Stevia or sweeteners?

[Jerilyn616]

Hi!

We're new to the forum and the macrobiotic lifestyle. We (as a family) are starting the brown rice clensing stage for 10 days. We wanted to know if we could use Stevia to make iced Boncha tea. Has anyone had any experience with this??

Thanks!

[Bruce Paine]

Jerilyn616,

What kind of dietary lifestyle is preceding your 10 day brown rice fast?

The 10 day brown rice fast is not usually recommended for macrobiotic newbies!

If you have consumed any pharmaceuticals in the last couple of years, you could experience some extremely discomforting discharges.

It would be wiser to gently enter the macrobiotic eating lifestyle and after your body has gotten used to eating a balanced whole grains diet for maybe 6 months or a year then you might be able to take a 10 day brown rice fast without risking having any severe reactions.

What has prompted you and your family to start doing the fast, anyway?

What books do you have or have read?

Bancha twig tea taken during a fast should not have any sweetener added to it, as the added sweet could interfere with the digestion of the rice.

Boiling the twigs in the (spring or filtered) water for any prolonged period will increase it's bitter taste, but if the heat is turned off and let steep after the water just starts to boil, the taste should be quite mild, almost sweet!

Thank you, very much.

Bruce Paine

Originally Posted by Jerilyn616

Hi!

We're new to the forum and the macrobiotic lifestyle. We (as a family) are starting the brown rice clensing stage for 10 days. We wanted to know if we could use Stevia to make iced Boncha tea. Has anyone had any experience with this??

Thanks!

[Jerilyn616]

I have some books ordered but have done my research so far online. I was under the impression that you started the macrobiotic lifestyle with the 10 day fast. Thank you for setting me straight! Which books would you recomend for someone beginning to explore this lifestyle?
Thanks!