How does a guy who has a disciplined, high quality diet, exercises regularly, rarely eats junk food, avoids chemicals like the plague, and has taken a fist full of high quality supplements every day for the past 12 years get leukemia?

This is the question that has been on my mind since I was diagnosed in March. And this was the question I was hoping the naturopath I was on my way to see could answer. Or offer a theory. Anything — because it didn’t make sense to me.

When I sat down with the naturopathic doctor [ND], we spent a good 30 minutes talking about my history. He asked all kinds of questions as to my activity level, diet, lifestyle — probing for something that might explain the leukemia.

After the Q&A session, he felt he had a good hypothesis.

Cancer and Vitamin B12

I haven’t eaten meat of any kind [other than fish] since 1980. I was quite active in sports —mostly soccer played at a high level — all through the 80’s and 90’s.

To him, these were the two culprits that caused the first domino to fall. By not eating meat and not beginning a regular supplementation regimen until 2001, I was likely quite deficient in vitamin B12, a critical nutrient for blood health. The combination of this deficiency and the stress placed on my body due to the demands of playing soccer were, in his opinion, the beginning of what was the development of my cancer.

I don’t know if he is correct in his theory. It is logical to me — but I may never know why.

That’s the thing about cancer. We all have cancer cells in our bodies. I certainly do. So do you. If you don’t have cancer, it’s because your immune system is keeping those cells in check — as I hope it does for the rest of your days.

If his theory is correct, it goes to show how delicate your body can be if you are deficient in an important nutrient. Today, thanks to quality supplementation, my vitamin B12 levels are extremely high. It makes me wonder if things might have been different had I discovered the benefits of supplementation a little earlier in life.