ACID-BASE BALANCE AND YOUR HEALTH

by Lawrence Wilson, MD

Maintaining the correct pH of the body tissues is very important. Today most people’s bodies are too acidic, regardless of what is revealed on pH tests. This is because the pH paper only measures the urine, saliva or blood, but not the pH of the tissues.

Most everyone needs to improve the alkalinity of their bodies. However, the way it is done is very important. Most of the books, CDs and kits designed to normalize the pH are not healthful and do not work well. Nutritional balancing works a lot better, simply because it addresses more of the deeper causes of acid-base imbalance. Here are the main causes of acid-alkaline imbalance in the body.

CAUSES OF ACIDITY AND ALKALINITY IN THE BODY

1. The absolute amount of alkaline reserve minerals. Certain minerals have an alkaline reaction in the body. They include calcium, in particular. They also include magnesium, sodium, potassium and most trace minerals as well. These are sometimes called the alkaline reserve minerals in organic chemistry.

Acid-forming minerals exist as well. These include phosphorus, some forms of sulfur, iron and most of the toxic metals. These must be balanced by enough alkaline reserve minerals. As one’s health declines, one tends to lose the alkaline reserve minerals. This causes an imbalance, with too many acid-forming minerals, causing an acidic condtiion.

2. Adequate hydration is another key to the proper balance of acid and alkaline in the body.

3. Toxic metals have an acidic reaction, in general. As health worsens, toxic metals replace some of the alkaline-forming minerals. Nutritional balancing reverses this trend.

4. Chronic infections and their endotoxins and exotoxins tend to acidify the body greatly. Most people have several to a dozen chronic infections, many of which are fungal, the worst kind for acid-base balance. Common sites of infection include the sinuses, intestines, throat, eyes, ears, gums, teeth and others.

5. Intestinal toxicity tends to have an acidifying effect. These toxins are the products of fermentation of sugars and even more so, putrefaction of proteins. They contain a lot of phosphorus, for example, because they are protein substances.

When the intestinal flora is not correct, or if one has other intestinal problems such as infections with candida albicans, a very acidic fungal infection, then the toxin generation problem in the gut is much worse. Even a hurried lifestyle that does not permit perfect digestion will make toxin generation worse. This is sometimes called autointoxication, as it comes from within and not outside of the body.

5. Most toxic chemicals have an acidic reaction in the body. This is because they are enzyme inhibitors, so they damage normal oxidative and other mechanisms in the body.

6. Sluggish liver activity tends to have an acidifying effect. This occurs because bile is a highly alkaline substance and liver toxicity and sluggishness tends to cause reduced bile flow. Also, without sufficient bile in the small and large intestines, the intestinal flora is incorrect and many infections, including yeast infections, tend to develop that further acidify the body. Also, without enough bile, digestion is impaired and intestinal putrefaction and fermentation of sugars increases, further acidifying the body.

7. Occasionally other causes of acidity are important, such as respiratory problems and other illnesses. Usually , however, these are not major factors, unless they impact overall health in a major way. For example, cancer tends to acidify the body further, as can fungal infections. This definitely worsens the situation and must be dealt with for full correction.

8. The oxidation rate has something to do with alkalinity and acidity of the body. Fast oxidation is more alkaline, in some ways, while slow oxidation is generally a more acidic state of body chemistry.

Dr. Eck wrote that fast oxidation is more acid, while slow oxidation is more alkaline. However, this is not always true. Fast oxidizers generate more acidic metabolic end products such as lactic acid. Also, they tend to be lower in calcium, which is needed to neutralize lactic and other metabolic acids. This was Dr. Eck’s rationale for saying that fast oxidizers are more acidic.

However, some slow oxidizers become far more acidic for the following reasons:

1. They have much more biounavailable calcium than fast oxididzers, in general. As a result, they cannot neutralize lactic and other metabolic acids, even though calcium may be plentiful in their tissues.

2. They are often far more depleted in the alkaline reserve minerals than many fast oxidizers. They can become very acidic for this reason.

3. They often produce more bowel toxins, have more infections, and have more toxic metals. All of this makes them far more acidic than fast oxidizers, in general.

4. They often have far more sluggish liver activity and reduced bile secretion. As explained above, this also increases acidity in several ways.

5. Slow oxidizers often have more fungal and cancerous cells in their bodies, both of which have an acidic reaction in the body.

NUTRITIONAL BALANCING SAFELY CORRECTS THE CAUSES OF EXCESSIVE ACIDITY

The methods used include a diet very high in alkaline reserve minerals, removing infections at very deep levels, removing ALL of the toxic metals and hundreds of toxic chemicals, improving oxygenation and hydration, improving bowel function and digestion to reduce fermentation and putrefaction in the large intestine, and improving liver function and bile secretion. Here is how it is done:

A diet of 70-80% cooked vegetables will slowly replenish the alkaline reserve minerals and remove some toxic metals and chemicals from the body that cause acidity.

Ten-twelve ounces of carrot juice, perhaps with greens in it, or 1-2 ounces of wheat grass juice are also excellent and very alkaline-forming.

Some meats and eggs, while acid-forming, are needed because they enhance the oxidation rate and provide essential minerals such as zinc. They should only be cooked lightly for best digestibility. Too much meat or dairy is not helpful, however.

Fruit, while supposedly alkaline-forming, seems to have an acidic reaction in many people due to its imbalanced mineral content, its high sugar content that causes yeast overgrowth, and perhaps due to fruit acids or other chemicals in fruit. We basically avoid all of it.

Eating habits. One will heal much faster if food is consumed one or perhaps two foods only at a meal. This takes some getting use to, but works admirably as it reduces digestive effort tremendously.

Drinking water. Drink 3 quarts daily of only spring or distilled water. Distilled water may be somewhat acidic in its pH, but it can remove many toxic metals. In so doing, it has an alkalinizing effect. It is usually best for just a few months or up to a year, and then it will leach too many vital minerals from the body. Most spring water has an alkaline pH due to the alkaline minerals it contains. Do not drink other waters, no matter how well they are promoted. See below for more on this subject.

Drinking plenty of water is essential for balancing the pH. Do not add salt or minerals to any drinking water, as this may not be safe in the long run and can unbalance the body’s minerals.

Rest and sleep. This is also critical. One must rest at least 8 to 10 or more hours nightly. Even more important, however, is to go to bed between 8 and 9 PM local time, wherever you are. This is complex, but it works well.

Oxygenation. We recommend sauna therapy and milk exercise only to help oxygenate the tissues. Also, I recommend using an ozonator/ionizer air purifier. Click here to read more about this wonderful and simple way to improve oxygenation of the body.

Do not do vigorous exercise on nutritional balancing programs, as a general principle, as it will slow down your progress. It tends to use up too much energy in most cases. If one is young and more healthy, one may do a little more exercise. Occasional more strenuous exercise such as hiking is fine if you can do it without getting exhausted. Do not exercise to exhaustion and do not do any dangerous types of exercise, as this makes no sense.

Detoxification. Each day, use a near infrared or far infrared sauna for 30-50 minutes once or even twice daily. Some far infrared saunas are not as safe, as they emit harmful electromagnetic fields. This can only be assessed with an EMF meter.

Also, do one or two coffee enemas, preferably after a sauna in the morning. See instructions on this website regarding the correct procedure. The best time for detoxification is when you first wake up in the morning. For the second sauna session of the day, just before bedtime is best. The procedures will be far more powerful if done at these times.

Saunas and coffee enemas remove toxic metals and toxic chemicals. This may be the way they have an alkalinizing effect, among others.

Supplements: Be careful with supplements. Too many can overwhelm or seem to confuse the body. We use a few that are very alkalinizing and simple such as kelp, zinc, selenium, chromium, and manganese. A powerful digestive aid with pancreatin will allow the body to absorb more of the alkaline reserve minerals, which is most helpful.

Other. Adjust your thinking if possible, since acidic, bitter, angry thoughts will tend to make the body or keep the body more acid. This connection is subtle, but again it is true in our experience.

COMMENTS ON OTHER METHODS USED TO HELP CORRECT ACIDITY IN THE BODY

I do not believe there is any quick-fix method to alkalinize the body. Here are methods that are used, and why I avoid them strenuously in most cases.

1. Taking lots of mineral supplements. Taking mineral supplements often unbalances the body in subtle or obvious ways. Also, some mineral supplements from the sea or the earth contain too many toxic metals. Many are also not absorbed too well. But even if they are absorbed, they do not work well when taken in a random way.

2. The use of chelating drugs or natural chelators to remove toxic metals. These can help remove some toxic metals. However, they are not that effective, in most cases because: they also remove a lot of calcium, zinc and other alkaline-forming minerals, and they do not seem to remove enough toxic metals at very deep levels to significantly reduce the load of acid-forming toxic metals.

3. Special alkaline diets. Eating many more cooked vegetables is very helpful to replenish the alkaline reserve minerals. Methods that do not work well at all include:

Fruit. Fruit has acids in it and these are supposedly converted to alkaline-forming elements in the body. This is the theory. However, in practice I do not see this. Fruit will alkalinize the urine and saliva pH, and even the blood pH, which is harder to measure. However, it does not cure the acidity problem at the level of the cells.

While the reasons for this are not always clear, I believe it is because these foods are too yin in Chinese or macrobiotics terminology. For this reason, they further upset the balance of the body in a serious way. They are helpful as sources of alkaline minerals, however, but they are not what they are promoted to be.

Other problems with fruit is their high sugar content. This often feeds fugal infections throughout the body, such as intestinal candida albicans, which makes the person worse. They also upset the blood sugar level and stress the adrenals for this reason. This also makes the acidity problem worse in some cases.

Raw vegetables. The problem with raw salads is that the minerals are not well enough absorbed. Thus most of the beneficial minerals are wasted. This is a consistent finding. Also, most people do not eat enough of them, in part due to the time required for chewing them. Cooking concentrates most foods. Also, raw foods may contain parasites and bacteria that can cause more infections that can further acidify the body.

Vegetarian diets. It is true that vegetarian diets are generally more alkaline than meat-based diets. However, this is not the case if a vegetarian eats a lot of grains and beans, which are both some acid-forming in their effect. However, we do not ever recommend vegetarian diets because they are deficient in many essential minerals such as zinc, selenium, chromium and others in most cases. Also, they are too yin in Chinese medical terms, and this tends to make the body much more acidic, although the reasons for this are unclear.

4. Special water machines. Alkaline water machines are another apparent short cut way to alkalinize the body. They will alkalinize the blood and urine, and offer some short-term benefits. However, if used for more than a few months, they are very dangerous and should be strictly avoided. Most add a small amount of platinum to the water, which is how they alkalinize the water. However, platinum is an extremely toxic metal. We have heard too many reports of people being harmed by them.

Other problems with alkaline water machines are that most begin with tap water, which is quite toxic. This is put through a carbon or other simple filter, which does not remove enough toxic metals and chemicals. As a result, the water is still high in various toxic substances that damage the body to some degree. Also, alkaline water is very yin, which is harmful in the long run.

5. Taking sodium bicarbonate or other alkalinizing chemicals. This is too superficial, for one thing, and does not replenish the alkaline reserve minerals or eliminate the toxic metals or infections. Nor does it improve liver function and reduce intestinal putrefaction.

Another problem with this method is that if taken with meals, alkaline chemicals such as bicarbonate will tend to neutralize stomach acid, and therefore interfere severely with digestion.

While all of the above superficial methods will have some effect, and can make a person feel better, none of them are recommended, as they are not deep enough in their corrective activity, and most will harm the body eventually.

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