- what is the Macrobiotic diet?

Macrobiotics (from the Greek "macro" (large, long) + "bio" (life)) is a lifestyle that incorporates a dietary regime. The word was first coined by Christoph Wilhelm Hufeland of Germany with his book, "Makrobiotik, oder Die Kunst das menschliche Leben zu verlängern" ("Macrobiotics, or the Art of Extending One's Life"), in 1796.

The best known educator of Macrobiotics is Mr. Michio Kushi, who introduced Macrobiotics in the 1970s in New York.

- What is the Macrobiotic history?

Japanese philosophers and physicians inspired the Japanese philosopher Georges Ohsawa (1893-1966) to finally formalize this methodology. Among them chronologically were Kaibara Ekiken, Andou Shōeki, Mizuno Nanbaku, and Sagen Ishizuka and his disciples Nishibata Manabu and Shojiro Goto.

Macrobiotics was brought to Europe from Japan by Ohsawa, after spending much time with Nishibata Manabu, (who taught extensively in Paris), and subsequently to North America in the late 1960s by his pupils Herman Aihara, Michio Kushi and Aveline Kushi among many others. Before the word Macrobiotics became global in usage it was known as the Unique Principle (a direct translation of its name in the Japanese language).

- What is the Macrobiotic philosophy?

Followers of macrobiotics believe that food, and food quality, affects our lives more than is commonly thought. It is thought to affect our health, well being and happiness. They claim it is better to choose food that is less processed, more natural, use more traditional methods of cooking and cook for oneself, and families and friends of oneself.

Macrobiotics emphasize locally grown, whole grain cereals, pulses, vegetables, fruit, seaweed and fermented soy products, combined into meals according to the principle of balance between yin and yang properties, rather than scientific dietary guidelines. Cereals (and in particular, brown rice), which are seen as being naturally balanced in terms of Yin and Yang make up the main part of the diet. Foods which are either extremely Yin in nature (such as very sweet foods, or dairy products) or extremely Yang in nature (such as very salty foods or red meat) are eaten very rarely if at all.

Some followers try to extend the diet into a macrobiotic lifestyle. People who practice a Macrobiotic lifestyle believe they try to observe yin and yang in everything they do. They strive for balance and happiness in their daily lives and living in harmony with nature and their physical surroundings.

Common whole grain products include many breakfast cereals, oatmeal, popcorn, brown rice, whole wheat flour, sprouted grains and whole wheat bread. Common refined grain products include white rice, white bread, hominy and pasta (although whole-grain varieties of pasta are available in natural-food sections or stores).

Whole grains are often more expensive than refined grains because their higher oil content is susceptible to rancidification, complicating processing, storage, and transport.

Similar to the distinction between whole and refined grains is that between whole pulses and refined dal.

Health benefits

Whole grains are believed to be nutritionally superior to refined grains, richer in dietary fiber, antioxidants, protein (and in particular the amino acid lysine), dietary minerals (including magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, and selenium), and vitamins (including niacin, vitamin B6, and vitamin E). Manufacturers are sometimes required by law to fortify refined grain products to make up for the loss of vitamins and minerals.

The greater amount of dietary fiber, as much as four times that found in refined grains, is likely the most important benefit, as it has been shown to reduce the incidence of some forms of cancer, digestive system diseases, coronary heart disease, diabetes, and obesity. Some of these protective effects occur because carbohydrates from whole grains are digested and enter the bloodstream more slowly (as measured by the glycemic index).

Pulses are defined by the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO) as annual leguminous crops yielding from one to twelve grains or seeds of variable size, shape and color within a pod. Pulses are used for food and animal feed.

The term pulses, as used by the FAO, is reserved for crops harvested solely for the dry grain and therefore excludes green beans and green peas, which are considered vegetable crops. Also excluded are crops which are mainly grown for oil extraction, like soybeans and peanuts, and crops which are used exclusively for sowing (clovers, alfalfa).

Pulses are important food crops due to their high protein and essential amino acid content. Like many leguminous crops, pulses play a key role in crop rotation due to their ability to fix nitrogen.

Vegetable is a culinary term denoting any part of a plant that is commonly consumed by humans as food, but is not regarded as a culinary grain, fruit, nut, herb, or spice.

These include leaf vegetables (e.g. lettuce), stem vegetables (asparagus), root vegetables (carrot) and flower vegetables (broccoli), and botanical fruits such as cucumbers, squashes, pumpkins, tomatoes, avocados, capsicums, et cetera, as well as botanical pulses like green beans, and fleshy, immature seeds such as those of peas or beans.

Vegetable is not a botanical term and so there is no contradiction in a plant part being a fruit botanically while still being considered a vegetable.

In general, vegetables are thought of as being savoury, and not sweet (with some exceptions, such as rhubarb and pumpkin).

Commercial production of vegetables is a branch of horticulture called olericulture.

In botany, a fruit is the ripened ovary—together with seeds—of a flowering plant. In many species, the fruit incorporates the ripened ovary and surrounding tissues. Fruits are the means by which flowering plants disseminate seeds. Evolution has led plants to adopt certain basic mechanisms, seemingly without close regard to the tissues involved. No one terminology really fits the enormous variety that is found among plant fruits. Botanical terminology for fruits is inexact and will remain so. In cuisine, when discussing fruit as food, the term usually refers to just those plant fruits that are sweet and fleshy, examples of which include plum, apple and orange. However, a great many common vegetables, as well as nuts and grains, are the fruit of the plant species they come from.

The term false fruit (pseudocarp, accessory fruit) is sometimes applied to a fruit like the fig (a multiple-accessory fruit; see below) or to a plant structure that resembles a fruit but is not derived from a flower or flowers. Some gymnosperms, such as yew, have fleshy arils that resemble fruits and some junipers have berry-like, fleshy cones.

With most fruits pollination is a vital part of fruit culture, and the lack of knowledge of pollinators and pollenizers can contribute to poor crops or poor quality crops. In a few species, the fruit may develop in the absence of pollination/fertilization, a process known as parthenocarpy. Such fruits are seedless. A plant that does not produce fruit is known as acarpous, meaning essentially "without fruit".

Phycologists consider seaweed to refer any of a large number of marine benthic algae that are multicellular, macrothallic (large-bodied), and thus differentiated from most algae that tend to be microscopic in size (Smith, 1944). Seaweeds are found among the green, red, and brown algae. A few species of cyanobacteria may also be counted as seaweeds. Seaweeds are named after terrestrial "weeds", and are not to be confused with things like seagrasses which are vascular plants and not algae.

Sea Vegetables

Aonori (Japanese: 青海苔) or green laver is a type of edible green seaweed, including species from the genera Monostroma and Enteromorpha of Ulvaceae.

It contains ruch minerals such as calcium, magnesium, lithium, vitamins and amino acids such as methionine.

Bladder wrack is a seaweed found on the coasts of the North Sea, the western Baltic Sea, and the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. It was the original source of iodine, discovered in 1812, and was used extensively to treat goiter, a swelling of the thyroid gland related to iodine deficiency. In the 1860s, it was claimed that bladder wrack, as a thyroid stimulant, could counter obesity by increasing the metabolic rate and, since then, it has been featured in numerous weight-loss remedies.

Bladder wrack is also known by the names black tang, rockweed, bladder Fucus, seawrack, sea oak, black tany, cut weed, and rock wrack.

A common food in Japan, it is used as an additive and flavoring in various food products in Europe. Bladder wrack is commonly found as a component of kelp tablets or powders used as nutritional supplements. It is sometimes loosely called kelp, but that term technically refers to a different seaweed.

Primary chemical constituents of this plant include mucilage, algin, mannitol, beta-carotene, zeaxanthin, iodine, bromine, potassium, volatile oils, and many other minerals. The main use of bladder wrack (and other types of seaweed) in herbal medicine is as a source of iodine, an essential nutrient for the thyroid gland. Bladder wrack has proved most useful in the treatment of underactive thyroid glands (hypothyroidism) and goiter. Through the regulation of thyroid function, there is an improvement in all the associated symptoms. Where obesity is associated with thyroid trouble, this herb may be very helpful in reducing the excess weight. It has a reputation in helping the relief of rheumatism and rheumatoid arthritis, both used internally and as an external application upon inflamed joints. A chemical constituent of bladder wrack called alginic acid swells upon contact with water; when taken orally, it forms a type of "seal" at the top of the stomach, and for this reason is used in several over-the-counter preparations for heartburn. The same constituent gives bladder wrack laxative properties as well. Other proposed uses of bladder wrack include treating atherosclerosis and strengthening immunity, although there is no scientific evidence at present that it works for these purposes.

Bladder wrack should not be used in cases of hyperthyroidism or cardiac problems, or during pregnancy and lactation. Excessive dosage (many times the recommended dosage) may lead to hyperthyroidism, tremor, increased pulse rate and elevated blood pressure.

Carola (Callophyllis variegata) is a type of edible seaweed known in South America.

Caulerpa is a genus of seaweeds in the family Caulerpaceae (among the green algae).

Some species (especially C. lentillifera and C. racemosa) are eaten under the names sea grape or green caviar. They have a peppery taste. Seagrapes are eaten in Indonesian cuisine, sometimes fresh, and othertimes coated in sugar. They are raised in Cebu, for domestic consumption in the Philippines as well as export to Japan. Unconfirmed reports claim that the alkaloid Caulerpin found in seagrapes can sometimes cause poisoning.

Another species, C. taxifolia, has become an invasive species in the Mediterranean Sea, Australia and southern California (where it is being eradicated). It is thought that Caulerpa species capable of surviving in temperate waters are freed from predators, in part contributing to invasive growth. Most Caulerpa species evolved in tropical waters, where herbivoires have an immunity to toxic compounds within the alga. Temperate water herbivores have no natural immunity to these toxins, allowing Caulerpa to grow unchecked if introduced to temperate waters.

The Mediterranean strain of Caulerpa taxifolia is listed as a federal noxious weed, under the Plant Protection Act. The Aquatic Nuisance Species Taskforce has also created a National Management Plan for the Genus Caulerpa, in U.S. waters. The state of California also prohibits possession of nine different species of Caulerpa.

Caulerpa is common in the aquarium hobby as a nitrate absorber because of its rapid growth under relatively adverse conditions. Many introductions of invasive Caulerpa to the wild are thought to have occurred via aquarium dumping.

Dabberlocks (Alaria esculenta), also called Winged kelp or Bladderlochs, is an edible seaweed. It is a traditional food along the coasts of the far north Atlantic Ocean.

Dulse (Palmaria palmata), also called dillisk or creathnach, is a red alga that grows along the northern coasts of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, where it is a traditional food.

Dulse grows attached to rocks by a "holdfast". It is commonly used in Ireland and Atlantic Canada both as food and medicinally and is now shipped around the globe. Dulse is found in many health food stores or fish markets or can be ordered directly from local distributors.

Dulse grows from the mid tide portion of the intertidal zone (the area between the high tide and low tide) and into deep water. Fronds may vary from rose to reddish-purple, and range from about 20 to 40 cm (8" to 16"). From June through September, it is picked by hand at low water, brought to drying fields (or spreading grounds) and put through a shaker to remove shells pieces, etc. The fronds are spread thinly on netting and left to dry, turned once and rolled into large bales to be packaged or ground later.

Sun-dried dulse is eaten as is or is ground to flakes or a powder. It can also be pan fried quickly (garlic butter optional) into tasty chips, baked in the oven covered with cheese then add salsa, or microwaved briefly for a crispy treat. It can also be used in soups, chowders, sandwiches and salads, or added to bread/pizza dough. Fresh dulse can be eaten directly off the rocks before sun-drying. A variety of dulse is cultivated in Nova Scotia and marketed as Sea Parsley, sold fresh in the produce section.

Dulse is a good source of dietary requirements. A handful will provide more than 100% of the daily amount of Vitamin B6, 66% of Vitamin B12, a days supply of iron and fluoride (great for strong teeth), and it is relatively low in sodium and high in potassium.

Hijiki or hiziki (Japanese: 鹿尾菜 or 羊栖菜) (Sargassaceae), is a type of edible seaweed commonly found on rocky coastlines. Its scientific name is Hizikia fusiformis.

Its name, which is an example of ateji, means deer-tail grass.

Hijiki is green to brown in color when found in the wild. After collection, it is boiled and dried to be sold in the form of dried hijiki. Dried processed hijiki turns black. To prepare dried hijiki for cooking, it is first soaked in water then cooked with ingredients like soy sauce and sugar to make a dish.

Knotted wrack (Ascophyllum nodosum) is an edible seaweed.
Phylum Chromophycota, Class Phaeophyceae

A large common brown seaweed of the northern Atlantic Ocean, Ascophyllum nodosum has long fronds with large egg-shaped bladders at regular intervals. The fronds can reach upto 2m in length and are attached to rocks and boulders by a holdfast. The seaweed grows quite slowly and plants can live to be several decades old and take approximately 5 years to become fertile.

The species is found in a range of habitats from sheltered estuaries to moderately exposed coasts and often dominates the inter-tidal zone (although sub-tidal populations are known to exist in very clear waters)

Ascophyllum nodosum is harvested for use in alginates, fertilisers and for the manufacture of seaweed meal for animal and human consumption.

There are free floating ecads of this species such as Ascophyllum nodosum mackaii, which is found at very sheltered locations at the head of scottish sea lochs (for example)

Kombu or konbu (Japanese: 昆布), also called dashima (Korean), or haidai (Chinese: 海带; pinyin: Hǎidài), are edible kelp widely eaten in Northeast Asia. Most of what is called "Kombu" is in the species Laminaria japonica.

Over 90 percent of Japanese kombu is cultivated, and most is harvested in Hokkaido. It is cultivated as far south as the Seto Inland Sea.

Meristotheca papulosa (synonyms: M. japonica and Eucheuma papulosa) is a red alga, popular as a sea vegetable in Taiwan, where it is known as jiguancai (Chinese: 鸡冠菜; pinyin: jīguāncài), and in Japan, where it is known as tosaka-nori (Japanese: トサカノリ).

Mozuku (Cladosiphon okamuranus) is a type of edible seaweed.

Nori (海苔 in Japanese, 김 in Korean) is edible seaweed in the various species of the red alga Porphyra, including most notably P. yezoensis and P. tenera. A few other algae are used as well, including some cyanobacteria. The term nori is also commonly used to refer to the food products created from these so-called "sea vegetables". Finished products are made by a shredding and rack-drying process that resembles papermaking. Nori is commonly used as a wrap for onigiri and makizushi.

Nori is also eaten by making it into a soy sauce flavored paste noritsukudani (海苔佃煮 in Japanese). Dried and powdered nori is called aonori (青海苔 in Japanese, literally green nori), and is used like herbs on such everyday meals like okonomiyaki and yakisoba.

Nori is sometimes called laver in English, and laver is eaten as laverbread in a savory oatmeal in Wales and Ireland. Laver usually applies to plants of the genus Porphyra and not to the finished edible sheets of nori. The English term is in any case not well known, and in the US, the term nori is more common.

Ogonori (Gracilaria spp.), also called ogo or sea moss, is a type of edible seaweed eaten along the coasts of Japan, Southeast Asia, and the Caribbean.

The sea lettuces comprise the genus Ulva, a group of edible green algae widely distributed along the coasts of the world's oceans.

The many species of sea lettuce are a popular food in many of the places where they grow, including Scandinavia, Great Britain, Ireland, China, and Japan. They can be eaten raw in salads, or cooked in soups, and are high in protein, soluble dietary fiber, and a variety of vitamins and minerals including especially iron.

The type species is Ulva lactuca.

Additionally, some species in the genus Monostroma are known as slender sea lettuces.

Ulva lactuca, a Green alga, is the type species of the Ulva genus; also known as Sea lettuce. A small green alga (up to 30 cm across) with a broad, crumpled frond that is tough, translucent and membranous. It is attached to rock via a small hold-fast . Green to dark green in color. This Chlorophyte is a sheet forming alga composed of two layers or cells, as seen in cross section here. Ulva, among other green algae, is very prolific in areas were there are lots of nutrients available.

Wakame (Japanese: わかめ or 若布) is a type of edible kelp. Its scientific name is Undaria pinnatifida.

It is distributed either dried or salted. It is often used in miso soup and salads. In Korea it is called miyeok. It is used in salads, or as the main ingredient in miyeok soup. In China it is called qundaicai (Chinese: 裙带菜; pinyin: qúndàicài). Chinese production is concentrated around Dalian.

In New Zealand Undaria pinnatifida is a very serious weed, and is one of the 100 worst invasive species in the world. It was first discovered in Wellington Harbour in 1987. It probably arrived accidentally in the late 1980s, via shipping from Asia, in ballast water. Native to cold temperate coastal areas of Japan, Korea and China, in recent decades it has also established in France, Britain, Spain, Italy, Argentina and Australia.

Undaria is now found around much of south-eastern New Zealand, and as far north as Auckland. It spreads in two ways. Naturally, through the millions of microscopic spores released by each fertile plant; and attached to vessel hulls and marine farming equipment.

Undaria is a highly successful and fertile species, which makes it a serious invader. However, its impacts are not well understood and are likely to vary, depending on the location.

Soy products should only be eaten in the recommended fermented form such as miso, tamari soy sauce, natto, and tempeh, which nullifies the negative effects of soy. (See Special Note, below.)

Miso is a fermented food made from soybeans, brown rice or barley, sea salt, and an enzyme starter called koji. (see Aveline Kushi's Complete Guide to Macrobiotic Cooking, 1985, Warner Books, Inc.) The most desirable miso is made from the highest quality organic ingredients and naturally aged from two to four years. Care in selecting the source of miso is advised as commercial miso contains chemicals, is artificially aged, and may be detrimental to health.

Tamari is a by-product of the miso-making process. Choose a tamari soy sauce, which is labeled as organic or natural shoyu, for daily cooking. It is best to add tamari during the final two minutes of cooking. Beware that most commercial soy sauce is made with chemicals, subjected to high temperatures during processing, and artificially aged.

Natto is a fermented soybean product whose strong odor repels about half the macrobiotic community. The other half love it, especially for its health benefits. Bacillus natto produces various enzymes, vitamins, amino acids and other nutrients unique to natto during fermentation. It is these unique elements that give natto its distinctive health and medical benefits. Notably, nattokinase and pyrazine prevent or resolve blood clots, thereby preventing heart attacks and strokes. Natto is easily made at home from organic soybeans, koji starter and filtered water. The entire process from cooking the beans through fermentation takes only 24 hours.

Tempeh is a whole fermented soy food with a taste and texture similar to pork or chicken. It should always be cooked, not eaten raw. Tempeh is easily made at home from organic yellow soybeans, rice vinegar, tempeh starter, and filtered water. It needs to incubate for 28 hours after cooking. Tempeh is a natural source of vitamin B12 and other important nutrients.(*)