Macrobiotics and Miso

Miso Miso Miso!

Why does the Macrobiotic Diet seem to emphasis miso so much?

spent many years treating atomic bomb victims and Ito at Hiroshima University's Atomic Radioactivity Medical Laboratory. Dr. Ito found that when he fed Miso's health/medicinal benefits are vast. Perhaps one of the most famous miso stories is about a doctor named Shinichiro Akizuki at St. Francis Hospital in Nagasaki during WWII. Dr. Akizukideveloped a theory as to why he and the other medical staff never suffered from the radiation they were exposed to. Miso soup. The staff of the hospital drank it everyday. In 1989 this "miso soup" theory was supported by Dr. Akihiromiso to rats they were 100 to 200 percent less likely to become ill.

Some other healthy qualities of miso include:

• It's high in iron, calcium, protein, potassium and B vitamins
• Miso aids in digestion. A well-prepared miso soup will also enrich the intestinal flora of healthy bacteria and hence support immunity. You MUST NOT BOIL the miso to obtain these benefits. Simply simmer for a few minutes. This stops the fermentation process so that the miso will not produce gas in your stomach but keeps the healthy bacteria intact
  
• Certain types of cancer (including prostate and breast) are less likely to occur in people who eat miso on a regular basis
• It lowers both total blood cholesterol and heart friendly
• Miso contains many powerful antioxidants
• Since it's high in calcium, miso is a great dairy-free way to prevent osteoporosis

Note: To obtain these health benefits you must be sure you're buying high quality, traditionally made (not chemically produced) miso. When shopping be sure to look for phrases such as organic, traditionally made, naturally aged and be sure that sea salt listed as an ingredient instead of table salt.

Miso can be more than soup! Here are some sites that provide new ways to try out your miso:

Veggies with miso
Dressings, Dips
Even Miso Desserts!

To promote miso and The Natural Epicurean, we recently hosted a miso tasting here in Austin.

Samples included a brown rice, cucumber, avocado, spring onion sushi rolls that were dabbed with miso instead dipping them in soy sauce.

Our quaint but appetizing set up for the miso tasting.

Zucchini and summer squash steamed and grilled with miso.

We hope these health benefits and recipes will help you incorporate miso in your diet but if you should have any additional questions please feel free to email us!