at a time may be okay but look for any separation that occurs as it sits and re-blend if necessary.

      Blessings!

  6. I just wish that someone would try to find cancer patients, preferably those who have not received any traditional medical treatment, and by interacting with them obtain a well documented tabulation of the Budwig diet procedures they have followed and the results that they have achieved. I cannot even find one documented case of a patient that Dr. Budwig treated. It is a mystery that our society is able to suppress an effective cancer treatment and that no organization has undertaken well documented research on this diet.
    Dr. Wendy Demark was responsible for prostate cancer research giving patients ground flax seed. The research was undertaken by the National Cancer Institute, approximately in 2009, The research showed good promise, and the conclusion was that more research should be done, but nothing has been done since that time. It is very frustrating. This NCI research is published by the US government, and it can be found on the internet. Sandra Olson runs a website devoted to this diet, but I find the testimonials at the site are pathetic in quality.

  7. Dr. Jockers:

    Dr. Max Gerson was the person from whom Dr. Budwig learned about the value of flax seed oil. Dr. Gerson said that every other kind of fat he tried led to more tumor growth; only flax oil should be used. There is nothing wrong with the fats you have listed for normal people, but best not to use with the Budwig Diet; just use the flax oil and cottage cheese, but no other fats for those with active tumors.

    1. Hey Douglas, thanks for sharing! I have found that in many cases, going on a more ketogenic nutrition plan can help the body fight off cancer. This style of diet would include many different types of fats and this does not seem to negatively impact the body.

  8. Can I use my vita mix blender or does it have to be an immersion blender? Also, does it have to be done in a glass container? Once the mixture is emulsified can I add frozen fruit and milk to make a smoothie?

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