Acid Base Balance

A new hot topic out there is the pH of our body or our acid-base balance. Simply put – If your pH is under 7, this is considered acidic. If your pH is over 7, this is considered basic or alkaline.

A low pH or acidic environment is very bad for our bodies and cells. Many diseases thrive in a low pH, such as cancer, arthritis, heart disease, osteoporosis, kidney and gallstones. It is very important that our bodies maintain a slightly alkaline environment for optimal health.

Testing your body pH is quite easy. With litmus paper, you can test your blood, urine or saliva. Here are the guidelines:
Blood pH should be greater than 7.4
Urine/Saliva pH should be greater than 6.8

So, how do we create an alkaline environment in our body?

It is advised that we consume a diet mostly of alkaline foods, approximately 80% alkali-producing foods and 20% acid-producing foods. Please refer to the chart below of common foods and their potential alkalinity and acidity. It is also known that stress and exercise (under or over-exercising) create an overproduction of acid. Therefore, the right amount of exercise and stress management are also very important.

Here are some tips for alkalizing your diet:

• Eat lots of fresh veggies and fruit.
• Squeeze lemon or lime into your water.
• Eat 1 cup of highly alkaline greens daily
• Try quinoa or millet as an alternative to wheat.
• Try wild fish and lamb over beef.
• Utilize olive oil instead of vegetable oils.

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