REASONS TO KEEP YOUR BODY’S pH MORE ALKALINE

VIDEO: Why Your Body’s pH is The Secret to Your Vitality

Still, diet has the biggest impact on pH. Most experts agree that a seven-to-three ratio of alkaline-to-acid foods is ideal for optimal health and wellbeing. But choose your acidic foods wisely, says Michelle Schoffro Cook, ND, author of The Ultimate pH Solution: Balance Your Body Chemistry to Prevent Disease and Lose Weight. Don’t waste your acid allowance on unhealthy choices like coffee, soda, white flour, and sugar. Instead, choose nutrient-dense acidic foods, such as beans, nuts, whole grains, and fruit.
Not even sugar, salt, and meat are necessarily forbidden—just consume them in small amounts, preferably in an unprocessed form to reap the most of naturally occurring minerals. Choose organic when possible to decrease exposure to acid-forming pesticides, antibiotics, and hormones.

Some experts disagree on how to classify certain alkaline- and acid-forming foods. Such foods—known as weak acidics—include tomatoes, whey, and citrus fruits, like oranges, and contain a fair amount of acid that may be metabolized as alkaline in the body.
“Acid production largely depends on individual metabolic differences,” explains Vasey. “Some people are capable of oxidizing the acids in weak acidic foods to make them alkaline: some people are not. A lemon may be acid-forming for one person and alkaline-forming for another.”

Learn your body’s response to weak acidics by testing your urine with pH strips before eating a food, then measuring again two to three hours later. If your pH doesn’t change, you may be able to oxidize the acids in that particular food. You can also try cutting out all weak acidics for a few weeks to see if you notice a difference in symptoms.

Ways to stay balanced
Correcting a pH imbalance may take months, depending on how long you’ve been acidic. Generally, though, most people can expect to see improvements within a few weeks, says Vasey. If you’re ready to embark on a more balanced approach to life, start with these simple steps.

Clear your cupboards of highly acid-forming foods Get rid of the worst offenders: alcohol, table salt, white sugar, artificial sweeteners, coffee, soft drinks, refined and processed foods, trans-fats, and white flour.
Stock up on whole foods… vegetables are the most alkalizing of all foods, so just by focusing on this food group, you’ll instantly begin to transform your pH. While other whole foods—such as beans, nuts, seeds, and whole grains—tend to be more acid-forming than vegetables, they’re far less acidic than processed foods and animal products.

Eat fruit in moderation Fruit is nutritious but highly acid forming for most people. Limit your intake to one serving a day, especially at the beginning of your regimen. Stick to low-acid fruits, like avocados, grapefruit, peaches, apples, raspberries, and melons.

Make lower-acid substitutions Replace white sugar with stevia or raw, unfiltered honey. Substitute coconut or almond milk for cow’s milk. Replace sodas with sparkling water flavored with a splash of lemon juice.

Don’t try to change your diet overnight Start with a fifty-fifty ratio of acid to alkaline foods, or make one meal a day alkaline. Begin by adding alkaline foods rather than eliminating acidic ones. Make the transition slowly, and you’ll be more likely to stick with it.

It may not be the easiest diet to follow, but if you can stick to it, you should start to notice results in a few weeks. “Minor aches and pains will start to disappear, you’ll sleep better and feel more energetic, your thinking will be clear and alert, and you may lose several pounds,” says Cook. “That’s usually enough to convince most people to stick with it for the long term.”

Lisa Turner is a food writer, nutrition consultant, and psychology of eating coach, with more than 25 years of professional experience and training. She has written five books on health and nutrition and hundreds of magazine articles. For more information, go to inspiredeating.com.

Acid-Alkaline Shopping List
Alkaline foods: Almonds, artichokes, asparagus, avocados, beets, broccoli, buckwheat, cauliflower, celery, cucumbers, flaxseed oil, green beans, leafy greens, lentils, millet, olive oil, onions, potatoes, pumpkinseeds, quinoa
Slightly-acidic foods: Black beans, Brazil nuts, cantaloupe, chickpeas, dates, hazelnuts, nectarines, plums, sunflower seeds, walnuts

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