Right now your body is regulating the rate and depth of your breathing, filtering your blood with your kidneys and controlling the concentration of chemical buffers in your blood, all to keep the pH of your blood at 7.4. The pH measure relates to the level of acidity of a fluid, ranging between 0 and 14 with 0 being the most acidic and each number above that being ten times less acidic. Maintaining your body's pH -- short for "potential hydrogen" -- is essential to maintaining overall health as chemical reactions in your body are precisely tuned to occur at a specific pH. Consumption of excess amounts of certain foods can cause shifts in the pH of your blood, increasing the risk of many diseases.
Foods and pH
The effects of food consumption on blood pH is difficult to measure directly. Since the kidneys work to restore pH over a period of days, the pH of the urine is used as a surrogate to measure the effect of diet on blood pH. An increase in the acidity of the urine indicates the body's buffering systems are taxed or overwhelmed. The body draws protein from the muscles and minerals from the bones to compensate for increased acid production, and if overwhelmed, can result in respiratory problems, fatigue, nausea, lethargy and confusion.
Acidic Foods
Foods high in protein such as meat, fish, cheese, egg yolks, nuts and cow's milk products prompt an acid response. The increase in amino acid availability is important for health, and improves the body's ability to buffer acids in the blood. Carbohydrates from grains and processed foods also produce acids when digested and are extremely abundant in the modern diet.
Basic Foods
Fruits and vegetables are the only foods that are substantially alkaline, or basic, offsetting the acid-producing foods. Besides the benefits of high fiber and nutrients that fruits and vegetables offer, consuming two to three servings with each meal that contains protein or grains helps offset the effect of acids on the body. Green food supplements composed of fruits, vegetables and herbs, which are dehydrated and powdered, are also a great way to add alkalinity to your diet.
Neutral Foods
Fats, mineral water, beer, wines and simple sugar, such as table sugar, have little effect on the balance of acids and bases in the body.
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