Macrobiotics

Hello,

According to macrobiotics, Solanaceae vegetables - bell peppers, tomatoes, eggplants, and potatoes - should not be consumed. What is your opinion on this perspective? They also claim that tomatoes are often the cause of joint pain and that the pain disappears once they are removed from the diet.

Thank you.

These statements are problematic due to the not entirely accurate interpretation of scientific findings. The fact is that these types of vegetables contain certain substances (most commonly solanine) which, in LARGER concentrations, have a toxic effect. It is noted that solanine poisoning symptoms in humans appear after consuming a dose of 2 to 5 mg/kg of body weight. If you look at the situation through numbers, for example, one unripe tomato contains approximately 25 mg of this alkaloid. If we were to consume unripe tomatoes, it would logically lead to health discomforts (in addition to the risk of poisoning, there are also reported joint pains because solanine increases the permeability of calcium cations through cell membranes, which can result in the accumulation of this element in tissues with all its consequences).

On the other hand, it remains a fact that an individual with basic nutritional literacy should avoid consuming green unripe tomatoes (or potato fruits), as the proportion of solanine decreases with the ripening of the plant. This also influences the way these pieces of information are disseminated and shared, including practical applications, where it is very unfortunate to claim that these types of vegetables are unsuitable due to certain health risks. This radical approach in practice leads to the completely unnecessary restriction of the diversity and nutritional quality of the diet.

The situation is, of course, different when you want/need to address a specific health issue that is (by coincidence) influenced by a particular food or entire category.

Hello,

Can the concept of "metabolic requirements" from a macrobiotic perspective be linked to Roger Williams' concept of "metabolic types"? According to this scientist, there are 3 types: 1. protein type, 2. mixed type, and 3. carbohydrate type. Am I correct in assuming that, according to macrobiotics, the protein type is the most yang, as these types of metabolizers require more protein and saturated fats in their diet compared to, for example, mixed and carbohydrate types? I'm asking this because I've noticed (I'm on the border between the protein and mixed type, and I'm a breastfeeding mother at home with two children, rarely sitting still during the day - a lot of anaerobic movement - running after the kids :D, with frequent interrupted sleep at night due to breastfeeding - these circumstances probably push me more into yang, yet I'm consciously working on calming my inner self) that I am consistently satisfied only with a fattier diet (preferably a saturated form of fats) and a larger portion of protein. If not, I quickly get hungry and feel unsatisfied even immediately after eating, followed by fatigue, if, for example, lunch consists only of grains, legumes, vegetables, and unsaturated fats. Can this be addressed by incorporating meat or fish more frequently, such as every other day, or by adding butter, cream, cheese, or coconut milk to a meal of grains, legumes, and vegetables - thus a form of saturated fats?

Thank you in advance for your response :)

BEGINNING OF TEXT:
When seeking common criteria for metabolic typing among alternative approaches (philosophies) and scientific methods, complete consensus is never reached. Technically, it is not possible because each approach is based on a different perspective of reality. However, the fact is that some elements are shared, so what you describe makes considerable sense.

I'll just make some adjustments to certain considerations:
1. The digestibility and metabolic load of saturated and unsaturated fats are practically the same. This raises the question of what it means for a fattier diet with saturated fats to satiate you, as the digestive load is usually associated with the presence of proteins, mostly of animal origin.
2. Caring for children at home does not involve anaerobic stress (which is associated with a heart rate exceeding the anaerobic threshold, something not achievable with children at home, except through systematic exercise). The described stress is primarily psychological, typically involving prolonged stress combined with repeated short-term emotional outbursts (in macrobiotic terms, this is an excess of yin), which naturally creates specific metabolic demands requiring consumption of either heavier meals (yang proteins, yin fats) or easily digestible foods (most commonly sweets = yin) – depending on which form of stress and for what duration prevails.
3. The macrobiotic philosophy is based on the belief that the most effective method of manipulating metabolism is through simple efforts to guide it towards balance by using factors considered homeostatic. This involves a dietary concept displaying energy balance with a smaller proportion of elements corresponding to metabolic individuality.
Example: In a classic macrobiotic diet, you slightly increase the proportion of yang elements (fish) and harder-to-digest foods (legumes, nuts, seeds). This shift results in the increased digestive load (yang) counterbalancing emotional tension (yin). Proceed carefully; immediately shifting the diet toward an extreme is not advantageous...