Recent Questions About the Acid Alkaline Diet
I have received my usual questions about alkalising over the past few days (which I love – if you don’t know the answer to something then let me know in the questions below) – and there seems to be some similar questions popping up time after time so I thought I would post some here.
[Question] How can a fruit that is acidic in itself (lemon), have an alkalizing effect on the body?
[Answer] I am often asked this question, and rightly so, because it does not seem to make sense! However, lemons, limes and other fruits that are acidic in their basic form do have an alkalising effect on the body once digested.
All foods when digested burn down to a residue ash, and is acidifying, alkalising or neutral based largely on the mineral content of the food. Lemons, limes, grapefruit and other low sugar fruits burn down to an alkaline ash, largely due to the acids in these fruits existing as potassium citrate. On digestion, the potassium citrate is metabolised to sodium bicarbonate meaning that these low sugar fruits will have an alkalising effect on the body.
It is often an important distinction to make – that it is not necessarily whether a food or drink is acid or alkaline, but whether it has an acidifying or alkalising effect on the body.
[Question] Why is EVERYBODY”S alkaline and acidic food list different? What is on one
list as alkaline forming is on someone elses list as acid forming.
[Answer] Many thanks for getting in touch. I understand you frustration completely – I have been there myself!
You are absolutely right, there are a million different lists out there all saying different things. So who to trust?
Personally I trust Dr Young’s principles (author of The pH Miracle) as he is the individual who is pioneering much of the research into this way of eating. His approach to me makes the most sense (and see my ‘Most Alkaline Foods’ guide here) follows his principles to the letter.
Having said that, you have to do what makes the most sense for you. I read as much as I could on the subject and agreed most with Dr Young. Personally, from looking at some of the other lists I just cannot see how dairy can have an alkalising effect on the body. It just makes absolutely no sense to me whatsoever. If I ever have a dairy product then I almost instantly feel tired and get cold-like symptoms.
I have also seen lists with honey (pure sugar!) and wine (bizarre) as alkalising.
I think one of the main reasons though, why lists are different is that they might be referring to foods as alkaline and acid in relation to different things. What you need to be concerned about is whether the food is actually alkalis-ing or acidifying – not just acid or alkaline. By this I mean that the most important element of this is the effect it has on the body – not just whether it would be recorded as acid or alkaline in its natural state. For instance, lemons are acid in their natural state – but they have an alkalising effect on the body once digested. (edit – see the question I answered above)
One thing I would definitely do though is read as much as possible, but try not to get too bogged down in details. Just take the guiding principles of an alkaline lifestyle and make decisions based on those. I like to follow the principle to:
– make at least 80% of my diet from raw, fresh salads and vegetables and consume at least 3 litres of water every day.
That gives me some room for flexibility (in case I am out and there is no convenient ‘good’ foods and also gives me the chance to make up my own mind on what I should and should not eat based upon how I feel.
I hope this helps a little. I blogged about this a while ago too with some other thoughts: https://liveenergized.com/0704/more-misleading-alkaline-diet-advice-found-on-the-web
If this doesn’t make sense or if you have any questions – please do not hesitate to drop me another email as I am more than happy to help out.
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If you have any questions whatsoever – head over to the forum – there are a lot of people posting there who are very clued up on alkalising!
Good points. Remember though that whatever food you eat – even one that is close to the top on the Alkaline-Acid charts, the overall result will probably be acid wastes. This is because it is the alkaline minerals in the food (alkaline ones primarily are potassium, calcium, magnesium) that account for the overall acidity or alkalinity.
However, these will only account for around 1-3% of the content of the food – the remaining 97-99% of the food will still need to be metabolised, and will of necessity produce acid wastes as a by product of metabolism.
The only sure way to alkalize is to drink alkaline water, as that does not need digesting – ie no acids are produced!
This is my more detailed write up – please comment:
http://glowing-health.com/mb/health-articles/weight-loss/does-alkaline-diet-and-alkaline-water-help-you-lose-weight-and-improve-general-health.html
cheers
James
Hi
Thanks ever so much for the kind words. With the site, blog and forum I am really trying to make a difference so it is always very much welcomed when people say thanks and pay a complement!
I hope you come back again to visit soon & I hope you have a fantastic day!
Thanks again
Ross
hi…i wrote a comment earlier but it was wiped. In a nutshell, i just wanted to thank you for putting quality info out there. I have been helping people turn cancer, aids, heart disease, diabetes, hair loss, skin problems etc around for years using nutrition and minerals – no medical inetrvention. We see all the developing nations have an increase of ‘modern’ diseases as soon as they introduce fast food and excess into their life style. We have been eating for entertainment and not eating for life. I do think the diet article is a bit iffy though! If we are really eating for optimal wellness, we stop craving, we stop holding onto weight and we stop liking the things we have loved for years. I have seen women who have been dieting for 20 years, lose weight for life without even feeling deprived. I am constantly blown away by the massive changes created by simple knowledge; knowledge which the pharma companies/goverment would rather us not know. The tide is turning though…thanks again for being one of the good guys!!!!
Hi Evelyn
As with any approach to health, there is still responsibility with the individual to ensure that they are getting the right balance of food from varied sources. In my experience, following this diet to the letter resulted in great results.
I think the only thing that people have to make sure that they do is eat enough. A lot of people approach a new diet with the emphasis on weight loss – but that does not mean eating so little that your body goes into starvation mode. You still have to eat enough calories from fats, proteins and carbohydrates to ensure your body functions optimally. And while this is very easy to do with an alkalising diet – it is still something that is a potential problem with any way of eating.
Hope this helps
Ross
Are there any potential problems with this diet
Hi Matt
So was that article pilfered from your site? Harsh if so!
I stopped by to make a comment on your blog but it said I had to be signed in and wiped my comment I had already written, so I thought I would just say hi here.
That article doesn’t even link back to you as the original author either which is especially bad – you should let them know to take it down or credit you.
Ross
Hi Ross,
Great article, which clears up a lot of the confusion about the acid/alkaline diet.
Thanks for your feedback via proxy about my article.
Regards,
Matt
(original author of How do we get sick anyway? — http://kangen-water.ws/wordpress/2006/11/02/the-top-4-causes-of-poor-health-chronic-disease-and-aging-and-how-they-apply-to-you/)