The pH Nutrition Guide to Acid / Alkaline Balance

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The pH Nutrition Guide to Acid / Alkaline Balance

_http://www.naturalnews.com/Report_acid_alkaline_pH_1.html_

(http://www.naturalnews.com/Report_acid_alkaline_pH_1.html) by Jack Challem

 

Here's what's covered:

 

• How acidic foods strip your body of minerals.

 

• Why osteoporosis is actually promoted by the consumption of acidic

foods.

 

• How eating lots of potassium-rich fruits creates a chemical buffer

against the ravages of acidic foods.

 

• The important of your potassium-to-sodium ratio, and how the American

diet radically imbalances this all-important nutrient ratio.

 

• Chloride warning: The average American diet has way too much chloride.

Here's how it harms your health.

 

• Why muscle cramps are actually caused primarily by mineral deficiencies

(and how to solve the problem without using dangerous prescription

medications).

 

• How the mass consumption of meat and grains causes the body to become

overly acidic.

 

• Which four foods in the average American diet are the most acidic and

lead to the greatest loss of bone mineral density and lean muscle mass.

 

• Why consuming large amounts of dairy products does nothing to prevent

osteoporosis.

 

• The real cause of osteoporosis, and how to reverse the condition through

dietary changes.

 

• Why your diet is far more important to overall pH level than supplements

alone.

 

• What the Hunter-Gatherer diet can teach us about health in the modern

world.

 

• How to accurately test your own pH levels.

 

• A list of which foods are the most acidic vs. most alkaline.

 

• Scientific references supporting the information presented here.

 

 

The basic chemistry of pH balance

 

Back in high school chemistry, we learned about pH: acids had low numbers,

alkalines had high numbers, and a pH of 7.0 was neutral. And it all meant

absolutely nothing in terms of day-to-day life.

 

It now turns out that we have a better shot at long-term health if our

body*s pH is neutral or slightly alkaline. When we tilt toward greater

acidity, which can be measured easily, we have a greater risk of developing

osteoporosis, weak muscles, heart disease, diabetes, kidney disease, and a host

of other health problems.

 

The solution, according to scientists who have researched **chronic

low-grade metabolic acidosis,** is eating a diet that yields more alkaline and

less acid. Just what kind of diet is that? One that*s high in fruits and

vegetables. That might not seem like a big surprise, except for a few

unexpected twists and turns.

 

 

Acid-yielding foods deplete minerals

 

 

If the idea of balancing acid and alkaline foods seems a bit off the wall,

it does have a somewhat checkered past. Most people, including physicians,

aren*t familiar with the dangers of acidosis, except in the most extreme

situations. Those include lactic acidosis, from overexercise; ketoacidosis,

when diabetes start burning their own fat; and renal acidosis, which can be

a sign of kidney failure.

 

The original scientific research on acid-yielding and alkaline-yielding

foods dates back to 1914 and was remarkably accurate, according to Loren

Cordain, Ph.D., a professor and researcher in the department of health and

exercise science at Colorado State University, Fort Collins. Then, in the 1930s

and 1940s, the acid-alkaline concept was hijacked by early health food

**nuts.** Among them, William Hay, M.D., proposed an almost ritualistic

eating habit based on food acidity or alkalinity. Since then, most doctors have

viewed any discussion of acid and alkaline diets with a skeptical eye.

 

But the problem with acid-producing eating habits is very real, contends

Cordain, a leading expert on the Paleolithic, or Stone Age diet. **After

digestion, all foods report to the kidneys as being either acidic or

alkaline,** he says. **The kidneys are responsible for fluid balance and

maintaining

a relatively neutral pH in the body.**

 

That*s where things get interesting. When acid-yielding foods lower the

body*s pH, the kidneys coordinate efforts to buffer that acidity. Bones

release calcium and magnesium to reestablish alkalinity, and muscles are broken

down to produce ammonia, which is strongly alkaline. By the time the

response is all over, your bone minerals and broken down muscle get excreted in

urine.

 

Long term, excess acidity leads to thinner bones and lower muscle mass,

points out Anthony Sebastian, M.D., of the University of California, San

Francisco. These problems are compounded by normal aging, which increases

acidosis, bone loss, and muscle wasting. Along the way, calcium and magnesium

losses can equate to deficiencies, with many ramifications. Both minerals

play essential roles in bone formation and normal heart rhythm. Low magnesium

levels can cause muscle cramps, arrhythmias, and anxiety.

 

The four cases of dietary acidosis

 

Sebastian, regarded at the top researcher in the field of diet-related

acidosis, admits that some of the science, at first glance, appears

counter-intuitive. For example, acidic and alkaline foods don*t usually

translate

into acid- and alkaline-yielding foods. The distinction is subtle but

significant. An acid-yielding food is one that creates a lower, or more acidic,

pH.

Citrus fruits and tomatoes are acidic, but they have a net alkaline yield

once their constituents get to the kidneys.

 

So if acid foods don*t necessarily make for an acid pH, what then happens?

Sebastian points to four big issues.

 

 

• First, fruits and vegetables are rich in potassium salts, a natural

buffer. Eating few of these foods deprives us of potassium, a mineral that

protects against hypertension and stroke. According to Cordain's research,

humans evolved eating a 10:1 ratio of potassium to sodium, and he regards this

ratio as our biological baseline. Today, because of heavily salted processed

and fast foods, combined with a low intake of fruits and vegetables, the

ratio is now 3:1 in favor of sodium. That reversal, he says, wreaks havoc

with pH and our dependency on potassium.

 

 

• Second, there has also been a similar reversal in the consumption of

naturally occurring bicarbonate (such as potassium bicarbonate) in foods and

added chloride (mostly in the form of sodium chloride, or table salt).

Bicarbonate is alkaline, where as chloride is acid-yielding. Chloride also

constricts blood vessels, and narrows blood vessels reduce circulation,

Sebastian says. Because the whole body depends on healthy circulation,

vasoconstriction contributes to heart disease, stroke, dementia, and probably

every

other degenerative disease.

 

 

• Third, eating large amounts of animal protein (including meat, fowl, and

seafood) releases sulfuric acid though the metabolism of sulfur-containing

amino acids, also contributing to greater acidity. This acidic shift can

be offset with greater consumption of fruits and vegetables (rich in

potassium bicarbonate), but again, most Americans eat these foods sparingly.

 

 

• Fourth, grains, such as wheat, rye, and corn, have a net acid-yielding

effect, regardless of whether they are in the form of white bread, breakfast

cereal, pasta or whole grains. " Grains are the most frequently consumed

plant food in the United States, " says Sebastian, and account for 65 percent

of the plant foods eaten by Americans. " In addition to their acid yield,

grains displace more nutritious fruits and vegetables, " he adds.

 

 

**The real problem is one of alkaline deficiency, more than one of too

much acid,** says Sebastian. People eat plenty of acid-yielding animal

protein, dairy products, and grains. The missing piece is an appreciate amount

of

fruits and vegetables, to produce an alkaline yield. Study after study has

shown that most Americans -- 68 to 91 percent -- don*t eat the five

recommended daily servings of fruits and vegetables.

 

 

pH, acidosis and osteoporosis

 

 

The strongest evidence in support of maintaining an acid-alkaline balance

relates to osteoporosis. " Consider that Americans consume more calcium-rich

dairy foods than almost every other nation, and we have one of the highest

rates of osteoporosis, " says Cordain. " There's a disconnect here. Dairy

may be rich in calcium, but most dairy foods also produce an acid yield. "

 

Susan Brown, Ph.D., who heads the nonprofit Osteoporosis Education Project

in East Syracuse, N.Y., frames the acid-alkaline issue as one of mineral

adequacy and depletion. **It*s a little like over-farming and depleting

mineral levels in soil,** she says. **If we eat foods that create an acidic pH

in the body, we will deplete our bones of minerals and our muscles of

protein. **

 

Brown described a client named Janet whose doctor diagnosed her at age 52

with osteopenia, a demineralizing of bone that often foreshadows

osteoporosis. At 55, Janet began following Brown's recommendations for eating

more

fruits and vegetables, taking supplements, and exercising. Three years later,

Janet was clearly building bone mass in her spine and hip, even while

going through menopause.

 

Meanwhile, Sebastian acknowledges that he may have only scratched the

surface when it comes to the health problems related to mild life-long

acidosis. He says low-grade acidosis increases insulin resistance, the hallmark

of

both prediabetes and full-blown type-2 diabetes. It increases the risk of

kidney stones and kidney failure. And one study suggests that it might even

alter gene activity and raise the risk of breast cancer. He admits that no

one yet knows all the consequences of a fundamental shift in the body*s

acid-alkaline balance, but he suspects it's far reaching.

 

 

Can supplements help?

 

 

Millions of women dutifully take calcium supplements to help maintain

their bone mass and reduce their chances of developing severe osteoporosis with

age. But do supplements have any real benefit in alkalizing the body?

 

Brown does see a benefit from supplements, but she says it's important to

stem calcium and magnesium losses from acid-yielding eating habits.

**Acid-alkaline balance is overwhelmingly a food issue,** she emphasizes. **Your

pH is really a sign of how your body is managing your mineral reserves.**

 

Potassium has turned out to be a crucial mineral for maintaining bone.

High-potassium diets -- that is, those rich in fruits and vegetables -- slow

bone loss, mainly by promoting alkalinity. So do supplements, such as

potassium citrate and bicarbonate. While potassium citrate is commonly sold,

the

bicarbonate form is available only on prescription. Still, it's hard for

supplements to compete with the potassium in foods. A handful of raisins, two

dates, or a small banana each provide more than 300 mg of potassium.

 

If you take supplements, opt for the citrate form, such as calcium citrate

and magnesium citrate. (Potassium supplements must by law be under 99 mg

because of a risk of arrhythmias at high doses.) Fumarate, aspartate, and

succinate forms of minerals also have an alkalizing effect, and all get

Brown*s blessing. In one study, Sebastian found that potassium citrate

supplements protected against calcium losses, even when people ate a high salt

diet.

Buffered vitamin C, which is ascorbic acid formulated with the carbonate

forms of calcium, magnesium, and potassium, might also have a slight

alkalizing effect.

 

Some supplements, such as coral calcium, have been promoted as a way to

restore an alkaline pH. But coral calcium is largely calcium carbonate, which

is far less expensive as a generic supplement. It*s also not as well

absorbed as the citrate form.

 

 

What should you eat for proper pH levels?

 

 

Nutritional recommendations are as varied as political and religious

beliefs and, sometimes, held to just as stridently. Cordain tries to rise about

the controversies by looking to our biological and genetic heritage.

 

He points out that people, until relatively recently, were

hunter-gatherers whose diets consisted of a combination of lean animal foods

(including

fish) and uncultivated vegetables and fruits. Based on his analyses of the

diets of 229 pre-modern cultures, Cordain has calculated that the **average**

ancient diet consisted of 55 percent animal foods and 45 percent plant

foods. The animal foods included healthy fats as well as protein, and the

plant foods consisted of leaves, stalks, fruit, seeds, tubers, and roots. Grains

and cow*s milk didn't enter the picture until about 7,000 to 10,000 years

ago, too short a time for genetic adaptation.

 

Cordain*s recommendations, found in The Paleo Diet and The Paleo Diet for

Athletes include too many veggies to be a knockoff of the Atkins*

high-protein diet. (Eating very lean meats, he adds, reduces saturated fats

amount

to only 10 percent of calories.) Nor do you have to be a vegetarian to gain

the alkalizing benefits of fruits and vegetables. **It takes about 35

percent of total calories as fruits and veggies to produce a net alkaline

load,** he explains. **What's so hard about one-third of your plate being

veggies?**

 

Still, if you have visions of veggies coming out of your ears, the answer

is really simple. Cordain, Sebastian, and Brown suggest cutting back on

breads, pastas, and other grain-based foods, as well as **high-glycemic**

foods such as potatoes. They*re all nutrient-poor foods, compared with protein

and veggies.

 

**It*s all another scientific justification for what your mother always

told you,** notes Brown. **Eat your fruits and veggies.**

 

 

How to test your own pH

 

 

You can test your own pH simply and inexpensively. All you need are some

pH test strips. Tear off two three-inch strips. As you as you awaken, before

you drink or eat anything, put some saliva on the test strip. Compare the

color to a pH color chart that comes with the test strips. Next, measure

the pH of your second urination of the morning. To do this, urinate on the

strip or collect the urine in a plastic or glass (not paper) cup and dip the

test strip. Again, compare the color to the pH color chart.

 

Decker Weiss, N.M.D., of Scottsdale, Arizona, recommends doing the saliva

and urine tests for 10 mornings in a row. **Ignore the top three and bottom

three tests because they're extremes. Average the remaining four to

determine your pH,** he says. Weiss aims for a pH of 6.8 to 7 in his heart

patients, and 7.2 to 7.4 in his osteoporosis patients. You can retest a few

weeks

after changing your eating habits.

 

You can order the test strips from _www.alkalineforlife.com_

(http://www.alkalineforlife.com) or by calling 888.206.7119. One roll, which

is good for

a few dozen tests, is $13.95.

 

 

The pH of common substances

 

14.0 Sodium Hydroxide: Alkaline

13.0 Lye

11.0 Ammonia

10.5 Milk of Magnesia

8.3 Baking Soda

7.4 Human Blood

 

7.0 Pure Water: Neutral

 

6.6 Milk: Acid

4.5 Tomatoes

4.0 Wine and Beer

3.0 Apples

2.2 Vinegar

2.0 Lemon Juice

1.0 Battery Acid

0.0 Hydrochloric acid

 

Acid-Yielding Foods

 

Spaghetti

Corn flakes

While rice

Rye bread

White bread

Whole milk

Lentils

Beef

Pork

 

Very Acid-Yielding Foods

 

Parmesan cheese

Processed (soft) cheeses

Hard cheeses

Gouda cheese

Cottage cheese

Brown rice

Rolled oats

Whole wheat bread

Peanuts

Walnuts

Salami

Luncheon meat, canned

Liver sausage

Chicken

Cod

Herring

Trout

Eggs

 

Alkaline-Yielding Foods

 

Apricots

Kiwifruit

Cherries

Bananas

Strawberries

Peaches

Oranges

Lemon juice

Pears

Pineapple

Peaches

Apples

Watermelon

Celery

Carrots

Zucchini

Cauliflower

Broccoli

Green peppers

Cucumber

Tomatoes

Eggplant

Lettuce

Green beans

Onions

Mushrooms

Mineral water

 

Very Alkaline-Yielding Foods

 

Spinach

Raisins

Dates

 

Note: All fruits and vegetables are alkaline yielding, unless they have

been pickled or marinated.

 

 

Scientific Citations

 

 

Rylander R, Remer T, Berkemeyer S, et al. Acid-base status affects renal

magnesium losses in healthy, elderly persons. Journal of Nutrition,

2006;136:2374-2377.

 

Frassetto L, Morris RC, Sellmeyer DE, et al. Diet, evolution and aging.

The pathophysiologic effects of the post-agricultural inversion of the

potassium-to-sodium and base-to-chloride ratios in the human diet. European

Journal of Nutrition, 2001;40:200-213.

 

Sebastian A, Frassetto LA, Morris RC. The acid-base effects of the

contemporary Western diet: an evolutionary perspective. Eds: Alpern RJ and

Heber

SC, in The Kidney: Physiology and Pathophysiology, 9th edition. In press.

 

Patterson BH, Block G, Rosenberger WF, et al. Fruit and vegetables in the

American diet: data from the NHANES II survey. American Journal of Public

Health, 1990;80:1443-9.

 

Li R, Serdula M, Bland S, et al. Trends in fruit and vegetable consumption

among adults in 16 US states: behavioral risk factor surveillance system,

1990-1996.

 

Menendez JA, Decker JP, Lupu R. In support of fatty acid synthase (FAS) as

a metabolic oncogene: extracellular acidosis acts in an epigenetic fashion

activating FAS gene expression in cancer cells. Journal of Cell

Biochemistry, 2005;94:1-4.

 

Macdonald HM, New SA, Fraser WD, et al. Low dietary potassium intakes and

high dietary estimates of net endogenous acid production are associated

with low bone mineral density in premenopausal women and increased markers of

bone resorption in post menopausal women. American Journal of Clinical

Nutrition, 2005;81:923-933.

 

Sebastian A, Harris ST, Ottaway JH, et al. Improved mineral balance and

skeletal metabolism in postmenopausal women treated with potassium

bicarbonate. New England Journal of Medicine, 1994;330:1776-1781.

 

Sellmeyer DE, Schloetter M, Sebastian A. Potassium citrate prevents

increased urine calcium excretion and bone resorption induced by a high sodium

chloride diet. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism,

2002;87:2008-2012.

 

 

About the author

Jack Challem, known as The Nutrition Reporter, is a personal nutrition

coach based in Tucson, Arizona. Jack is one of America's most trusted

nutrition and health writers, and has written about research on nutrition,

vitamins, minerals, and herbs for more than 30 years. He is the author of The

Food-Mood Solution: The Nutrition and Lifestyle Plan to Feel Good Againem>

(Wiley, 2007), Feed Your Genes Right

(Wiley, 2005), The Inflammation Syndrome (Wiley, 2003) and the lead author

of the best-selling Syndrome X: The Complete Nutritional Program to

Prevent and Reverse Insulin Resistance (Wiley, 2000). His next book, Stop

Prediabetes Now, will be published in the fall of 2007. He writes The Nutrition

Reporter newsletter and contributes regularly to many magazines,

including Alternative Medicine, Better Nutrition, Body & Soul, Experience Life,

and Let's Live. Jack's scientific articles have appeared in Free Radical

Biology & Medicine, Journal of Orthomolecular Medicine, Medical Hypotheses,

and other journals. In addition, he is a columnist for Alternative &

Complementary Therapies. Jack is a frequent speaker at nutritional medicine

conferences and to consumer health groups. Email him via

_www.foodmoodsolution.com_

(http://www.foodmoodsolution.com/)

 

 

 

 

 

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