What People Say About Macrobiotics:
Questions and Answers with Bita Hunt

Q: How did you start with macrobiotics?

A: I was macrobiotic before I was born! My journey started in September 1979, the time of my conception. I was born on May 17th 1980, the same day as Michio. I feel very lucky and joyous to have had a macrobiotic childhood. It was everything I could have dreamed of. My mom chewed my food for me, used cloth diapers, and washed me with rice bran. It was the best. If I ever have children, there is no doubt in my mind that I would raise them macrobiotic.

Q: How has macrobiotics helped you?

A: Macrobiotics has helped me be more of who I am. What I mean is that is has inspired me to be the absolute best Bita I can be. It has also always been a force of positivity, coupled with my own personal philosophy. I feel it has given me an edge in life. I never feel alone because I have a strong belief in philosophy as a whole. To quote Nietzsche, one of my favorite philosophers: "We are always in our own company." This quote is tender yet whimsical at the same time.

Food wise, macrobiotics has helped me have more energy and vigor than anyone I know. The combination of a macrobiotic diet and an avid love of fitness keeps me brimming with spunk. I look at people my age and I can't believe that we're the same age!. I had a fiesta recently to celebrate my 25th birthday, and people were just sitting on the couch like slugs, watching television. I was ready to dance the night away!

Q:What do you offer and specialize in?

A: I currently work as a chef and nutritionist. The name of my business is Baked by Bita. I teach public and private cooking classes on Long Island and in Manhattan, New York. I also counsel individuals on how to eat and live better, using macrobiotics as a vehicle for that. My areas of interest are acid/alkaline, the food-sex connection, and visual diagnosis. In addition to this, I sell unleavened macrobiotic cookies through www.cybermacro.com. I am proud to say they are the only unleavened macrobiotic cookies sold online.

Some of the classes I teach aren't totally macro, but it is hard to find an audience that wants macro cooking classes. I really wish there were individuals who wanted to learn about yin-yang philosophy and macrobiotic cooking. Right now, the "natural" food trends tend toward a more yin diet, as in raw foods and ayurveda. My future plans include going back to school to get my Master's in Philosophy.

Q:What one piece of advice would you give to someone trying macrobiotics for the first time?

A: Depending one's diet beforehand, I would give different advice to different folk. For the overly yang meat eater, I would suggest more vegetable quality vittles, perhaps some fruit, and to go easy on the salty condiments. For the more yin vegan, raw foodist, or lacto vegetarian, I would suggest some macho macro fixings such as burdock, fish, and salty condiments. I think seaweed and pickles can be beneficial to all of us.

Overall, I would tell an indivudual to read and take in as much knowledge of macrobiotics as one could.

Bita Hunt is a chef and nutritionist on Long Island, New York. She is the product of a macrobiotic pregnancy and grew up in a natural foods household. Bita received a Bachelor's Degree in Philosophy and Religion from the State University of New York. (S.U.N.Y.) The topic of her Senior thesis was macrobiotics and the yin-yang theory of food. She is a recent graduate of the Institute for Integrative Nutrition, and is an A.A.D.P. (American Association of Drugless Practitioners) certified natural health practitioner.