The body maintains a careful balance between acidity and alkalinity to function effectively at a cellular level. This pH balance requirement has been known and studied throughout the 1900s, but it is trending more broadly into mainstream health concerns since the turn of the century, notes Medical News Today. Understanding how pH balance impacts organ function and overall wellness can bring this once rarely discussed health topic into the spotlight.
Digestive Impacts
One system where the body's pH balance, or lack thereof, is most evident is in digestion. More than 47 million Americans suffer from a very common pH imbalance -- acid reflux -- that is caused by excess acidity in the body. The acidity of the modern diet with its high protein content often overwhelms the stomach's ability to compensate, leading to excess acid that spills out into the digestive tract and esophagus. Symptoms continue until the balance of the body's pH is restored.
Gynecological Concerns
Women in their reproductive years need their gynecological systems to maintain a very specific pH level for conception and vaginal health. Women who are worried about their gynecological pH levels should consult their health provider for pH level tests. Shifts in the pH balance caused by the reactions of naturally occurring yeast and bacteria throughout a woman's regular monthly cycle can raise risks of infection, including sexually transmitted diseases, reports the "Multidisciplinary Journal of Microbial Ecology."
Skeletal Connections
The human skeleton is made from primarily alkaline minerals, notes the "Journal of Nutrition." These alkaline minerals may be taken from the bones as the body seeks to counteract rising acidity levels if the pH is out of balance. This robbing of bone minerals to return the body to its natural pH level can be slowed with changes to the diet or the use of medications that add alkaline elements to the body.
Dietary Modifications
With the health impacts of pH in mind, many people turn to dietary modification. However, the body has its own natural responses to shifts in the alkalinity and acidity of the diet, and without accounting for stomach acids and immune system response dietary modifications can distort the balance even further. Working with a health professional rather than experimenting with foods will prevent unnecessary risk and discomfort.
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