The Alkaline Diet Program encourages decreasing the amount of foods you consume that produce acidic compounds in your body when metabolized and offsetting this decrease by increasing your daily consumption of alkaline-producing foods. Proponents believe that our bodies function best in alkaline conditions and that modern changes in eating habits--a switch from mainly fruits, vegetables, seeds, nuts and legumes to large amounts of animal protein, sugar, alcohol, caffeine and processed foods--have caused an increase in certain types of medical problems.
History
The Alkaline Diet Program is based on information presented in the 2004 book "The Acid-Alkaline Diet for Optimum Health: Restore Your Health by Creating Balance in Your Diet" by Christopher Vasey N.D. Vasey contends that, because our normal blood pH stays within the alkaline range of 7.35 and 7.45, the food we consume should also be alkaline in order to prevent throwing the blood's acid-alkaline balance off. All foods cause either acid or alkaline compounds to be released into the body during metabolism; however, Vasey and other Alkaline Diet supporters believe that consuming too many acid-producing foods is the predominant cause of medical issues such as allergies, cancer, cardiovascular disease, obesity and nervous system disorders. They believe this is due to the acidic compounds' ability to cause the body to lose minerals such as magnesium, calcium and potassium.
Aspects
The diet review website Every Diet reports that the Alkaline Diet Program suggests breaking your food consumption into two separate categories: alkaline foods and acid foods. Your food choices should be 75 to 80 percent alkaline-producing, while 20 to 25 percent should be acid-producing foods. The foods defined as alkaline foods include all fresh vegetables and fruits with the exception of cranberries; fats such as olive, flax or avocado oil; seeds and nuts; eggs; cottage cheese and yogurt; grains such as buckwheat groats and spelt and beverages such as water, fresh vegetable juices, herbal tea and soy milk. The only sweetener considered to be alkaline is Stevia. Acid-forming foods include the following: all meats, including all seafood except for salmon; most dairy products; all convenience or processed foods including condiments; all products made from white flour; and oils such as vegetable oil, corn oil and all hydrogenated oils and fats.
Sample Meal Plans
According to the Better Bones site, a typical day on the Alkaline Diet Program should include breakfast, a mid-morning snack, lunch, an afternoon snack and dinner. Breakfast, lunch and dinner should include one source of protein--eggs, lentils, salmon or lean meat--and raw or very lightly cooked vegetables. One of these meals can include a grain, but it should not be made from any form of wheat. The two daily snacks should include raw vegetables or fruit and a protein such as seeds, nuts or an egg.
Advantages
Proponents of the Alkaline Diet Program claim that by focusing your diet on alkaline foods, you can decrease your risk of developing chronic diseases, ease the pain or occurrence of problems such as sinus infections, headaches or arthritis and gain energy. Since alkaline foods are predominantly fruits, vegetables and unprocessed nuts and seeds you can decrease your chance of heart disease, certain types of cancers, hypertension, diabetes and stroke, since this sort of diet high in a variety of fruits and vegetables is thought to promote long-term health and weight loss. Love to Know reports that the Alkaline Diet Program has been linked to a decrease in age-related muscle problems, kidney disorders and osteoporosis.
Disadvantages
According to the website Diets in Review, there is no conclusive evidence that points to the validity of the claims about the healthiness of following an Alkaline Diet Program. In addition, different acid-alkaline food lists disagree over which foods can be considered truly alkaline. For instance, the Every Diet website lists olive oil as an acceptable alkaline fat while The Wolfe Clinic names olive oil as an acidifying food.
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