Madonna, Alejandro Sanz, Elsa Pataki, Vanessa Romero, Gwyneth Paltrow or Paul MCCARTNEY are some of the famous who they have recognized follow the macrobiotic diet. Also, this mystical way of eating set the nets on fire recently, when a former contestant from Masterchef returned to the program to show the star product of his new brand: a pack of macrobiotic creams that replace all the meals of a single day.
If the networks fired, it is because it is expected that a television program of such caliber will not expose pseudosciences on prime time. And the truth is that the macrobiotic diet is confusing in this regard, because it may seem beneficial in some aspects, but simply because it has been done very good marketing with her.
If we analyze it thoroughly, we will see that it is actually not very advantageous for several reasons, one of which stands out: there is no clear way to define it. In fact, if we ask all the famous people in the first paragraph they will probably tell us that they follow different guidelines. Because depending on where we read, we will find tips that vary.
But it is true that the consumption of healthy foods is promoted, such as vegetables or whole grains. What’s more, they advise against sugar and alcohol. That is good, yes, but we can find it in any other form of healthy eating, such as the Mediterranean diet. So if it is so difficult to define, what exactly is the macrobiotic diet?
Yin and Yang translated into food
Originally, the macrobiotic diet is a form of diet that seeks the balance between Yin and Yang. These are two fundamentally opposite and complementary forces, found in all things.
Logically, it is a rather spiritual concept, coming from the philosophical tradition of Taoism. Therefore, it has no connection to health or science.
In the case of food, it defines the Yin as the set of harmful foods, among which are sugar, honey (practically synonymous with sugar), salt, or alcohol. Here we must make a first stop; since, except for alcohol, the rest of foods should not be demonized. Consuming too much salt is harmful, but it is also not good to eliminate it from the diet. And the same for sugar. Talking about sugar in general is a bit of an exaggeration. We can consume sugar in a totally healthy way through whole fruits, for instance. In fact, we must.
But suppose that, in fact, when talking about sugar they mean table sugar or free sugars that we find, for example, in squeezed fruit. We could then be before an appropriate pattern. The problem is that in that drawer of the Yin they also include eggs and dairy. And no, those are not harmful foods unless there are allergies or intolerances that they are discouraged.
As for Yang, the macrobiotic diet includes beneficial foods here. For example, much importance is attached to fruits, vegetables, algae, or whole grains. Everything is very adequate, but again exceptions must be taken into account. To begin with, it is intended that all these vegetables and fruits are of ecological production.
It is a problem, because the false concept that ecological is healthier is perpetuated. On the other hand, watch out for the algae. In their fair measure they can be healthy, yes, but in a larger quantity they can be an excess of salt. In addition, they contain a large amount of iodine and this can be harmful, for example, for people with thyroid problems.
Can the macrobiotic diet be healthy?
When talking about the balance between Yin and Yang, there is no reference to taking food from the two groups. It is assumed that there is already an excess of Yin. Therefore, to balance what must be done is to base our diet on Yang.
Okay, if we remove the excess algae and forget about the imposition of the ecological, I could be fine. And that is why there are studies that point to benefits of the macrobiotic diet. There are those who conclude that it has anti-inflammatory effects, which can protect against Cancer or what helps balance the microbiota.
With the latter we must be careful, because although the words are similar, the term “macrobiotics” has nothing to do with microbiota, as the dietician-nutritionist specialized in nutrition for sports has reminded us Esteban Picón.
“The macrobiotic diet and the diet to protect the macrobiota are different concepts, but they can be complementary. The macrobiotic diet is a more philosophical concept, while the diet to protect the microbiota is well defined by the scientific community.
The microbiota is the set of microorganisms that the human body has inside and they have an enormous influence on our state of health. A diet to protect the microbiota and therefore our state of health is based on the regular consumption of foods of plant origin and a moderate consumption of foods of animal origin. They are the same dietary principles as those of any healthy diet, including the macrobiotic diet, and that is why we could say that they can be complemented ”.
Esteban Picón, nutritionist dietitian
But going back to the rest of the supposed benefits, it is true that there are, but basically because of their similarity to other forms of healthy nutrition. “The nutritional guidelines offered by the macrobiotic diet are not bad and are quite similar to the current dietary recommendations given by the World Health Organization”Says Picón. “For this reason, studies can be found that conclude that digestive health can be improved. However, they would surely find the same conclusion if they analyzed any other balanced diet such as the Mediterranean one ”.
And it is undeniable that it has a positive part. But we must not forget that it includes generalizations that are not recommended neither with this nor with any other diet. “In my opinion, the diet that will always offer the greatest benefits is the one that has been made in a personalized way, taking into account the food preferences and lifestyle of a specific person. In short, the idea is that the really healthy diet includes all the food groups throughout a week.
Dangers behind mysticism
The macrobiotic diet has two major disadvantages. To begin with, there is its origin, totally mystical, which takes away any credibility. “The Yin and Yang philosophy talk about energy balance applied to food, some provide positive energy and others negative to our body “, says the nutritionist consulted by Hypertextual. “This has no scientific basis and there may be people who discredit this healthy way of eating simply because of the mysticism that surrounds it.” And they would do it with reason, as much as it has its positive parts.
On the other hand, in addition to the nuances that we have previously seen in both Yin and Yang foods, it eliminates without foundation some perfectly healthy.
“In most definitions of a macrobiotic diet, they recommend consuming all kinds of healthy foods. However, in some we can find that healthy plant foods are excluded without any justification beyond the Yin and Yang philosophy. These foods are celery, cucumber, mushrooms, asparagus, aubergine, tomato, bell peppers, potatoes and spinach”.
Esteban Picón, dietician-nutritionist
On the other hand, returning to the issue of organic products, it could be that people who strictly follow this premise stop consuming certain food groups because do not find your eco version. And that, according to Picón, can end up leading to nutritional deficiencies.
Masterchef’s blunder with the macrobiotic diet
Knowing all this, what about the former Masterchef contestant? Was it really the positive part of the macrobiotic diet that she was showing with her creams?
The answer is no. Basically because eat creams, if there is no underlying problem preventing chewing, it assumes many damages. “A diet based solely on creams can be very harmful to health because a large number of food groups that cannot be crushed or that once they have been crushed are excluded lose a significant amount of their nutrients”, Argues Picón. “For example, if we shred a chicken fillet to make a cream with other vegetables we are destroying it from a nutritional point of view.”
In addition, the nutritionist points out that the creams, as they are not chewed, “do not generate a feeling of satiety and we will always have a constant feeling of hunger”. And all that without forgetting the price of creams, which is not exactly cheap.
Ultimately, the macrobiotic diet has many variants, some more nutritionally acceptable than others. But the ones that are really accepted are simply the normal advice of a healthy nutrition. It does not include anything new so we should base our dietary guidelines on it.
In fact, many of the people who follow her do so because they really follow that mystical lifestyle that surrounds them. Not because scientifically speaking it is the best way to eat. And it is that, although pseudoscience dresses as a diet, pseudoscience stays.