I was on the macrobiotic diet for several years. It seems to help some people a lot, but in my case, it made my various health problems worse over time, although there was some improvement at first.

Macro does eliminate things like trans-fats, processed foods, sugar, etc. Although it might be considered "grain based," it's not grain in the Western sense; it's mostly brown rice, with a few others like quinoa or millet thrown in for variety, but it doesn't allow corn or wheat. Lots of seaweeds for B-12 and minerals; beans to complete the essential amino acids; lots of dark green veggies; some squashes; no nightshades; very limited nuts and seeds. It's also low fat; no eggs or dairy.

Another feature of Macro is lots and lots of chewing. You are supposed to chew your food until it is totally liquid, which makes it easier for nutrients to be well-absorbed. Chewing also causes insulin to be released, though.

The bottom line is that they do some things right (which explains the positive benefits that some people have), but get derailed by the low-fat and no animal product concepts.

One of my coworkers is a former macrobiotic adherent. She said it was a great way to become more health conscious, but she continued to have health problems andin the end she felt much better when she switched to a low-carb WAPF (Weston A. Price Foundation) diet. It's interesting because certain institutions used to be hard core macrobiotic, like NYC's Natural Gourmet. Now they are cooking up grassfed meat and even using the dreaded nightshades. Seems like people realized that eating a pile of brown rice is boring and not as nourishing as some might suppose.

On the other hand I very much like NYC's premier macrobiotic restaurant, Souen. I can easily order a paleo meal there if I stick with the fish and seaweed dishes. I love the emphasis on seaweed, but I also notice they use tons of garbage oils. The menu for their desserts brags that they only use safflower oil in them...ugh.

I think it's pretty clear that a diet based almost exclusively on grains is going to be anything but healthy, but I don't think there's anything of a paradox in the beneficial results people report from going macrobiotic/vegan/raw vegetarian/juice diet etc. The value of a diet is always relative to some other diet and no doubt eating something at least vaguely akin to food, such as raw oats and piles and piles of cabbage, is going to be preferable to the SAD of pure sugar and vegetable oil. This is no doubt why people think that 'more fruit, vegetables and healthy whole grains' is the be all and end all to health, eating some actual nutrients must be a big improvement over processed starch, spread with omega 6, with fructose and omega 6 for afters. Hence the limited 'successes' of Britain's own hideous macrobiotician, Gillian McKeith (who has a whole industry based around snatching people's sweets and giving them flax seeds instead).

The other thing to remember is that any-one health-engaged enough to be looking at 'macrobiotic' will likely be doing a tonne of other things focused on their health (a la Ornish's veritable lifestyle makeover). It's no surprise that people who are fanatically dedicated to [any diet at all] do better than some-one mindlessly eating the SAD.

I've seen some kids who were fed a macrobiotic diet. They definitely had some growth issues, didn't look pretty...

of course not. Most micros and most vegatarians (really grainatarians, arent they?) seem to be the ones out sick the most at my job. Add fat and live healthy.

I did quite well on it for a number of years, I believe now that it was due to the vast reduction in wheat consumed, and the addition of fermented foods. Eventually, I could no longer remain healthy on a vegetarian diet. It is way much better than SAD.

I dormed with a kid that had been vegan macrobiotic for... Forever. He ate basically onions, squash, and broccoli fried in olive oil over brown rice or quinoa. Every single day. Ridiculously tall, but bone thin and completely emaciated. Slept for 12-14 hours every night, and could never seem to keep up with his coursework. Also, the toilet was a right mess. Didn't help that he would never clean it, but I wouldn't be surprised if he'd ever had a solid stool the entire 4 months. I met his Mum as well, she wasn't much better. Emaciated like he was, and her face was very aged for someone barely 40. She was also covered in peach fuzz as well, which I've read is a sign of deficiency of... Something or another.

I have attended Macrobiotic conferences and have met the top people in the field. They are healthy, robust, at any age. Plant based advocates such as Drs. Esselstyn, McDoughal, Ornish, Barnard are all lean and attractive. Low carb Gurus such as Atkins, Sears, etc. are all fat. Almost all of them.

If by healthy, you mean "I gained twenty pounds and developed thyroid disease," then... Sorry to be snarky. That was the WORST food experiment I ever tried. It's taken me a decade to recover my health from the 2 years I was trying to eat healthfully as a macro.

Of course, all this is just my unscientific n=1.

my mom goes through stints of the macrobiotic diet and swears by it. i tried it for a few weeks at one point and felt amazing --- i even lost 16 lbs in about a month. and at that point i was 180 and 5'8. it was definitely dramatic. the problem is that it is a very difficult life-style to maintain, and it's not particularly satisfying. i think if it weren't so much work, my mom would be on it all the time. she doesn't feel good eating meat, which is why she hasn't been able to adhere to the paleo diet despite my constant pleading. anyways, in my opinion a macrobiotic diet can work for some people, but it's a much harder lifestyle to maintain than others. there is for example no way to maintain a macrobiotic diet eating out.

I had been paleo (and I mean strict multi-veggie eating GOOD paleo, with fermented veggies and the whole bit) for approximately 6-9 months and feeling better than before when I had been on the SAD, way way better. BUT, still getting migraines and chronic hives seemingly inexplicably. I have begrudgingly gone macro for the last two weeks (begrudgingly not only because I LOVE meat and raw dairy, but because after all my extensive paleo reading it is HARD to put grains into my mouth) but guess what? I feel great. I hate to say it, but I do. I wanted to be proved wrong, and go back to my paleo ways, but I'm trying to listen more to my body, and I feel calmer, more positive, have boundless energy, and no tiny niggling headache or sinus pressure or itchiness threatening to ruin my day. I've read comments where people say people feel good on macro in the beginning and then start to feel worse, so maybe that will happen to me too. I think I have histamine issues which is why all the meat and broths and fermented veggies werent' working. Also, I'm not strict macro as I have had some (extremely fresh and organic) fish once a week, and yes, I've lost weight I didn't need to lose and am very concerned about not getting enough fat, but animal fats are not doing well by me right now. Anyway, my point is that maybe we are all different, and our bodies need different things at different times, and maybe neither paleo or macro or whatever is 100% always right for everyone all the time.

A macrobiotic diet is generally vegetarian and consists largely of whole grains, cereals, and cooked vegetables. More extreme versions of the diet that consist solely of cooked whole grains are no longer promoted

Many comments about Macrobiotics on this thread are totally incorrect. For example, eating onions, squash and broccoli fried in olive oil is not Macrobiotic. Macrobiotics uses a variety of whole grains, vegetables, beans, sea vegetables, teas, and some fruits, nuts and seeds. Cooking styles are varied, and food is eaten according to the seasons.It is not true that corn and wheat are not eaten, for all whole grains, and some noodles and limited processed grains are consumed as well.

The MAcrobiotic people that I know are among the healthiest, most robust individuals that I have encountered. Those that fail are not doing it correctly. It takes discipline and consistancy to succeed.

People all over the world, in all societies have eaten this way for thousands of years. Recent studies verify the superiority of a whole plant foods diet; Dr. T. Colin Campbell (The China Study) Dr. Mc Doughall, Dr. Esselstyn 9(who Clinton has followed) Dr. Ornish, Michio Kushi, and countless others.