Dieting Effects – Body pH

If you remember back to the days of high school and science class, you’ll recall some information on pH. pH is the measure of activity of and potency of hydrogen ions in a substance. The scale used to measure pH is broken down into two categories: acid and alkaline. The area in between is neutral. Your body is a substance in which the pH can be measured. This is important because the pH of your body can determine your level of wellbeing. Diets are directly affected by pH.

Now that the science aspect of it is out of the way, we can proceed to what this means to you and your dieting, because that’s what you care about. Simply put, the body can not meet its everyday demands in an acidic state. An alkaline body performs better, has more potential, and can function properly.

The main reason that people will have an acidic or alkaline body is through food consumption. There are other contributing factors that we will get to later on. When your body digests the food, they are broken down, nutrients are used up, and the leftovers are passed through as body waste. The food has either an acidifying effect or alkalizing effect. It has to do with the ashes from digestion.

Kidneys work to eliminate acid with its own ammonia-like substance. Most people cannot create enough of this ammonia to keep on top of all the acid. The acid then sits in the body, in every single cell. You are probably walking around with leftover waste in your body that does not agree with the proper functions of your cells. Remember that your body is a conglomeration of millions of cells. If the individual cells cannot function properly there will be problems in your body. This is powerful information. Cancer and other conditions cannot survive in an alkaline environment.

Alkalize Your Diet

There are simple solutions to alkalize your body. Just remember that it takes time. You just have to give your body the tools to correct itself, and it starts with what you put in your body. A simple web search will provide alkaline and acid food charts that you can post on your refrigerator. Ideally, you should have 80% alkaline and 20% acid foods in your everyday diet.

The alkalizing foods are most vegetables and most fruits, non-animal proteins with the exception of byproducts like eggs and cottage cheese, teas, and spices. You can easily fit these items into your diet. This is by no means a conclusive list, only an example.

Acidifying foods contain most oils, grains, many dairy products, animal proteins including fish and shellfish, pastas, and beans & legumes. Also acidifying are alcohol, tobacco, and prescription and non-prescription drugs. An unsettling acid is the chemical preservatives, herbicides, and pesticides that can be in the food without you even knowing it. Again, this listing provides only an example of some of the foods in this category.

As stated above, you don’t need to avoid the foods in the acidifying group, only limit them to 20%. An occasional beer, glass of wine, or cocktail will digest fine in your body, if it is consumed in limited qualities. There is no need to measure the ounces of the food when you are planning your meals, just use common sense. Have a salad at dinner, and then enjoy a steak with vegetables (preferably raw or lightly cooked). The key is to eat a smaller steak. A 20oz. t-bone is tempting, but it is really not necessary. You should be satisfied with reasonable portions.

Fruit makes for a great breakfast on your new alkaline diet. The best way to get fruits in your healthy diet is to prepare them after you buy them. When you return from the market or store with a pineapple, cut it into bite size pieces and utilize your plastic storage containers. When you are hungry for a snack, simply find the ready-to-eat fruit in the refrigerator.

A Secret Acidifier

Staying away from acidic chemicals can be quite difficult, especially if you are a neat freak. There are natural alternatives in household cleaners. They work just as well, and many times they even smell better. They are not as cheap to produce, which make the conventional cleaners more attractive.

Chemical preservatives complicate a nutritious diet. They are used to make the foods more shelf stable. You can keep them longer before needing to use them. Your digestive system must first try to break these down before it can get to the nutrients.

It’s Your Diet

All in all, it is your diet and your body. Taking the right steps in the grocery store and in the kitchen will give your body the chance to be at its most optimum condition. Choosing carefully the foods that make up your dietary means has a direct effect on your health.