Are Alkaline Foods Good for Your Health?

Have you heard of someone treating an illness with fruit and vegetables? Or seen any juice fast or heard someone preach the benefits of a vegan diet? Today I would like discuss something that all of these diets have in common: A focus on nutrient dense, alkaline forming foods.

First, let’s have a little review of chemistry. The pH scale measures how acidic something is and ranges from 0 to 14 with 0 being completely acidic, 7 being neutral and 14 being completely alkaline. Different areas of our body have different pH levels. Our stomach for example is acidic so it can break down the foods we eat (pH of 3.5). Our blood is slightly alkaline, with a pH between 7.35- 7.45 and normal ranges for urine are 4.6 to 8.0.

The argument is that any food or beverage presents either an acidic or alkaline load to the body when digested. You will recall that the blood in the body ranges from a pH of 7.35-7.45 but those with a higher alkaline blood of 7.45 will have 60% more oxygen so it is theorized that a diet rich in alkalinizing foods and less in acidic foods would make you healthier.

Acid and Alkaline Forming Foods

How to work more alkaline foods into your diet

Breakfast
Swap your coffee for Green Tea (alkaline), add spinach (alkaline) to your eggs and eat half a grapefruit (alkaline).
Lunch
Choose leafy greens like spinach or kale (both alkaline) for the base of a salad and top with a chunky, homemade avocado-lemon dressing (alkaline).
Snack
Apple (alkaline) with Almonds (alkaline) or Whey Protein Shake (alkaline).
Dinner
Choose a lower acid protein (like Salmon) and serve with lightly cooked vegetables (also alkaline). Also use plenty of alkaline spices like chili powder or curry to add flavor.

As with anything, there are people that would argue for and against, but I think the best thing you can do is test it out for yourself. How do you feel after a few days of eating nothing but processed foods, sodas and coffee? Compare that to how you feel when you’re eating an abundance of vegetables, fruits and lean meats.

For more reading on healthy foods, check out my post on super foods and shopping for organic produce. If you’re looking for a simple way to add more vegetables to your diet, consider a Greens Supplement like Greens plus. Organic Wild Berry is my favorite, you can buy it here.

Feedback and questions are welcome in the comments section below. If you have found this information to be useful, please SHARE this information [using the buttons below] to help spread the message of healthy living. Thanks for reading!

photo credit: Patrick Feller via photopin cc