First Posted on Aug 09, 2013 by Vivienne Bartle
What Are the Causes and Signs of Acidosis?
Being acidic means having a blood pH below 7.35 and saliva and urine pH that is 6.9 and below. The lower your pH, the more severe your acidosis is.
Now you might be wondering how you got to that acidic state. There are many factors that can lead to acidosis. Most people have more than one of these causes (some may even have all of them!). I’ll give you a list to tick off.
Causes of acidosis include:
-overconsumption of acidifying foods. This might surprise you, but there are some natural whole foods that can cause trouble if eaten in excess
-poor food combining. Eating healthy foods in wrong combinations can cause fermentation, creating acids in the body.
-drinking dead, contaminated, and acidifying water.
-inhaling polluted air.
-improper breathing. Some people over-breathe, thinking that they are getting more oxygen into their body when they’re not.
-lack of sleep.
-poor stress management.
-most pharmaceutical drugs.
-smoking, alcoholism, and other types of substance abuse.
-too much exercise. Over-exercising raises your lactic acid levels a lot.
-mega-dosing on acidic supplements such as ascorbic acid.
-using household, cosmetics, and personal care products that are full of toxic chemicals.
-attachment to negative thoughts and emotions. I use the word “attachment” because nobody’s perfect and it’s quite normal that we think negative thoughts and feel negative emotions from time to time. However, a lot of people are unwilling to let go of them even if such thoughts and emotions make them feel heavy and horrible on a daily basis.
-mixing with negative people.
Eating acidifying foods is normally the major cause of acidosis for most people. But did you know that certain people who follow an above-average healthy diet still become acidic due to unforgiveness? The anger and stress generated by unforgiveness are highly acidifying. If you have unforgiveness issues try talking to your pastor or loved one about it. You can also seek the services of a psychotherapist or professional counselor to help you defuse the anger and forget the painful memories.
Still not convinced that you’re already acidic? Here are some conditions associated with acidosis.
-Acid reflux
-Indigestion
-Headaches or migraines
-Accelerated aging
-Dry skin
-Chronic fatigue and/or lethargy
-Depression
-Irritability
-Impaired memory
-Poor concentration
-Muscle weakness
-Dysbiosis or poor intestinal flora
-Parasitic overgrowth
-Overweight and obesity
-Hypoxia or low levels of oxygen in the tissues and organs
-Arthritis
-High uric acid
-Gout
-Kidney stones
-Osteoporosis
-Osteopenia
-Allergies
-Immunosupression (increased susceptibility to bacterial, viral, and fungal infections)
-Candida albicans
-Acne and other chronic skin conditions (eczema, psoriasis etc.)
-Heart disease
-Diabetes
-Tumors
-Cancer
Greens and plant protein is ALKALISING. EAT YOUR GREENS!
What Happens Inside an Acidic Body
Compared to other organs and organ system’s normal pH range, the blood’s pH range is the narrowest. It is therefore crucial for the body to prioritize alkalinizing the blood to keep you alive. If the blood is acidic, the bones would have to leech its calcium supply to buffer the blood, which often leads to osteoporosis. This leads to the very fact that those who regularly chug down bottles and cartons of highly acidifying cow’s milk are those who end up with a serious case of osteoporosis. The alkaline elements in your small intestines would also have to be given up to compensate for your overly acidic blood, greatly disrupting digestion and decreasing your ability to assimilate your food’s nutrients. And impaired digestive system also makes you vulnerable to a host of diseases such as allergies, infections, and inflammations. In further effort to keep the blood alkaline, your body will prompt your kidneys to excrete excess acid waste products through the urine, hence giving you that low urine pH reading. Give your poor body a break by alkalizing and it will show its gratitude by making you experience great energy, enhanced immunity, and an overall vibrant health and well-being.
Which Foods Are Acidifying?
It’s actually imperative that you eat some acidifying foods to achieve the 80-20 alkaline-acid acid balance. It’s overeating on the most acidifying foods that’s deleterious to your health.
If you look up acid-alkaline food charts you may be surprised to find certain foods either being
alkaline or acid depending on the source you’re looking up, ie. some will list watermelon as an alkalizing food, while others will tell you that it’s acidifying. So which source is telling the truth?
Personally I trust Dr. Robert O. Young, one of the world’s foremost experts on alkalinity. He has plenty of solid clinical experience, having studied the blood of thousands of people for the past 3 decades. So for me he definitely knows which foods are really alkalizing and which are truly acidifying.
Mildly acidifying
Fruits:
-Cherries (sweet)
-Currants
-Dates (fresh)
-Cantaloupe
-Plums
-Watermelon
-Nectarine
Grains:
-Oats
-Millet
-Spelt
-Amaranth
-Seitan (a type of faux meat)
-Rice milk and protein
Legumes:
-Soy (soybeans, sweetened soy milk, soy protein)
-Black beans
-Kidney beans
-Chickpeas
Nuts:
-Pecans
-Hazel nuts
-Brazil nuts
Moderately acidifying
Fruits:
-Banana
-Apple
-Mango
-Orange
-Blueberries
-Papaya
-Strawberries
-Pineapple
-Apricot
-Grapes
-Peach
-Cranberries
-Fresh, raw juice
Grains:
-Brown rice
-Whole wheat
-Rye
-Whole grain breads and pastas
Condiments:
-Mayonnaise
-Ketchup
Animal foods:
-Butter
-Ocean fish
Highly acidifying
Fruits:
-Dried fruit
-Pasteurized fruit juice (sweetened)
Vegetables:
-Mushrooms
Nuts:
-Cashews
-Peanuts
-Pistachios
Animal foods:
-Cow’s milk
-Cheese
-Yogurt
-Ice cream
-Eggs
-Beef
-Pork
-Chicken
-Turkey
-Lamb
-Farmed fish
-Shellfish
-Crustaceans
Condiments:
-Mustard
-Vinegar
-Jam/fruit spreads
-Soy sauce
Sweeteners:
-Sugar
-Honey
-Rice syrup
-Artificial sweeteners
Convenience foods:
-Chocolate
-Junk food (deep-fried packaged foods)
-Fast food
-Instant and microwaveable foods
-Candies
-Black tea
-Coffee
-Soda
-Alcoholic drinks
-Jelly
Love your meat? I am not going to tell you to give up animal foods as I am not vegetarian myself. As a friend I would advise you though to limit your animal flesh intake, and to make sure that you eat only organic, pasture-raised, wild, or free-range animals. Say no to CAFO meat. Organic meat is already highly acidifying. Meat from animal farms are twice or even thrice as acidifying thanks to the hormones, steroids, antibiotics, GM feed, pesticides, herbicides, insecticides, and all the suffering that the animals go through in factory farms. I already told you that negative emotions cause acidosis. Animals from CAFOs are delirious with both emotional and physical pain thanks to the inhumane living conditions they have to go through in their short miserable lives.
Also, try to eat only fresh animal foods. Canned and frozen red meat for example is laced with nitrites and nitrates and other potent carcinogens. Get your eggs, milk, butter, and cheese from small organic farmers. Again do not overdo the animal foods. If you look at the diet of centenarian communities in different parts of the world you’d notice that they don’t eat too much animal flesh or animal by-products. Try to take your pick from the list of mildly acidifying foods as much as possible. Drink alkaline water and take alkalizing supplements to offset the acidifying effects of animal food consumption. Of course eat more alkalizing foods as often as you can, at least 80% of the time to be more exact.
I hope that doesnt overload you- but its important to know!
Thank you Amber Marie for a great article
