Before digging into alkaline foods, understanding how pH balance impacts common health concerns like fatigue or skin health can help you relate to your own well-being. The pH level influences metabolism, enzyme activity, and overall health, making it crucial for maintaining a healthy body. This knowledge empowers you to take control of your health by actively supporting your body’s optimal functioning.
The scientific measure of pH levels works on a scale of 0-14:
- A pH of 0-6 is acidic
- A pH of 7 is neutral
- A pH of 8 or higher is basic (alkaline)
Human life requires a meticulously maintained serum pH level of about 7.4 (a slightly alkaline range of 7.35 to 7.45) to function correctly or, in other words, to survive.
Understanding the concept of pH and its impact on our health can be challenging, especially with misconceptions about alkaline diets. Clarifying how the body’s buffering systems work and what scientific evidence supports or questions these claims can help you make informed decisions about your diet and health strategies.
Choosing alkaline foods can help prevent inflammation and reduce disease risk, give you a sense of control over your health, and motivate positive dietary choices.
Maintaining a balance between acidic and alkaline foods can help reduce acidity and support your body’s optimal function, providing reassurance about your health and choices.
Some instances of alkaline foods are:
- Fruits like apples, cherries, avocados, pineapple, bananas, apricots, and cantaloupe
- Non-starchy vegetables include broccoli, beets, asparagus, cabbage, carrots, leafy greens, and garlic
- Fruit juices (unsweetened)
- Nuts such as chestnuts or pumpkin seeds
- And legumes like kidney or white beans
Conversely, acidic foods, such as meat, cheese, eggs, sugar, and other sweetened beverages, can pose serious health risks. Overconsumption of these acid-forming foods can leave a residual ‘acid ash’, a term used to describe the acidic residue left in the body after digestion. This acid ash can cause your blood pH to become too acidic (acidosis), rendering your metabolism vulnerable to various diseases and disorders, including osteoporosis and kidney stones.
Your body’s metabolism thrives on a balanced pH level, ideally between 7.35 and 7.45. Alkaline foods, with their pH-balancing properties, have a clear advantage over acidic foods in maintaining this balance. This knowledge should motivate you to know that you can actively contribute to your body’s optimal functioning by choosing the right foods. Let’s explore the specific health benefits of alkaline foods, emphasizing the importance of maintaining this balance for your health.
Bone health
An acid-rich diet, such as one high in processed meat and refined grains, stimulates osteoclast activity, increasing the risk of osteoporosis. An alkaline diet maintains the pH level in your body to help lower the risk of osteoporosis, bone mineral density loss, and erosion. Consuming adequate amounts of fruits and vegetables, rich in alkaline compounds and nutrients such as beta-carotene, lycopene, lutein, and zeaxanthin, helps prevent osteoporosis.
Additionally, foods rich in essential minerals, such as calcium, magnesium, and potassium, found in foods like almonds and tofu, help maintain bone density and strength.
Cancer prevention
Experts maintain that cancer cells thrive in an acidic environment (low pH) but cannot survive in an alkaline environment (high pH). An ‘alkalizing diet’ may help prevent the development and growth of cancer cells. A 2019 study published in the International Journal of Cancer suggested that alkaline diets could offer protection against hormone receptor-negative breast cancer. Clinical research indicates that increasing fruit and vegetable intake while reducing consumption of acidic meats can lower breast cancer risk.
Heart health
Science backs up the idea that eating more alkaline foods, such as fruits and vegetables, may help lower the risk of hypertension and stroke. Since alkaline diets are low in fat and calories, eliminating acidic foods like red meat, processed foods, and sugar (a significant contributor to heart disease) naturally promotes a healthy body weight and lowers heart disease risk factors. This information should inspire you to add more alkaline foods to your diet for a healthier heart.
Additionally, alkaline foods such as fresh fruits and vegetables are rich in potassium and low in sodium, which can help lower blood pressure levels.
Kidney-friendly
The kidneys help regulate blood pH levels and perform the delicate task of excreting excess substances, including acids and bases. The mainstay of an alkaline diet is fruits and vegetables, which are indeed dietary alkalis and can help alleviate kidney disease and chronic renal illness. Excessive protein intake overburdens the kidneys.
The alkaline diet supports the kidneys by slowing down the decline of their blood-filtering mechanisms and helps kidney patients balance their pH to safer levels.
Better digestion
Alkaline foods, with their high fiber content, promote healthy digestion and help alleviate the bothersome issue of constipation. Cruciferous vegetables, such as broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, collard greens, kale, and turnips, as well as fruits like apples and berries, are excellent sources of dietary fiber.
That said, alkaline fruits and vegetables help regulate bowel movements and promote the growth of gut microbiomes that break down food into beneficial nutrients, thereby reducing the risk of gastrointestinal disorders such as diverticulosis and colorectal cancer.
Boosts immune function
A robust immune system is pivotal in defending your body against infections and diseases. Alkaline foods are rich in immune-boosting nutrients, including vitamins A, C, and E, as well as antioxidants. These nutrients help fortify your immune response, neutralize harmful free radicals, and curb chronic inflammation, which may also lower the risk of developing cancer. By incorporating more alkaline foods into your diet, you can significantly boost your immune function and improve your overall health.
Supports weight management
Introducing alkaline foods into your diet regimen is more manageable than it may seem. It can be a delicious and enjoyable journey. Doing so can maintain a healthy weight and support overall metabolic function. Because they are low-calorie and nutrient-dense, high-fiber alkaline foods make you feel fuller after your staple meals. As such, they discourage the habit of snacking in between meals. Given this, they help maintain a healthy weight and overall metabolic function, encouraging and motivating you to make these dietary changes.
Improves skin health
Alkaline foods, such as fruits and vegetables, are rich sources of vitamins, including C, E, and A, as well as antioxidants like beta-carotene. These factors all contribute to maintaining healthy, glowing skin and preventing issues like acne, eczema, psoriasis, and wrinkles.
Boosts energy level
A regular diet of alkaline-dense vegetables like kale, broccoli, and watercress, and fruits like berries, avocado, apples, and cherries, to name some, provides unfailing increased energy levels and mental agility, not caffeine-rich drinks and sugary treats.
Prevents arthritis
When your body is too acidic, it deteriorates your metabolism and makes you more prone to degenerative problems like arthritis. By reducing acidic foods and incorporating alkaline-rich fruits and vegetables, you're not just preventing but also alleviating inflammation and increasing growth hormone production. Following this nutritious switch can bring relief and comfort, knowing you're actively managing your health and potentially improving your condition.
The bottom line: Incorporating alkaline-rich foods is instrumental to achieving optimal health and preventing diseases. Even naturopaths prescribe it and argue that an excessively acidic diet leads to “a breeding ground for disease.”
However, only alkaline foods do not meet the essential requirement of the human body: “a complex, highly organized structure made up of unique cells that work together to accomplish the specific functions necessary for sustaining life.”
At the end of the day, to get the most from your food, adopt a more pH-friendly diet with an 80/20 ratio of alkaline to acidic foods. Eat right. Stay healthy.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in the above text are solely research-based and intended for informative and educational purposes only; the author solicits the reader’s discretion and cross-references or consults a healthcare practitioner for further verification.
