Alkaline Foods And Acidic Foods: Using Alkaline Water And An Alkaline Diet

As most people go about their diet planning, they choose to focus on getting the right amount of calories, eating the proper level of proteins, and making sure that their carbohydrate and dietary fat intake is where it needs to be. And while this is all great, it’s causing you to potentially forget about one very important thing.  That thing? Your pH balance. The unfortunate fact of the matter is that most people are currently living in a state where they are 80% acidic and 20% alkaline. For optimal health status, this ratio needs to be reversed. To learn more about this ratio, be sure to check out this video where it’s discussed in full. To help you become more aware of how serious this issue impacts your health, let’s look at the problems that accompany living in an acidic state.

The Problem With Living In An Acidic State

Before we go into the problems associated of living in an acidic state, one very important fact that you must remember is that you have direct control over this. That’s right. You can determine whether your body is in an alkaline balance or whether you are in a heavily acidic state all by properly choosing what you do or don’t put into your body on a day to day basis. It really is that simple. And, despite being so simple, it’s something that can impact every single element of your overall well-being. Most conventional medical practices completely ignore taking into account pH balance, however your body is constantly striving to sustain a proper balance.  When you aren’t in good balance, you’ll be at a higher risk for disease. Some of the main diseases and conditions associated with being too acidic include:

•      Osteoporosis and bone fractures
•      Sarcopenia (muscle mass loss)
•      Kidney stone formation
•      Diabetes
•      High blood pressure
•      Heart disease
•      Hyper or hypo thyroidism
•      Cancer

When you are eating too many acidic foods, you’re going to put yourself at a higher risk for inflammation all throughout the body, which only jeopardizes your health from there.

Symptoms Of Acidosis

There are a number of symptoms that indicate you could be living in an acidic state on a day to day basis. Let’s look at what some of these symptoms include. Central Nervous System Symptoms Perhaps some of the most serious of symptoms that eating too many acidic foods can produce involve the central nervous system. You may experience:

•      Ongoing headaches that never seem to let up
•      Feeling a high level of sleepiness during the day despite getting adequate sleep at night
•      Feelings of confusion or lack of mental clarity
•      Feelings of nervousness or being agitated without any real reason for being so
•      In severe cases, loss of consciousness
•      If not left treated, you can move into a coma

Most people will never get to the last two stages of this however it is important to note just how serious being too acidic can be. Heart Related Symptoms Your heart is also influenced by your pH balance and when your balance moves to a very acidic state, you’ll start to see effects here as well. These include:

•      Heart arrhythmia’s
•      Increased resting as well as exercising heart rate

Those who are involved in intense workout sessions will need to be especially careful if they are in a highly acidic state as their overall heart rate may start to pose a threat if not monitored. Intestinal & Gastric Symptoms Perhaps some of the first signs that people notice when they move into a very acidic state is the intestinal and gastric symptoms that come along with doing so. These include:

•      Vomiting
•      Diarrhea
•      Nausea
•      Gastritis
•      Acid regurgitation
•      Regular occurrence of stomach ulcers

Likewise, if you walk around feeling constantly bloated and it seems as if food is always ‘sitting’ in your body, this could also be a sign that you are moving into a highly acidic state. When your body is functioning optimally, is at the right pH balance, has the proper amount of both digestive enzymes as well as probiotics, you should never feel this way. Instead, you should eat and experience smooth digestion – digestion that occurs quite rapidly and leaves you feeling energized for hours before your next meal occurs. Few people today ever experience what a truly healthy digestive system feels like because they are riddled with at least one (if not more!) digestive issues. Respiratory Symptoms If you are starting to become too acidic, you may also notice this causing some respiratory issues as well. These can include:

•      Shortness of breath
•      Incidence of coughing

Muscular-Skeletal Symptoms Those who are chronically eating too many acidic foods and not enough alkaline foods will also start to notice issues with their muscular and skeletal systems. Some of these symptoms include:

•      Constantly feeling a high lack of energy
•      Experiencing a feeling of heaviness in the legs and/or arms
•      Suffering from many aches and pains in both the muscles and the joints
•      Having joints that are cracking and/or swollen after exercise
•      Experiencing pain in the teeth or jaw
•      Having teeth chip or crack very easily
•      Experiencing regular muscle cramps and/or spasms

Physical Appearance Related Symptoms Think that being too acidic is only going to influence you on an internal side of things? Think again. If you are too acidic, it can also influence how you look on a day to day basis as well. Some symptoms associated with being too acidic include:

•      Having hair that’s dull or that’s falling out easily
•      Experiencing hair breakage and/or split ends
•      Showing signs of dry, lackluster skin

Psychological Symptoms Finally, in addition to impacting your body in a number of ways, being too acidic can also impact you on a psychological level as well. Those who are experiencing a highly acidic state may notice that they:

•      Experience a low level of enthusiasm for activities they used to enjoy
•      Don’t have feelings of joy or excitement in their life
•      May have depressive tendencies
•      Have dry, brittle nails that chip easily
•      A regular incidence of hives or other skin related issues

The symptoms are numerous and not everyone will experience all of these symptoms. Rather, they will typically come and go over time, depending on how acidic you have been in the days or weeks prior. The big problem comes into play when you are always in an acidic state and eventually these symptoms start to move towards the more severe end of the scale. If you start paying closer attention to some of the minor symptoms and take action when they first begin to make an appearance you can side step some of the more serious issues entirely.

The Acidic Foods To Be Aware Of

When looking at your overall diet plan, you’ll want to quickly be able to identify which types of foods are highly acidic and which types are more alkaline in nature. By doing this, you can strive to achieve optimal balance. Remember that avoiding acidosis doesn’t necessarily mean that you can never eating acid causing foods. There are many acid-causing foods – such as chicken for instance, that offer important health benefits that should not be neglected. Omitting it entirely from one’s diet, unless you are choosing to become a vegetarian, is likely unnecessary. But, by knowing that the chicken you are eating is going to be acid-forming, you can then pair it with enough alkaline foods to help counteract this, putting you back on the healthy end of the scale. Remember, as with most things in life, it’s about striving for balance. Let’s take a look at some of the biggest acid-causing foods out there so that you can get a better idea of which foods you may need to be more aware of. Very Acidic The first category of acidic foods are those that tend to cause the most acid to develop in the body.  These are the foods that you may want to consider cutting out – if you are going to cut out foods. Remember that if there is a food on this list that you absolutely love and want to have – have it. Just be sure that you are pairing with foods that are very alkaline to help neutralize it.

•      Alcohol
•      Coffee
•      Black tea
•      Fruit juice
•      Cocoa
•      Jam
•      Jelly
•      Mustard
•      Soy sauce
•      Vinegar
•      Yeast
•      Dried fruit
•      Beef
•      Liver
•      Sandwich meats
•      Chicken
•      Eggs
•      Farmed fish
•      Pork
•      Shellfish
•      Cheese
•      Artificial sweeteners
•      Deep fried foods
•      Processed snack foods
•      Refined flours

Moderately Acidic Moderately acidic foods should still be eaten with caution, however not avoided as most are very healthy and will supply a good amount of nutrients to your daily diet. Eat these, but aim to keep them to around 20% of your total food intake. That will help you best strive for the 80/20 balance as noted in the video above.

•      Ketchup
•      Butter
•      Mayonnaise
•      Apples
•      Apricots
•      Bananas
•      Blackberries
•      Blueberries
•      Cranberries
•      Grapes
•      Mangoes
•      Oranges
•      Peaches
•      Papayas
•      Pineapples
•      Strawberries
•      Brown rice
•      Oatmeal
•      Rye Bread
•      Wheat
•      Wholemeal Bread
•      Wild Rice
•      Wholemeal Pasta

Mildly Acidic Or Neutral Now we have foods that are mildly acidic or neutral.  These foods can be eaten in abundance provided you are also eating plenty of alkaline foods in your diet plan.  Again, many of these do supply important nutrients for your body, so there is no need to completely eliminate them from your menu plan.

•      Black beans
•      Chickpeas/garbanzo beans
•      Kidney beans
•      Seitan
•      Cantaloupe
•      Currants
•      Fresh dates
•      Nectarines
•      Plums
•      Sweet cherries
•      Watermelons
•      Amaranth
•      Millet
•      Soybeans
•      Rice/soy/hemp protein powder
•      Wild caught fish
•      Brazil nuts
•      Pecan nuts
•      Hazel nuts
•      Sunflower oil
•      Grapeseed oil

The Alkaline Foods To Eat More Of

Now that you’ve seen the foods that are acid causing in the body, let’s look at foods that are alkaline. If you can start adding these to your meal plan in abundance, you can rest assured you’ll be doing your body well. Mildly Alkaline The mildly alkaline foods are nutrient dense and can be added in moderation to your diet. These are not alkaline enough to really offset the highly acidic foods you eat, but will not put your body in any real danger (pH-wise) by consuming them.

•      Artichokes
•      Asparagus
•      Brussels sprouts
•      Cauliflower
•      Carrots
•      Chives
•      Zucchini
•      Leeks
•      New Baby Potatoes
•      Peas
•      Watercress
•      Grapefruit
•      Coconut
•      Buckwheat
•      Quinoa
•      Spelt
•      Lentils
•      Tofu
•      Beans & Legumes
•      Almond Milk
•      Herbs
•      Avocado Oil
•      Coconut Oil
•      Flaxseed Oil
•      Udo’s Oil

Moderately Alkaline From there, we move into the moderately alkaline foods. These foods should be consumed in abundance in your diet as often as possible. They will help to move you further away from the acidic state you may be in and more towards a healthier state that will promote optimal well-being.

•      Avocado
•      Beetroot
•      Peppers
•      Cabbage
•      Celery
•      Collard greens
•      Garlic
•      Ginger
•      Green beans
•      Lettuce
•      Mustard greens
•      Orka
•      Onion
•      Red onion
•      Tomatoes
•      Arugula
•      Lemons
•      Limes
•      Soybeans
•      White Haricot Beans
•      Chia seeds

Special attention should be noted here at the lemon/lime inclusion. Many people think that these fruits are highly acidic as they do seem to lean towards that side, but once they get inside the body, they are actually very alkaline. Therefore, they are highly alkalizing food. It’s important to keep this in mind and this is one reason that starting your day off with a large glass of lemon water is such a smart move. Highly Alkaline Finally, we come to the most alkalizing foods of them all – the highly alkaline choices. These include:

•      Alkaline water (more on that in a second)
•      Himalayan salt
•      Cucumbers
•      Kale
•      Kelp
•      Parsley
•      Spinach
•      Broccoli
•      Alfalfa sprouts
•      Kelp
•      Other sea vegetables
•      Grass/green drinks
•      Sprouted beans

Putting more of these in your diet, especially if you are eating plenty of foods that are moderately or very acidic will help to counteract that acidity, keeping your body where it needs to be. Hopefully this now gives you a better idea of the types of foods that you should be eating if you hope to achieve an optimal pH balance.  Remember that it’s not so much about what foods you are eating at any one given meal. You might have one meal that’s more on the acidic side of things and that may not pose a threat provided the rest of your diet is more alkaline. It’s all about balance. If your overall intake leans more towards the alkaline side of things, you’ll be side-stepping many of the unwanted symptoms that we noted above.

Your Sample Alkaline Diet Plan

Want to see an alkaline diet in action? Here’s what a sample daily diet would look like on an alkaline diet plan. Breakfast

•      Glass of alkaline water with lemon
•      Egg omelet with spinach, tomatoes, and onions
•      Grapefruit on the side

Mid-Morning Snack

•      Hemp protein powder blended with almond milk, alkaline water ice cubes and one banana

Lunch

•      Lentil salad prepared with lentils, quinoa, and avocado oil mixed together with desired herbs and/or spices

Mid-Afternoon Snack

•      Plain Greek yogurt served with 1 sliced cucumber

Dinner

•      Wild caught salmon served with cooked quinoa and a large kale salad with avocado oil dressing on the side

A Word On Alkaline Water

As noted earlier, alkaline water is another thing that you’ll want to look into if you are serious about taking this to the next level. The alkaline water benefits are numerous and include helping you side-step all the unwanted symptoms noted above, while also helping to properly clean and detoxify your body. When you are consuming ionized alkaline water, you’re basically putting one of the most rich sources of antioxidants into your system possible, so you’ll reap a number of key benefits from disease prevention to anti-aging. As your body is made up primarily of water and each and every day you are losing a large volume through respiration and normal sweating processes, it’s critical that you are replacing it. Unfortunately, most people are in the habit of replacing their water with water that’s on the acidic side, moving them further away from the optimal pH balance we’re looking for here. So picking up an ionized water filter system to prepare your own alkaline water is one of the best investments you can make as far as your health is concerned. It’s really a must if you hope to get to the next level in improving your health status. So don’t overlook this 80/20 rule on acid/alkaline balance. It’s far too easy to get caught up in all the other nutrition information out there that we start to completely overlook the impact some of these foods we are eating are having on our body. Start focusing on more alkaline-based foods and it won’t be long before you are noticing a serious impact on how you feel and function in everyday life. Want to learn more about what you can do to optimize your body? Check out my complete course where I teach you, step-by-step, how to ensure your body is functioning to optimal potential.