The macrobiotic diet is primarily vegetarian and places primary emphasis on whole grains. It provides the body with a lot of fiber and limits the intake of unhealthy sugars, so it should be ideal for someone who wants to lose weight. However, it has a number of opponents who claim that this extreme nutritional trend can seriously endanger human health. So how dangerous is the macrobiotic diet and what can we take from it to support our efforts to be thin and healthy at the same time?
The macrobiotic diet is primarily vegetarian and places primary emphasis on whole grains.
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Macrobiotics focuses not only on diet, but on the overall approach to life. A macrobiotic diet emphasizes whole grains, vegetables, and legumes. Allow i Seaweed, seeds and nuts. The amount of meat, eggs and dairy should be minimal. Coffee, tea, alcohol and sausages are prohibited.
Only local and seasonal types of crops are used, those from other countries of origin are considered unhealthy. Therefore, we should replace, for example, tropical fruits with apples, pears or plums. We also have to skip potatoes, tomatoes and peppers.
Advantages and disadvantages of a macrobiotic diet
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Macrobiotics also limit the amount of saturated fat and sugar. The positive is that it prohibits overeating and requires chewing food thoroughly before swallowing. Food should be prepared as gently as possible, no microwave should be used, and each meal should be eaten calmly and slowly.
It is criticized mainly for the restriction of the consumption regime, proteins and some minerals and vitamins. Too much fiber can also be too heavy, especially for young children digestive tract.
What to eat on a macrobiotic diet?
They must form the main part, up to 50% of the diet whole grains. “These include millet (millet), brown rice, barley (grain), rye, wheat, oats, barley, buckwheat, couscous, oatmealwhole-wheat bread, whole-wheat pasta, cornflakes and popcorn,” reports the website zdravě.cz. Vegetables, whether heat-processed, pickled and fermented or in the summer in the form of salads, should make up the 20 % of the diet.
Another important part of the macrobiotic diet is legumes, i.e. lentils, peas, beans, chickpeas, soybeans and its products such as tofu, tempeh or miso. Seaweed completes the menu, fish or poultry is exceptionally allowed eggonce a week in winter, once a month in summer.
yin to yang
Macrobiotics as a lifestyle a diet regime is based on the Taoist teachings of yin and yang. The name comes from the Greek makrós bios, which means long life. The basic idea of macrobiotics is to balance the energy of the Earth and the energy of man. If they are in balance, the physical and psychological state of the person is also in order.
Food also contains yin and yang energy. To be healthy, a person must not become unbalanced. Therefore, yin foods that cool must be balanced with yang foods that heat. Neutral and balanced foods should predominate, such as whole grains, vegetables, vegetables and seeds, which must be the basis of our diet.
As a staple food, he prescribes macrobiotics according to wikipedia cereals, which he complements with other foods. On the contrary, it prohibits the consumption of industrially processed foods and most animal products and limits the amount of liquids.
“A standard macrobiotic plate consists of 50% whole grains, 30% vegetables (mainly heat-treated and fermented), 15% legumes and algae, and 5% soup. In addition, fish can be included, temperate fruits, seeds, nuts, oils, etc.”, according to Wikipedia.
Sample menu:
Breakfast: Buckwheat porridge with strawberries, oatmeal with blueberries or wholemeal pumpkin bread with pea puree
snack: carrot salad with an apple, dried apricots or unsweetened prunes or a handful of nuts and raisins
Lunch: vegetable soup with seaweed, baked chickpeas with roasted tofu and sauerkraut, or red lentil sauce with brown rice
Dinner: Broccoli Pancakes, Roasted Squash with Millet or Cauliflower Rice with Roasted Carrots
Macrobiotics has its roots in antiquity
Hippocrates was the first, at least as far as is known, to use this term in his writings. In 1796, German physician Christoph Wilhelm published the book Macrobiotics, or the Art of Prolonging Human Life. He was convinced that it is possible to prevent many diseases with a suitable lifestyle.
Japanese doctor Sagen Ishuzuka built his own dietary recommendations in a traditional Japanese diet. According to him, health and also longevity depend mainly on the balance between sodium and potassium and acids and bases. His successor was the Japanese philosopher George Ohsawa. Ohsawa proposed ten degrees of macrobiotic nutrition from a very strict one-sided diet, consisting only of grains, to looser and more varied forms of nutrition.
Forge pickles for health. As for cucumbers, pickled cabbage or cauliflower
His following spread macrobiotic in Eastern countries, and at the end of the 20th century, as part of the growing interest in Eastern culture, it also reached the USA and Europe. In our house, the pioneer of this lifestyle was Eng. Jarmila Průchová. Today, macrobiotics is still one of the many alternative ways of nutrition out there, but the interest in it is not as great as it once was.
What about the macrobiotic diet?
The macrobiotic diet has undergone considerable development in recent decades. Fortunately, the macrobiotic recommendations of not drinking pure water and avoiding fruit completely have already been accepted. However, on the income limitation fruit it still lasts and also contains more sodium than is healthy.
According to the Sisyfos Club, it is one-sided and unbalanced, and therefore also inappropriate and risky.
“Macrobiotic nutrition does not contain enough nutrients and severe malnutrition can occur. The risk of macrobiotics has been confirmed by extensive studies in the US and Europe. They are the most threatened pregnant woman, babies and children. Stagnation of physical growth, slowing of psychomotor development and diseases caused by calcium deficiency (rickets) and vitamins B12 and B2 have been shown. Delivery of drink only when you are most thirsty can lead to kidney function disorders. Of course, macrobiotics do not have therapeutic effects”, states the club on its website Sisyphus.
Macrobiotic diet and cancer
Macrobiotics, as an alternative form of nutrition, tries to return to a natural way of life. Its followers also reject the use of medicines and drugs and justify their principles philosophically. He evaluates food according to the content of the yin-yang couple and believes that with this nutrition it is possible to achieve energy balance and treat diseases such as diabetes and cancer. However, none of this was confirmed. Although limiting sugar intake can lower blood sugar and increase intake fiber improves intestinal microflora and reduces cholesterol.
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“It does not bode well for macrobiotics that its prominent promoter Michio Kushi, who presented it as a cure and prevention of cancer, ended up having surgery himself. cancer colon,” the website states healthy.cz.
Try it and you will see
Man is omnivorous and has evolved to be varied vegetable he also adapted the animal feed. So we certainly don’t recommend completely ruling something out in the long term. However, if you’re just taking macrobiotics that are proven to benefit your body and also help you tighten those pants that somehow shrunk over Christmas, give it a try. Maybe only for two or three weeks.
Macrobiotics are supposed to enrich life and enhance a healthy diet. When your plate is replaced with green leafy vegetables and lemonade sweetened with decaffeinated green tea instead of pasta with six, you will definitely benefit your health.