As the name indicates, the theory behind the Body Ecology Diet is balancing your body's "inner ecology," or inner ecosystem. Nutritional Consultant Donna Gates wrote "The Body Ecology Diet" after researching ways to cure her personal yeast-related problems. She studied and incorporated elements of the mega-supplement theory, ancient Chinese medicine, raw food diets, macrobiotics and natural hygiene into her book. The diet aims to help people cleanse, nourish and repair their inner ecosystems.
Digestive System
The diet operates on the principle that a person's digestive system is linked to his other body systems, including the central nervous system and circulatory, immune and endocrine systems. Good bacteria in the digestive system need to be present for all of these systems to run smoothly, according to the book.
Principles
The diet operates under three main principles. "BEDers" need to change from eating "bad" trans and saturated fats to eating healthy fats and oils such as olive and flaxseed oils, add cultured foods to the diet and cut consumption of carbohydrates and sugars. The American Heart Association also recommends swapping from unhealthy to healthy fats and reducing sugar consumption.
Weight Loss
While the BED diet is not solely a weight-loss diet per se, it can help people shed pounds. For example, it includes a segment with instructions for controlling the urge to snack and to eat healthy foods when dining out.
Fermented Foods
The diet emphasizes fermented foods such as yogurt and kefir. Gates' theory is that the probiotics in fermented foods in combination with healthy fats promote overall health.
Raw foods
Raw foods are a key component of the diet. Raw cultured vegetables such as sauerkraut are especially important to the diet. Raw foods bring more enzymes into a person's diet to improve health. According to the book, such foods are also rich in lactobacilli, are nutrient-dense and are alkaline-forming in the body. They improve digestion, increase longevity and help to control cravings.
Similarities
The Body Ecology Diet resembles the Candida diet and other yeast-free diets. Such diets operate on the principle that people who have too much Candida Albicans in the gut suffer health consequences. With such an imbalance, people can suffer symptoms such as fatigue, headaches, cravings for sweets, mood swings and poor concentration, according to the Candida Diet plan. These diets aim to detox the body and repopulate the intestines with "good" bacteria that aid digestion and prevent an overload of Candida from returning.
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