• The Practicality Of Starting A Macrobiotic Diet
• MACROBIOTICS "The Cancer Prevention Diet"
  
  
  

Before starting a macrobiotic diet, I would suggest that you should pick up a good book on the subject and spend a couple of days reading it to understand the general principles and how it is relevant to your particular health condition. A good book is Macrobiotic Diet by Michio and Aveline Kushi. It is more important to understand its principles rather than follow the rules blindly. In fact, there are no real rules in macrobiotics and there is actually no such thing as a macrobiotic 'diet'. There is however, a macrobiotic way of eating. This way of eating basically means eating the right types of food for your present state of health. At the very beginning, it is all right to follow the guidelines given in the books. But one should take the time to gain a deeper understand so that you can begin to adjust your diet as your health condition changes over time.

This brings me to the next issue of family support. It is best to get the full support of the family before starting. In fact, it would be even better if the family can join the patient to eat in a macrobiotic way. I often invite the family members to go on a 1 month trial to see how they feel. Quite often, they can actually experience a change in their own health and are encouraged to carry on. There are, however people (usually the men folks) who find this way of eating unacceptable and give-up after 1 week. I have read of American cancer patients who decided to move out of the family home just so that they can be by themselves to practise macrobiotics. Personally, I don't encourage this unless you are quite used to living on your own. The warmth and love of the family is far more important than any kind of diet you can think of. Besides, macrobiotics is not the only way to handle cancer or any other disease. People have also recovered from cancer using other methods of therapy.

It is very important to read and find out what are the options available and what are the strengths and weaknesses. The problem with most gurus and doctors is that they think they have all the answers. I do suggest that you consult with the professionals as this will save a lot of reading time. However, you should gather the main information and make your own choice. I have found that people who decide to take charge of the situation rather than be led blindly by the experts have a better chance of recovery. The job of the professional is to present the information and the options. You must make the choice. You are, after all your own best healer.

Macrobiotics is a way of understanding how food and lifestyle affects our TOTAL well being - how they affect not only our physical health but also our emotional, mental and spiritual wellbeing.

This way of understanding is based on the principles of yin and yang. All sickness and disorders are seen as imbalances of yin and yang energies. Health is restored by putting one's life back into balance.

Macrobiotics is often associated with cancer prevention - and cancer recovery - ever since the publication of a book by leading macrobiotic educator, Michio Kushi, titled The Cancer Prevention Diet.

It is true that thousands of people around the world have recovered from cancer and other serious illnesses - sometimes from advanced stages - by following the macrobiotic diet and way of life.

Some cases have been medically documented and there are a number of scientific studies which show that macrobiotics can increase the life span and improve the quality of life of cancer patients. However, the majority of macrobiotic cancer recovery cases remain anecdotal simply because there is little research money (and little interest from the scientific community) for studying them.

A key element of macrobiotics is that it is individualized. Everyone is different, even if they may suffer from the same disease. So there is no fixed formula that can be applied for everybody. (This makes the scientific study of macrobiotics difficult as well.)

However, there are certain broad guidelines which apply to almost everybody:

1. FOLLOW A TRADITIONAL PATTERN OF EATING - MAINLY WHOLE GRAINS, VEGETABLES, BEANS AND BEAN PRODUCTS.

   This "macrobiotic diet" is often expressed as follows:

   • 50% - 60% whole grains
   • 25% - 30% vegetables
   • 5% soup (made from vegetables, grains etc)
   • 10% - 15% beans and bean products
   • small amounts of
     - seaweed
     - seasoning, condiments & spices
     - fruits
     - seeds and nuts
     - fish & seafood
     - non-stimulating beverages like twig tea (made from tea sticks instead of tea leaves)
     
   
   

   In general, the diet excludes:

   • meat and meat products, including poultry and eggs
   • milk and milk products like cheese, yoghurt & ice-cream
   • sugar, honey and most other sweeteners apart from malt syrup - a natural sweetener made from rice or other grains
   • artificial foods such as:
     - food chemicals like MSG, food coloring, preservatives etc
     - margarine
     - artificial sweeteners like aspartame (Equal, Nutrasweet) and saccharin
     - artificial fat like Olestra
     - vegetables grown artificially using hydroponic and aeroponic methods
     - genetically modified foods
     
   
   
   
2. EAT THE BEST QUALITY FOODS YOU CAN FIND
   
   
   • organic & biodynamic foods that are grown and processed naturally without the use of harmful chemicals
   • cold-pressed cooking oils extracted by simply pressing oil seeds, without the use of high heat and chemicals to extract the oil.
   • natural sea salt instead of refined salt
   • soy sauce, miso, vinegar and other natural seasonings made by traditional methods using natural fermentation, without modern short-cuts.
     For example, macrobiotic quality soy sauce takes about 18 months to produce through natural fermentation, compared with modern factory-made soy sauce that takes only a few days.
   
   
   
3. EAT A WIDE VARIETY OF FOODS
   
   
   • whole grains - brown rice, millet, barley, wheat, oats, etc and not just rice all the time
   • vegetables:
     - root vegetables that grow downwards like carrot, daikon (white radish), lotus root, parsnip, etc
     - "round vegetables" which grow just below or above the ground:
     - onion, cabbage, Chinese cabbage, pumpkin, etc
     - green leafy vegetables that grow upwards and outwards
     
   • beans: red beans, green beans, soy beans, black soy beans, etc.

• Simple "medicines" which one can make at home, using vegetables, seasonings and other common kitchen ingredients

• suitable forms of exercise and activity
• avoiding excessive exposure to electro-magnetic radiation from TV, computer, hair dryers and other electrical appliances
• wearing cotton and other natural-fibre clothes
• cultivating a positive mental attitude
• reflecting on one's past to discover the cause of illness
• dealing with stressful and unhappy situations
• etc

In Singapore, macrobiotic consultations are available from: