The Macrobiotic Approach to Containing COVID-19

The onset of the second wave of mutant Covid-19 is apparent.

Here is to share with you the macrobiotic approach to containing Covid-19.

After practicing the macrobiotic lifestyle for some time, you will begin to feel emotionally calmer with a clearer mind, and you will notice that your immunity is strengthened, making it less likely for your body to catch a cold or develop a cough.

The macrobiotic diet essentially encourages the consumption of clean and wholesome foods, such as wholegrain brown rice and other cereals, vegetables, beans, seaweed, seeds or nuts, naturally fermented foods, and avoiding processed foods that are refined or adulterated with cane sugar and other chemically produced additives. Furthermore, in a macrobiotic diet, the food we eat should consist mainly of ingredients that are currently in season, because it is readily offered by nature in abundance and is, therefore, the most harmonious with our body's condition.

Condiments used to season and flavor a macrobiotic meal consists of naturally aged soy sauce, wheat-free tamari sauce, washed sea salt, naturally aged grain sweetener and plum or brown rice vinegar, unpasteurized miso paste and pickled foods.

Depending on the condition of their patrons, a macrobiotic chef will tailor his or her cuisine by utilizing various cooking methods to complement and draw out the energy from a selection of ingredients to bring balance to the bodily constitutions of each individual.

Lapan Wellness Café and Woods Macrobiotics was founded for this one single purpose - to help people regain their health by providing advice to change and improve their diet and lifestyle.

Apart from serving a menu filled with wholesome macrobiotic meals and offering a select variety of condiments and food ingredients, Lapan Wellness Café and Woods Macrobiotics also conduct regular cooking lessons, detox retreats, as well as dietary and lifestyle consultations, and have been doing so since 1993 under the leadership of Jun Ka Lim.

Health begins from home, and there are various kinds of natural foods and lifestyle remedies you can try out right away in your own kitchen.

Here we would like to share with you some tips on how to prepare a wholesome dish that is also a home remedy for preventing cough, cold, influenza, and mucus accumulation.

The following recipes call for a rather homely ingredient in oriental cooking - lotus root. Traditionally, it is used to treat coughs and to prevent lung infection, allergies, and inflammation.

Lotus roots are rich in good carbohydrates, fibers, vitamin C, and trace minerals that are beneficial to the lungs, digestive systems, intestines, and colon.

Recipe 1: Lotus Root Tea for Whooping Cough and Wheezing

For the best effect, this tea should be taken two to three times per day.

Ingredients:

• Freshly squeezed juice of lotus root (3 tablespoons)
• Ginger juice (1/4 teaspoon)
• Naturally aged tamari (2 ~ 3 drops)
• Water (100ml)

Method:

1. Grate lotus root and squeeze out its juices using a muslin cloth.
2. Mix in ginger juice and a few drops of tamari.
3. Transfer the juice mixture into a pot placed over medium heat. Remove the pot from the stove immediately before it begins to boil.

Recipe 2: Lotus Root Tea for Dry Cough, Sore Throat, Lung Infection, and Shortness of Breath

For the best effect, this tea should be taken two to three times per day. After consuming this tea for a few days, you will experience discharge from your lungs, colon, and lymph.

We advise you to avoid consuming sweet food, dairy and egg products, and meat during the discharge period.

Ingredients:

• Lotus root powder (1 teaspoon)
• Hot water (50 ~ 100 ml)
• Naturally aged soy sauce (2 ~ 3 drops)

Method:

1. Dissolve lotus root powder in water inside a pan over medium heat.
2. Remove the pot from the stove when the liquid becomes hot to the touch but is not boiling.

Recipe 3: Boiled Hijiki Seaweed with Lotus Root.

It is effective in healing the respiratory system, aches from prolonged coughing, and providing a mineral boost to warm up a body that is constantly feeling cold and tired.

Ingredients:

• Hijiki seaweed sprouts (50g)
• Lotus root (150g)
• Pure sesame oil, toasted (1 tablespoon)
• Naturally aged soy sauce (2 ~ 3 tablespoons)

Method:

1. Rinse hijiki seaweed sprouts in water.
2. Cut lotus root into thin, half-moon slices.
3. Place a heavy pan on low heat and warm up the sesame oil. Add in the hijiki sprouts followed by the lotus roots and saute lightly. Then add a splash of water and simmer.
4. Once the liquid inside the pan has reduced and boiled down, season to taste with some soy sauce and serve.

Foods that strengthen the immune system:

Fermented foods (such as pickles, miso paste, and natto), root vegetables (such as radish and carrot), round vegetables (such as cabbage, pumpkin, and onion), leafy greens (such as mustard greens and bok choy), seaweed (such as kombu, seaweed, wakame, arame, hijiki, nori, and kanten), beans (such as adzuki, black beans, mung beans, garbanzo beans, and lentils).

Meanwhile, it is very important for you to avoid the following food and beverages: Eggs and dairy products, chocolates, coffee, nuts, raw fruits and salads, cane sugar, molasses, chemical additives, food coloring, greasy foods, deep-fried foods and chips, frozen foods, and foods baked at high temperatures.

There are many reasons why you might develop a cough:

• Virus infection.
• An unhealthy diet causes mucus and phlegm to develop and build up in your respiratory system.
• Excessive accumulation builds up in your blood, lungs, and respiratory tract.

Coughing is actually not a bad thing, because it is a natural reaction of the body to protect itself by discharging accumulations and excess that has built up in the lungs. As long as we eat a healthy and balanced diet and avoid mucus-inducing foods such as sugar, soft drinks, cream and other dairy products, chocolates, colourings and food additives, your immune system will begin to improve and strengthen, making it easier for you to contain and discharge viruses and pathogens that enter your body.

Aside from keeping a healthy diet, maintaining a healthy lifestyle will also help you achieve a better balance for optimal health. Regular outdoor exercise is also very important in improving your metabolic rate and discharging excess build up.

At Lapan Wellness Café, you can also find a wide range of vegan macrobiotic ingredients for your cooking needs.

May you be well and happy.

By June Ka Lim, macrobiotic chef and counselor.

junekalim@gmail.com
www.healthyfoodmalaysia.com
www.macrobiotics-malaysia.com

Copyright © 2020 June Ka Lim. All rights reserved.