Tuesday, June 23, 2015

Macrobiotic Diet Foods - An Overview

"Let food be thy medicine, and thy medicine be food."  Hippocrates


The benefits of a macrobiotic diet foods are increasingly recognized. In recent decades, the macrobiotic diet has been the catalyst for change in the diet and positive lifestyle worldwide.  
 
The word "macrobiotic" comes from the Greek word bios makro, which means "long life" or "great life." Hippocrates, the father of medicine, coined the term, and in modern times has been used by George Ohsawa, Michio Kushi and other educators in Japan, Europe and America. 
 
 Macrobiotics is based largely on organic whole foods and naturally processed foods, including whole grain cereals such as brown rice, whole wheat, oats and buckwheat; soy foods like miso, shoyu (natural soy sauce), and tempeh; an abundance of fresh vegetables from the garden; nori, kombu, and other sea vegetables; and a variety of seasonings, condiments, snacks and other healthy foods and beverages.

An important part of the philosophy of macrobiotic diet brings awareness and attention to how certain foods affect the physical and mental state of an individual. Rather than blindly follow the "rules" of diet, macrobiotics emphasizes the effects of food on health and well-being. Choose less processed foods and more nutrients contributes positively to their well-being physical and emotional.  
 
With the construction of our bodies natural whole foods, in a spirit of gratitude, we can greatly improve our physical health and emotional well-being. Researchers from Harvard Medical School Cardiovascular reported that people who eat foods macrobiotic diet for an average of two years virtually no risk of coronary heart disease, the leading cause of death in America today.

Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates are the main source of energy for the body and brain. The brain uses about 25 percent of the calories you eat that rely primarily on carbohydrates. Simple carbohydrates or simple sugars, including table sugar, honey, corn syrup, and fructose. Simple sugars are rapidly absorbed into the bloodstream. This rapid absorption can give you a burst of energy, but it is often followed by an energy drop or depression.

Complex carbohydrates are found in whole grains and vegetables. They are slowly absorbed into the bloodstream, stabilizing sugar levels in the blood, which causes the body constant energy all day, and providing a significant beneficial effect on anxiety disorders and depression.

Protein
Proteins are the main pillars of our muscles, organs, glands, bones, teeth, skin, nails and hair. Protein is necessary for creating and purification of all tissues of the body. Proteins are composed of twenty building blocks called amino acids. Nine amino acids are called "essential" because the body can not produce and must be absorbed through food or taken as a nutritional supplement.


Fats and Oils
Fats and oils act as main structural components of the membranes surrounding the billions of body cells. They are an important source of energy for the body and play important roles in building and maintaining healthy cells.

Saturated fat, found mainly in animal products tend to stick together and deposit in cells, organs and arteries. When consumed in excess, it was shown that the binding of saturated to cause serious health problems fats such as obesity, depression, and diabetes.

Unsaturated fats are found mainly in nuts, seeds, vegetables and fish. They are soluble in the body, and allowing the molecules in the cell membranes to make and break contact with each other to complete their vital chemical and nutritional functions.

Minerals
The macrobiotic diet is very focused on enough minerals supplied to the body, because a healthy body depends on minerals for proper functioning. Minerals regulate the acid-base balance, hormonal and enzymatic activity, electric motion in the nervous system and the transport of oxygen in the body. Minerals can not be created by the body so they must be obtained from food and nutritional supplements.

Minerals are needed for the maintenance of healthy nerve function, the balance of the composition of body fluids, the formation of new blood cells and regulation of bone and muscle tone, including cardiovascular muscle. Minerals allow our bodies to grow, heal and produce energy, and are essential for the absorption of vitamins and other essential nutrients.

Vitamins
Vitamins such as minerals, are a macrobiotic diet essential, and are responsible for the metabolism of proteins, fats and carbohydrates. They are also responsible for the construction of body tissues and the exchange of cellular energy. It is very important to eat a variety of foods to get adequate amounts of all vitamins.

Enzymes
Enzymes regulate chemical activities in all living organisms. They do this by speeding, stimulate or catalyze a change into another substance. They are provided for ventilation, digestion and absorption of carbohydrates, proteins and fats. Enzymes are found in fresh foods and macrobiotic diet recommended by fermented foods.

Water
Water is a very important part of the macrobiotic diet. Eighty percent of our body weight is water. It is essential for all body functions, including muscle movement, digestion, temperature regulation, cellular detoxification, and transport and burning fat.  
 
Always use the purest water available for drinking, cooking and washing to prevent the absorption of residues of harmful chemicals, heavy metals, chlorine and fluorine.

As you can see, it is easy and simple to get the advantage of eating foods of the macrobiotic diet. This simple lifestyle simply requires you to be more aware of the foods you eat, how they prepare, and emotional relationship with their food. Good nutrition is an important step to relieve anxiety and depression. Be happy, eat well.

No comments:

Post a Comment