Macrobiotic Diet

A macrobiotic diet (or macrobiotics), from the Greek "macro" (large, long) and "bios" (life), is a dietary regimen that involves eating grains as a staple food supplemented with other foodstuffs such as vegetables and beans, and avoiding the use of highly processed or refined foods. Macrobiotics also address the manner of eating, by recommending against overeating, and requiring that food be chewed thoroughly before swallowing.

Followers of the macrobiotic approach believe that food and food quality powerfully affect health, well-being, and happiness, and that a macrobiotic diet has more beneficial effects than others. The macrobiotic approach suggests choosing food that is less processed.

One goal of macrobiotics is to become sensitive to the actual effects of foods on health and well-being, rather than to follow dietary rules and regulations. Dietary guidelines, however, help in developing sensitivity and an intuitive sense for what sustains health and well-being.

Macrobiotics emphasizes locally grown whole grain cereals, pulses (legumes), vegetables, seaweed, fermented soy products and fruit, combined into meals according to the principle of balance (known as yin and yang). Whole grains and whole-grain products such as brown rice and buckwheat pasta (soba), a variety of cooked and raw vegetables, beans and bean products, mild natural seasonings, fish, nuts and seeds, mild (non-stimulating) beverages such as bancha twig tea and fruit are recommended.

Nightshade vegetables, including tomatoes, peppers, potatoes, eggplant; also spinach, beets and avocados are not recommended, or used sparingly at most, in macrobiotic cooking, as they are considered extremely yin. Some macrobiotic practitioners also discourage the use of nightshades due to the alkaloid solanine, thought to affect calcium balance.

Macrobiotics is considered an approach to life rather than a diet. Some general guidelines for the diet are the following:

  * Whole cereal grains, especially brown rice: 50-60%

  * Vegetables: 25-30%

  * Beans and legumes: 5-10 %

  * Miso soup: 5%

The remainder is composed of fish and seafood, seeds and nuts, seed and nut butters, seasonings, sweeteners, fruits, and beverages. Other naturally raised animal products may be included if needed during dietary transition or according to individual needs.

In spring:

  * food with a lighter quality

  * wild plants, germs, lightly fermented food, grain species, fresh greens

  * light cooking style: steaming, cooking for a short time, etc.

In summer:

  * food with lighter quality

  * large-leaved greens, sweet corn, fruit, summer pumpkins

  * light cooking style: steaming, quick cooking, etc.

  * More raw foods

  * lighter grains, such as barley, bulghur, and couscous

In autumn:

  * food with more concentrated quality

  * root vegetables, (winter) pumpkins, beans, cereals, etc.

  * heavier grains such as sweet rice, mochi and millet

In winter:

  * food with a stronger, more concentrated quality

  * round vegetables, pickles, root vegetables, etc.

  * more miso, shoyu, oil, and salt

  * heavier grains such as millet, buckwheat, fried rice, etc.

Yin and yang content of foods

Macrobiotic eating follows the principle of balance (called balancing yin and yang in China).

Macrobiotics holds that some foods are overstimulating and can exhaust the body and mind. These are classified as extreme yin (stimulating) in their effects:

  * Sugar

  * Alcohol

  * Honey

  * Coffee

  * Chocolate

  * Refined flour products

  * Very hot spices

  * Chemicals and preservatives

  * Commercial milk, yogurt and soft cheeses

  * Poor quality vegetable oils

Foods that are considered to be concentrated, heavy and dense create stagnation. These have yang (strengthening, but stagnating effects if over-consumed).

  * Poultry

  * Meat

  * Eggs

  * Refined salt

Foods that create balance are whole grains, vegetables, beans, sea vegetables, fruit, nuts, and seeds. Foods such as these are used in a macrobiotic way of eating.

The above implies that macrobiotics encourages the use of foodstuffs which are themselves balanced, rather than balancing the intake so that the amount of yin and of yang foods balances out.

The composition of dishes and the choices of foods is adjusted according to

  * the season

  * the climate

  * activity

  * sex

  * age

  * health condition

  * transition in one's diet

and any other personal considerations.

Macrobiotics vs. Japanese diet

The macrobiotic way of eating is erroneously thought to be Japanese. According to Macrobiotic advocates, a majority of the world population in the past ate a diet based primarily on grains, vegetables, and other plants. Because many of the recently popular teachers came from Japan, foods from Japan that are beneficial for health are incorporated by most modern macrobiotic eaters. Some macrobiotic ingredients are also standard ingredients in Japanese cuisine.

There is also a Chinese form of macrobiotics called the Chang Ming or Long Life diet which is very similar to the Japanese system but based upon the principles of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

Macrobiotics vs. veganism

A macrobiotic diet includes many of the same foods as vegan diets, but in macrobiotics certain animal foods are suggested. The two dietary styles share enough similarities that a vegan version of macrobiotics is not uncommon. Macrobiotics is based on traditional ways of eating. While there are no completely vegan cultures that are long-lived, the longest-lived cultures around the world consume between 70% and 99% whole plant foods. John Robbins, a well-known vegan advocate, pointed this out in his recent book, Healthy at 100. The American Dietetic Association approves of carefully-planned vegan diets. In the words of the Association, Well-planned vegan and other types of vegetarian diets are appropriate for all stages of the life cycle, including during pregnancy, lactation, infancy, childhood, and adolescence.... It is the position of the American Dietetic Association and Dietitians of Canada that appropriately planned vegetarian diets are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases.

Macrobiotics and cancer

Macrobiotics has long been advocated by some as a preventative and cure for cancer. Michio Kushi's book "The Cancer Prevention Diet" outlines the fundamental philosophy for the diet and cancer prevention. There is evidence that a diet high in whole grains and vegetables and possibly low in saturated fat, red meat, and preserved meat products can help to prevent many types of cancer. A study at the University of Tulane conducted by James P. Carter and others reported significant improvement in cancer patient longevity (177 months compared to 91 months) when patients practiced the macrobiotic diet, although an analysis of "Complementary and Alternative Medical Therapies for Cancer" stated about this paper "Scientific evidence on the potential benefits of macrobiotic diets for patients with cancer is limited to two retrospective studies with serious methodologic flaws". Despite anecdotal reports to the contrary reported in "Unconventional Cancer Treatments" medical professionals do not consider that there is evidence that a macrobiotic diet is useful as a cure for cancer. The American Cancer Society strongly urges people with cancer not to use a dietary program as an exclusive or primary means of treatment; and many long-term practitioners of the diet, including Michio Kushi's wife Aveline and daughter Lilly, died of cancer. Michio Kushi himself developed cancer and had a tumour removed surgically from his intestines, although he now appears to be well. Macrobiotic teacher Cecile Levin, and Anthony J. Sattilaro, author of Recalled by Life, also died of cancer.

Kushi's methods of diagnosis include pulse diagnosis, visual diagnosis, meridian diagnosis, voice diagnosis, astrological diagnosis, parental and ancestral diagnosis, aura and vibrational diagnosis, consciousness and thought diagnosis, and spiritual diagnosis.

Some cancer sufferers, especially in the United States, follow the macrobiotic diet, believing that it will cure or help their disease All are available in properly planned macrobiotic diets.

Humans synthesise Vitamin D with adequate exposure to sunlight. Calcium is available from hard leafy greens, nuts and seeds. Zinc is available from nuts and seeds. Fish provides Vitamin B12 in a macrobiotic diet, but bioavailable B12 analogues have not been established in any plant food, including sea vegetables, soya, fermented products, yeasts, and algae.[citation needed] Vitamin A, in the form of beta-carotene, is abundant in macrobiotic diets. Adequate protein is available from grains, nuts, seeds, beans, and bean products. Sufficient amounts of Omega-3 fatty acids are in soy products, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, flax seeds and fatty fish.[citation needed] Riboflavin along with most other B vitamins are abundant in whole grains. Iron in the form of non-heme iron in beans, sea vegetables and leafy greens is sufficient for good health.[citation needed]

In 1967 the Journal of the American Medical Association published a detailed report of a case of scurvy and malnutrition induced by strict adherence to a restrictive macrobiotic regimen. In 1971 the AMA Council on Foods and Nutrition said that followers of the diet, particularly the strictest, stood in "great danger" of malnutrition [JAMA 218:397, 1971].

  What are the Guidelines of the Macrobiotic Diet?

  * Whole grains typically make up 50 to 60% of each meal. Whole grains include brown rice, whole wheat berries, barley, millet, rye, corn, buckwheat, and other whole grains. Rolled oats, noodles, pasta, bread, baked goods, and other flour products can be eaten occasionally.

  * Soup. One to two cups or bowls of soup per day. Miso and shoyu, which are made from fermented soybeans, are commonly used.

  * Vegetables typically make up 25 to 30% of the daily food intake. Up to one-third of the total vegetable intake can be raw. Otherwise, vegetables should be steamed, boiled, baked, and sauteed.

  * Beans make up 10% of the daily food intake. This includes cooked beans or bean products such as tofu, tempeh, and natto.

  * Animal products. A small amount of fish or seafood is typically consumed several times per week. Meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy are usually avoided. Fish or seafood are eaten with horseradish, wasabi, ginger, mustard, or grated daikon to help the body detoxify from the effects of fish and seafood.

  * Seeds and nuts in moderation. Seeds and nuts can be lightly roasted and salted with sea salt or shoyu.

  * Local fruit can be consumed several times a week. Includes apples, pears, peaches, apricots, grapes, berries, melons, and other fruit. Tropical fruit such as mango, pineapple, and papaya is usually avoided.

  * Desserts are permitted in moderation, approximately two to three times per week. Desserts can be enjoyed by people who are in good health. Emphasize naturally sweet foods such as apples, squash, adzuki beans, and dried fruit. Natural sweeteners such as rice syrup, barley malt, and amazake can be used. Sugar, honey, molasses, chocolate, carob, and other sweeteners are avoided.

  * Cooking oil is typically unrefined vegetable oil. One of the most common oils used is dark sesame oil. Other oils that are recommended are light sesame oil, corn oil, and mustard seed oil.

  * Condiments and seasonings include natural sea salt, shoyu, brown rice vinegar, umeboshi vinegar, umeboshi plums, grated ginger root, fermented pickles, gomashio (roasted sesame seeds), roasted seaweed, and sliced scallions.

  Diet guidelines are individualized based on factors such as climate, season, age, gender, activity, and health needs.