DavidWolfe.comFrom the brain to the gut, the human body is a finely balanced system of chemicals, bacteria, and cells. Unfortunately, without the right environment, that balance can tip away from health. So is your body acidic?
One of the easiest ways to tell that this fine balance is out of whack is to look at your body’s pH level. And what exactly is your body’s pH level? And how do you know it’s gone out of balance?
Let’s break it down.
When Your Body Is Too Acidic
So why is acidity in the body important? Simply put, it’s the measure of acidity and alkalinity. Both are important in their own way. Your stomach, for example, requires high acidity to digest foods, while your immune system relies on alkalinity.
What does it mean?
The pH scale runs from 0 to 14. The lower the number, then the higher the level of acidity. A perfect, neutral balance is found at 7 – this is the level your body aims to maintain as it provides your various systems with the correct environment to function. But often the body gets pushed into a state of overall acidity, which can have damaging effects.
Signs Your Body Is Too Acidic
It’s not as intuitive as measuring your temperature or spilling some blood on a pH strip, like you’d find in a laboratory.
No, instead you need to look closer at the way your body is functioning.
Sign #1 – Excess Weight
Having too much acid in your body causes it to produce more insulin and therefore, store more fat.
Your body’s detox systems are unable to deal with the overwhelming amount of acid in your body and pushes it back into your fat tissues, where it clings to cells.
Further, your metabolism – which relies on proper alkaline levels – has a hard time functioning properly, which stops your body from burning calories.
So if you’ve noticed that you’re having a hard time losing weight, that’s a good indicator that your body has way more acid than it can deal with.
Sign #2 – Bone Weakness
Your body is incredibly smart and efficient.
When faced with too much acid, it’s going to find alkali from somewhere and that somewhere isn’t a place you want nutrients pulled from – your bones.
At first, you might not notice anything. But as your body continues to pull nutrients – like calcium – from your bones in an attempt to fight high acidity, you’re going to wind up with weak bones, characterized by easy fracturing and a high risk of osteoporosis.
This is why doctors ask patients with osteoporosis to avoid high-acid foods like coffee.
Also Read: This Is Why You Need To STOP Drinking Coffee On An Empty Stomach!
Sign #3 – Tooth Sensitivity
In 2015, a study was published in the International Journal of Chemical Engineering and Applications that linked high body acidity to a decrease in tooth enamel strength.
If you notice that you suffer from cavities or can’t eat cold or hot foods without your teeth erupting in pain, that could be a sign that you’re suffering from acid-related enamel degradation.
Sign #4 – Sleep Problems
This last sign is an indicator of just how common high acidity in the human body really is.
Polls have consistently shown that Americans are among the most sleep-deprived people in the world. There’s a good chance that body acidity is to blame.
Remember how your body pulls calcium from your bones in an effort to battle acidity? Well, when your calcium levels deplete, you’ll suffer from insomnia, according to the Human Nutrition Research Center in North Dakota.
How to Correct High Acidity
So you’ve realized that your body is too acidic. What can you do about it?
A few things. Let’s explore!
Diet
One very popular method of battling acidity is an alkaline diet. One man even claims it helped him defeat cancer.
Here’s what you should eat plenty of to maintain an alkaline diet:
- Kale
- Broccoli
- Cucumber
- Spinach
- Arugula
- Collards
- Zucchini
- Soybeans
- Tofu
- Nuts
- Seeds
- Legumes
- Raisins
What to eat less of:
- Dairy
- Eggs
- Meat
- Most grains
- Packaged, processed snacks
- Canned foods
- Caffeine
Baking Soda and Lemon Water
We’ve written previously about one simple home remedy — a baking soda and apple cider vinegar drink.
All you need to do is take one third a teaspoon of baking soda and mix it thoroughly with 2 tablespoons of organic apple cider vinegar. You’ll notice that the mixture is very fizzy. Wait until it stops fizzing and add 8 ounces of water. Then, drink the mixture in one sitting.
Change Your Cleaning Products
Many commercial cleaning products are highly toxic. Being exposed to these products can have a great effect on your body’s pH balance. So replace your commercial chemical cleaners with natural ones.
Interested to learn more about pH and your body? Check out this video from David!
Sources:
About.com
VitalityLink.com
MedicalNewsToday.com
WebMD
IJCEA.org
BetterBones.com
GreenThickies.com
Chatelaine.com