Macrobiotic diet – what is it?

The macrobiotic diet is not an ordinary diet, but rather a lifestyle. It was developed on the basis of ancient Chinese medicine. According to her, the consumed food and its quality have a strong impact on human life and happiness, and everything we eat determines our health, well-being and overall physical and mental condition. The main goal of the macrobiotic diet is to maintain the balance between yin and yang.

What is the macrobiotic diet?

Menu of the macrobiotic diet it is mainly based on locally grown grains, cereals, vegetables and fruits, devoid of chemical fertilizers. Diet rather, it does not rely on a well-known and scientific food pyramid, on the contrary, it considers it unnatural for humans, while itself diet requires composing meals based on a balanced ratio of yin and yang properties. The foundation of the diet there are cereals, mainly rice. Macrobiotic diet consists in assigning food products yin and yang, where yin means cold products (e.g. very sweet food, milk) and yang, as opposed to yin, are foods called hot, such as hot spices, red meat. These are examples of extreme products and are eaten as rarely as possible, and it is best to avoid them in the menu. There are many factors that determine whether food is yin or yang. These are the acidity of a given food, as well as the place where the product grew, on what area and its location on the plant from which it was harvested (root, fruit from the top of the tree). The color, shape, aroma and consistency of the product are also important.

Menu in a macrobiotic diet

The basis of the menu in a macrobiotic diet are whole grains of cereals. They should be consumed daily and it is recommended that they constitute about 50% of the diet. The main grain is considered to be perfectly balanced ricebut you can also eat millet, barley, oats, corn and wheat. Cereal products such as pasta and bread should be eaten in small amounts. The second group of products for everyday consumption are vegetables and silage. They should make up about 20-30% of the menu, especially green leafy vegetables and root vegetables. They can be eaten after cooking, in the form of salads and pickles. An important element of the menu macrobiotic diet there are also seeds of legumes and products prepared from them, e.g. beans, lentils and chickpeas, where their consumption should not exceed 10% of the products in the daily menu. Once a week you can afford to eat fruit, especially seasonal fruit, as well as fish and seafood. On macrobiotic diet the use of spices and vegetable oil is allowed. You can enrich the menu with nuts, but you shouldn’t eat them more than once a week. The least used products on macrobiotic diet there are dairy products, eggs, poultry and other meats. They can be turned into diet at the beginning, in a transition period from the current one diet. Ultimately, however, they should be completely excluded from diet. The most important thing, however, is that all foods are made of natural products and prepared with gas or wood. When it comes to drinks, mostly water or herbal infusions are recommended. There are also products that are completely banned on macrobiotic diet and these are fried, preserved, refined, chemically purified, flavored, and those with the addition of flavor enhancers or those containing artificial colors.

The effects of a macrobiotic diet

First effects adhere to the rules macrobiotic diet are usually visible after about 2 weeks, but it depends on the individual characteristics of each organism. Diet this one supports weight reduction, because it limits the consumption of the so-called empty calories, it also allows you to lose unnecessary kilograms. However, it should be remembered that this is not a slimming diet and it has not been developed with overweight people in mind. The effect of a macrobiotic diet it is also cleansing the body of toxins. The dietary fiber provided in the menu in large amounts supports and regulates the work of the intestines and speeds up metabolism, which has a direct impact on the general well-being. A large number of vegetables from natural and ecologically clean crops provide a huge amount of essential vitamins and minerals. Macrobiotic diet it is recommended for people suffering from lipid disorders (this diet provides small amounts of cholesterol, and a diet rich in fiber additionally lowers its level in the blood), it also helps in the treatment of hypertension. There is also the belief that macrobiotic diet is a miracle cure for cancer and other neoplastic diseases. Obviously the use of this diet may be helpful in fighting disease, but should not be used as a standalone therapy. Refusing to help doctors and giving up conventional methods of treatment can only bring harm to the health and life of the patient. Antitumor effect macrobiotic diet is directly related to the large amount of antioxidant substances in the menu.