Topics in this page   ● Sugar ● Fast foods ● Highly refined foods with no fiber ● Canned foods especially canned meats ● Genetically modified foods ● Hydrogenated oils (margarine) ● Heavily fertilized produce ● Synthesized vitamin and mineral supplements ● Alcohol ● Ice cream

Foods to avoid

Important note

The foods listed below should be avoided in general. For your current health condition you might have to avoid other foods which normally would be considered healthy. For example, if you have diarrhea or a bleeding ulcer then you should avoid lettuce among other many things.

Sugar

This is the worst food ever. It gradually lowers the body's immunity and leaves it susceptible to infections by germs and other illnesses.

Fast foods

These foods comprise the main part of the Standard American Diet, often referred to as the SAD diet. It is rich in saturated fats and cholesterol. It is the cause of many illnesses, primarily heart disease.

Highly refined foods with no fiber

Constipation is the root cause of many illnesses. Lack of fiber in diet is the primary cause of constipation. The SAD diet consists primarily of refined foods (white bread, white rice and meats).

Canned foods especially canned meats

All canned foods have substantial amounts of chemical additives. These additives have known and unknown side effects especially when they are combined together, as in the case of canned foods. How many products that contain these additives have been pulled off the shelves when it was proven that they cause cancer or some other ailment?

Genetically modified foods

This is the most insidious because it is difficult to differentiate between regular and genetically modified foods. These products have some known and some yet-unknown effects on our bodies.

Hydrogenated oils (margarine)

Michio Kushi mentions in his book  The Macrobiotic Way:

"Commercial oil is processed by cooking corn oil in water at high temperature and then crushing it and treating it with lye and bleach. The oil is reheated in a vacuum for twelve hours to deodorize it. Finally, a synthetic antioxidant is added to prevent spoilage. To make margarine, the refined oil is saturated with hydrogen to solidify it."

Heavily fertilized produce

The purpose of chemical fertilizers is to make crops grow faster and bigger, a yin phenomenon. These crops when consumed heavily cause a break down in health and a lower immunity. Immunity is yang and yin breaks it down. That is why eating organically grown produce is healthier.

Synthesized vitamin and mineral supplements

Michio Kushi mentions in his book The Macrobiotic Way:

Most of the vitamin supplements on the market are synthesized from coal and tar and other petroleum derivatives. And while the synthetic substances may be chemically identical to the natural vitamins, they may have only a fraction of the biological activity.

Alcohol

All alcoholic substances are extremely yin elements. That is why people who drink heavily are characterized by having red noses and red faces in general. Alcohol gradually breaks down the body immunity levels and causes many illnesses.

Ice cream

The bones are the most YANG (hard) of all organs. Expansive YIN foods, such as sugar and ice cream, antagonize and eventually corrode YANG elements such as bones. The most destructive of foods to the bones are sugar and acid-forming foods namely animal protein. Before developing a polio vaccine, polio used to spread during the summer months when people consume lots of sugar and sweets in the form of Ice cream.