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According to Dr. Ragnar Berg, a Swedish nutritionist and Nobel Prize winner, we should be eating about 80 percent alkaline forming foods and 20 percent acid forming foods at each meal. Why does it matter? Dr. Berg’s research suggested that disease cannot live in an alkaline environment. He was the first scientist to discover the importance of the acid-base balance.
Of course, our body’s system is always regulating, and will adjust to keep our blood plasma at a pH between 7.35 and 7.45, but we can give our bodies some help by choosing alkaline forming foods.
So, which foods should you eat? Here is a wonderful acid vs alkaline food chart that lists which foods are acid-forming and which are alkaline-forming after digestion and assimilation. The list is very detailed, even down to spices and minerals.
Remember that a food’s acid- or alkaline-forming tendency in the body is not tied to the actual pH of the food itself. A food is considered to be acid-forming or alkaline-forming based on the effect on our system after it has been processed in our bodies. One common example is that highly acidic lemon juice actually has an alkalizing effect on the body.
Annemarie Colbin, PhD, author of “Food and Healing,” gives a wonderful overview of the acid-base balance and health risks that may result from eating a highly acidic diet.
“There are a number of diseases that may be aggravated by a pH imbalance in the blood,” says Colbin. She includes heart problems, osteoporosis, and high blood pressure.
“What I found first was that the protein foods (meats, fish, beans) as well as the carbohydrates (flour, grains, sugar) all create an acid condition by leaving carbonic acid, sulfuric acid, and phosphoric acid,” says Colbin. “Fruits and vegetables, as well as salt, all leave behind minerals such as potassium, magnesium, iron, calcium, and sodium, which buffer the acids and are thereby alkalizing.”
One easy tip that has an alkalizing effect on the body: drink an eight-ounce glass of water each day mixed with one teaspoon of Bragg’s Raw Apple Cider Vinegar and one teaspoon of honey.
If this sounds interesting to you, consult your doctor and give it a try!
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