The lowdown from:
Jolanta Sonkin
Age: 31
Occupation: I work at MacroTreats.com, a company that I started with my mother. We produce macrobiotic desserts and snacks including bars, cookies and pies.
Home: San Diego, California

After her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer, Jolanta not only started eating a macrobiotic diet, but she and her mom also devoted themselves to providing macrobiotic eaters with sweet treats. Now, she gives iVillagers a taste of what it's like to follow a macrobiotic lifestyle.

What's eating a macrobiotic diet all about?
As a follower of this diet, which is said to cure diseases like diabetes and cancer, I consume no dairy, meat, caffeine or processed foods like pasta. I eat primarily grains, vegetables, beans and fish. I have very little fruit on account of the high sugar content, and the fruit I do eat is always seasonal and grown locally. For sweetener, I use brown rice syrup.

Before I started eating macrobiotically, I used to focus on the nutritional content (calories, fats, etc.) more than the ingredients. I thought I was really healthy, but I didn't eat nearly enough grains and vegetables. I also ate dairy and white meat. I would watch my fat and calories, but I didn't care that "no fat" and "low calorie" were achieved with artificial sweeteners and fat substitutes.

How did you decide to start eating a macrobiotic diet?
I adopted this lifestyle when my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer in January 2003. Five years prior to that, my aunt had been diagnosed with terminal lymphoma, and rather than accept the fatal diagnosis given to her by doctors, she researched alternative medicine and discovered the macrobiotic diet. She cured herself of cancer on a macrobiotic diet alone.