What is a macrobiotic diet?
A macrobiotic diet is a plant-based diet focused on eating a number of grains, pulses, peas, soups, seeds, nuts, bananas, and naturally pickled and preserved foods. It has been acclaimed for its quick directions and simple lifestyle habits. This diet improves not only a person’s physical well-being but also moral and mental health. Many people have faith in macrobiotics, as it empowers them to take control of their own health.
The purpose of a macrobiotic diet is to reduce and eliminate animal products and consume locally grown food according to the seasons while the following moderation. (Lerman, 2010)
The Japanese have invented the macrobiotic method of eating. During the Edo era in Japan, peasants had a diet based on rice and soybean staples. According to some macrobiotic proponents, the bulk of the world’s population in the past has consumed a diet focused mainly on fruits, vegetables, and other plants. As the macrobiotic diet has been established in Japan, most current macrobiotic eaters include Japanese foods that are believed to be beneficial to health (Japan, 2006).
Benefits of the macrobiotic diet?
This diet can benefit both physically and mentally. Some of the advantages of macrobiotics are listed below:
- Improves the health of the gut
- Immunity improves
- Helps regulate and control blood sugar levels. This helps keep you feeling awake and energized all day long.
- Minimizes the risk of heart disease.
- Helps to reduce weight and sustain weight loss
Macrobiotic diet in cancer
Macrobiotics is one of the most popular alternatives or complementary comprehensive lifestyle approaches to preventing cancer. The centerpiece of macrobiotics is a predominantly vegetarian, whole-foods diet, which has gained popularity because of remarkable case reports of individuals who attributed recoveries from cancers with poor prognosis to macrobiotics and the substantial evidence that the many dietary factors recommended by macrobiotics are associated with a decreased cancer risk. Women that consume macrobiotic diets have decently lower serum estrogen levels, showing a lower risk of breast cancer. This may be partially attributed to the high phytoestrogen level of the macrobiotic diet. As in other aspects of diet in cancer treatment, insufficient research has been performed to determine the efficacy of a macrobiotic diet in alleviating or extending cancer patients’ survival (Khushi, 2001).
Macrobiotic diet foods
The following are the most common macrobiotic food components:
Grains: brown rice, wheat, millet, bulgur, oatmeal, polenta, udon, and Italian semolina pasta, and unleashed sourdough bread.
Beans: lentils, chickpeas, kidney beans, yellow beans, humus.
Vegetables: daikon, napa cabbage, kale, arugula, spinach, broccoli, cauliflower, tomato, carrots, sweet potatoes, and winter squash.
Soup: Miso and a wide range of vegetable soups
Naturally pickled and fermented food: pickles, sauerkraut, kimchi, apple cider vinegar, and sourdough bread.
Seaweed: nori, kombu, and wakame.
Traditionally prepared, Non-GMO soy products: miso, shoyu, tofu, soy milk, tempeh.
Can you eat eggs on a macrobiotic diet?
It is okay to incorporate eggs in a macrobiotic diet in order to minimize the intake and select high quality and free-range eggs. It is highly recommended that you reduce or eliminate the consumption of the food items mentioned below:
- Dairy items, such as milk, cheese, butter, and etcetera.
- Meat and chicken
- Clear sugars, chemical sweeteners, packaged foods, refined starch, and fried foods.
If you are allergic to eggs or dairy products, you must refrain from adding eggs to your macrobiotic diet. There are no direct side effects of adding eggs to a macrobiotic diet. According to some research, it belongs to the category of meat, which makes it incompatible with the list of the macrobiotic diet plan.
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References
Japan, W. (2006, Febcruary 9). MAKE MINE MACROBIOTIC. Lifestyle Business & Economy. https://web-japan.org/trends/lifestyle/lif060209.html
Khushi, L. H. (2001). The Macrobiotic Diet in Cancer. Journal of Nutrition, 11(11), 131. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/11659045_The_Macrobiotic_Diet_in_Cancer
Lerman, R. H. (2010). The Macrobiotic Diet in Chronic Disease. Wiley Online Library, 25(6), 621-626. https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1177/0884533610385704
