A macrobiotic balanced diet

This is Part II of an article about the macrobiotic concept of a balanced diet, as taught by Herman Aihara. It combines yin-yang balance with acid-alkaline balance. Click here to read Part I of this article about a balanced diet.

Eating a balanced diet, in this case, does not mean that we eat equal amounts from each category.

Since the body needs to be slightly alkaline for optimum health, we eat more alkaline-forming foods and less acid-forming foods. We especially avoid the strong acid-forming foods like meat, eggs, sugar, alcohol and chemicals.

Beans and fish are acid-forming, but only small amounts are eaten. So the main acid-forming food in a macrobiotic diet is whole grains.

If grains are combined with vegetables (yin / alkaline) and salt or salty foods (yang / alkaline), the acid is balanced.

Chew well

Chewing grains very thoroughly – 50 or more times per mouthful, until the food turns liquid before you swallow – will also neutralise the acidity because saliva is alkaline.

Yang foods have a stronger effect because they are more concentrated. So we also avoid strong yang foods like meat and eggs. Other strong yang foods like salt, miso and soy sauce are used in very small quantities.

Taking all this into account, we have the “standard macrobiotic diet” consisiting of:

• 50 – 60 percent whole grains
• 5 – 10 percent soup
• 25 – 30 percent vegetables
• 5 -10 percent beans and bean products
• small amounts of seaweed.

In addition, the following may be taken occasionally (a few times a week), or in small amounts daily:

• fish and seafood
• fruits
• seeds and nuts
• non-stimulating beverages like twig tea & grain coffee
• pickles
• spices (in hot climates).

Such a balanced diet – both in terms of yin and yang as well as acid and alkaline – would have the necessary elements for overall good health.

Balancing individual needs

The so-called “standard macrobiotic diet” is not a fixed diet for everyone to follow rigidly. It is only a set rough guidelines.

Because each of us is different, we need to adapt these guidelines to suit our individual needs. In other words, we need to tailor make our own individual balanced diets.

The “Four Wheel Balance of Foods” is useful in helping us to adapt.

If your condition is more yin – soft, weak and easily distracted – Herman recommends that you eat 50 percent or more yang foods: grains (yang / acid) and salty condiments (yang / alkaline).

If you are more yang – hard, tense and inflexible – you should eat 50 percent or more of yin foods: fruits and vegetables (yin / alkaline) and beans and nuts (yin / acid).

If you had eaten a lot of animal foods in the past, your blood tends to be more acidic. Although meat products are high in sodium (alkaline), this sodium is usually stored in the body tissues and is not ionized in the blood. So the blood remains acidic.

In this case, your "balaned diet" should have more alkaline-forming foods. In particular, you should eat more vegetables and fruits (yin / alkaline) to counter the past accumulation of meat (yang / acid).

This is why many people – those who had eaten lots of meat in the past – find a diet of fruits and raw salads to be temporary helpful in restoring their health. But in the long run, such a diet will lead to further imbalances – too much yin / alkaline.

Also, if your body already has large stories of sodium from taking lots of meat, you should not take salt (sodium chloride) to make your body alkaline. Herman recommends seaweeds instead.

Sugar tends to make a person acidic as well. If you have been sugar junkie in the past, you don’t need a lot of fruits and vegetables. Instead, you need more yang / alkaline foods: salty condiments and pickles.

The best way to achieve a balanced diet is always to go diagonally across the ”four wheel” chart.

“In most cases, if we select foods from a good section, they will be balanced,” Herman assures. “Such selection of foods is intuitive and traditional”.

So it helps if you observe traditional ways of eating. And follow your instincts.