Acidosis: The Silent Killer

// November 12th, 2011 // Nutrition

Ever wonder why in spite of all your efforts in the gym and the unbelievable amounts of food you eat, you just cant gain muscle.

Whats worse, you are gaining fat instead!
And then you are sitting there wondering…….

“Im doing everything right

Im lifting heavy
Giving enough rest
and
Eating over 200 gms of protein.

Then where am I going wrong?”

Well……
Maybe its because on the inside, your body is rotting away
Maybe the environment inside your body is so toxic and unsafe that its impossible for any growth
Maybe, your body is overly acidic and you are suffering from “Acidosis”

ACIDOSIS:

Acidosis is the state in which there is excessive acid in the body fluids and tissues. It is the opposite to alkalosis.

Now in order to understand Acidosis and Alkalosis we need to understand something called ‘pH’

The “pH” or “potential of Hydrogen” of the body is the ratio between acids and bases in the body.
pH value ranges from 0-14
The pH scale is as follows:

• 0-6 = acidic
• 7=Neutral
• 8-14 = Alkaline

From an overall perspective….the body functions best in a slightly alkaline state with a ph ranging from 7.36 – 7.45

The problem is that most of the foods in our diets (Even the so called “fitness foods”) are acidic.
The typical “modern” diet is low in alkaline producing foods such as green veggies so the ph scale is tipped far over to the acidic end.

Even foods that we associate with as healthy and nutritious like meat,eggs and oatmeal is acidic.So we have to be very careful while preparing our nutrition plans so as to prevent acidosis.

There are five areas in terms of acidosis that we shall look at in this article:

1) Foods that promote acidosis
2) Problems associated with acidosis
3) Acidosis and skeletal muscle
4) How to combat acidosis?
5) Acid/Alkaline Self Test

1) Foods that promote acidosis:

The following are the foods that promote an acidic environment. They are classified based on how acidic they are.

Most acidic:

• Beer, Soft Drinks,Blackberries, Cranberries, Prunes, Chocolate, Peanuts, Walnuts, Wheat, White Flour, Pastries, Pasta, Beef, Pork, Shellfish,Cheese, Homogenized Milk, Ice Cream

Acidic:

• Coffee, White Sugar, Brown Sugar, Sour Cherries, Rhubarb, Pinto Beans, Navy Beans, Lima Beans, Pecans, Cashews, White Rice, Corn, Buckwheat, Oats, Rye, Turkey, Chicken, Lamb

Lowest acidic:

• Processed Honey, Plums, Processed Fruit Juices, Kidney Beans, String Beans,Pumpkin Seeds, Sunflower Seeds,Corn Oil, Eggs, Butter, Yogurt, Buttermilk, Cottage Cheese, Tea, Cold water fish

 

2) Problems associated with Acidosis:

Even mild acidosis can cause problems such as:

• Cardiovascular damage, including the constriction of blood vessels and the reduction of oxygen.
• Weight gain, obesity and diabetes.
• Bladder and kidney conditions, including kidney stones.
• Hampered Immune system
• Acceleration of free radical damage, possibly contributing to cancerous mutations.
• Premature aging.
• Osteoporosis; weak, brittle bones, hip fractures and bone spurs.
• Joint pain, aching muscles and lactic acid buildup.
• Low energy and chronic fatigue.
• Acidosis borrows calcium from the teeth and bones and magnesium from muscles causing mineral defficencies
• Loss of hair
• Athletes foot

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Do you really want all this??

So, if all this is not enough for you to be alert and take this issue seriously, then what will?

3) Acidosis and skeletal muscle:

The body regulates its pH just like it regulates its temperature. In doing so, it will even create stress on other tissues or body systems if it must.

Since your blood MUST maintain a very narrow pH range of 7.365 To 7.40, your body will do all sorts of things in order to deal with excess acidity.

One of the ways it does so is by taking glutamine from skeletal muscle. This causes an obvious loss of muscle which is something that NO ONE wants.
Skeletal muscle contains the body’s greatest glutamine stores. Glutamine binds to hydrogen ions (H+) to create ammonium, which is excreted from the body. In the face of metabolic acidosis and elevated H+ levels, breakdown of skeletal muscle and glutamine release is increased and can lead to muscle protein loss.

So…Trying to build muscle in such an environment is truly an uphill battle.

4) How to combat acidosis?

Now,combating acidosis doesnt mean you must eliminate all the acidic foods mentioned above.

Sure, you need to get the junk and processed food out.
But the good stuff…..nope.
You cant afford to!

You need to simply add foods that promote an Alkaline environment.
These are the foods that are Alkaline:

Most Alkaline:

• Lemons, Watermelon, Limes, Grapefruit, Mangoes, Papayas, Asparagus, Onions, Vegetable Juices, Parsley, Raw Spinach, Broccoli, Garlic, Olive Oil, Herb Teas, Lemon Water

Alkaline:

• Dates, Figs, Melons, Grapes, Kiwi, Blueberries, Apples, Pears, Raisins, Okra/Ladies Finger, Squash, Green Beans, Beets, Celery, Lettuce, Zucchini, Sweet Potato, Carob, Almonds, Flax Seed Oil and Flax seeds, Green Tea

Slightly Alkaline:

• Raw Honey,Oranges, Bananas, Cherries, Pineapple, Peaches, Avocados, Carrots, Tomatoes, Fresh Corn, Mushrooms, Cabbage, Peas, Potato Skins, Olives, Soybeans, Tofu , Chestnuts, Canola Oil, Amaranth, Millet, Wild Rice, Quinoa,Goat Milk, Goat Cheese, Whey Protein, Ginger Tea

By adding these foods to your diet (especially veggies), you can easily promote an alkaline environment and combat Acidosis.

We have got to be made up of the good stuff

5) Acid/Alkaline Self Test:

We sincerely recommend you perform a acid/alkaline self test at least once a week to check whether your body fluids are either too acidic or too alkaline.

This test is extremely simple and inexpensive and can be perform in the comfort of your home. All you need is to purchase pH paper which is available at any drugstore, and apply saliva and/or urine to the paper.

The paper will change color to indicate if your system is overly acidic or alkaline as shown in this figure:

 

Always perform the test either before eating or at least one hour after eating.

Depending on the results of your test, you should alter your diet to help bring your body back into the normal range.If you test indicated that your body is too acidic, eat more alkaline-forming foods and omit the acid-forming foods (processed food and not the good stuff) from your diet until another pH test shows that you have returned to normal.

________________________________________________________________________

So everyone, go ahead and start cleaning up your body with Alkaline foods and save yourself from grave health problems.

Speaking of which… HERE is a GREAT guide on how to incorporate more raw foods into your diet in case you’d like some guidance in getting started

Give your body the respect it deserves.Keep it clean from the inside.And experience the difference!

It’s all about the balance

 

 

Best Regards,

Suneet Sebastian

&

Guest writer – Andrew Kirby