Learn about the dangers of eating an acid diet and how it weakens your body. You can have weight gain, weakened immune system, glands and organs and much more.
“The countless names of illnesses do not really matter. What does matter is that they all come from the same root cause… too much tissue acid waste in the body!” Dr. Theodore A. Baroody says in his remarkable book Alkalize or Die.
According to Doctor William Howard Hay from New York, all disease is caused by ‘self-poisoning’ due to acid accumulation in the body. Acid/alkaline imbalance causing disease is not a new concept: Dr. Hay said that in 1933, in his book A New Health Era.
An Acid Diet Results in Eating Too Many Acid-forming Foods:
1. Acid-forming foods deplete the minerals in our body. Our blood and cellular fluid will become too acidic. To control this, the body will steal minerals like calcium, magnesium, potassium, and sodium from the bones, cartilage tissue, and muscles to create the balance. This is the beginning of osteoporosis and arthritis.
- Joints dry out, becoming stiff and less flexible.
- There is a pain in the lower back and muscle stiffness.
2. The risk of heart attack and stroke increases due to the build-up of plaque and weakened blood vessels.
3. Dry and wrinkled skin occurs more rapidly.
4. Blood sugar fluctuations and diabetes are more likely.
5. Digestive problems increase.
6. Constipation increases, due to a lack of digestion.
7. Weight gain occurs, with difficulty in losing weight.
8. Weakened immune system.
9. Weakened glands and organs.
10. Headaches and depression.
In short: Acid is for Your Car Battery
Not Your Body!
There are many other ailments that are caused by over-acidity. While there are other ways to decrease acidity, diet is your obvious first step.
“Eating an alkaline diet not an acid diet was key in helping me get my health back; it saved my life!” — Diana
What Research and Experts Say and Do:
“Immune cells that are too acid or too alkaline do not produce antibodies or cytokines (chemical messengers to regulate other immune cells), and they have impaired phagocytosis (the ability to engulf and destroy microbes). As a result, the affected individual becomes susceptible to viral, bacterial, fungal and other infectious microbes as well as cancer,” says Dr. William Lee Cowden.
- An overly acidic condition weakens the body and can become dangerous. Our body requires a slightly alkaline condition to function well. Blood, for example, needs to be at 7.4 pH. A shift in blood pH of just 0.2 could result in death. Obviously, the body does not want to die, so it is forced to borrow minerals (calcium, sodium, potassium and magnesium) from vital organs and bones to neutralize the acid.
- A seven-year study, conducted on 9,000 women at the University of California, showed that those who have chronic acidosis are at greater risk for bone loss than those who have normal pH levels. Many of the hip fractures among middle-aged women are connected to high acidity, caused by a diet rich in animal foods and low in vegetables. – American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
- Acidosis increases insulin resistance, which can lead to type 2 diabetes and can increase kidney stones and kidney failure, according to Dr. Anthony Sebastian, University of California, San Francisco. He goes on to say that one study suggests that being too acidic may alter gene activity and raise the risk of breast cancer.
- Janet was diagnosed at 52 with osteopenia, which often leads to osteoporosis. At 55, Janet began following Dr. Susan Brown’s recommendations for eating more fruits and vegetables, taking supplements, and exercising. After three years, Janet was building bone mass in her spine and hip while going through menopause. Dr. Susan Brown is from the Osteoporosis Education Project in East Syracuse, N.Y.
Acid Forming Food Versus Alkaline Forming Food - An alkaline-forming diet will help in preventing and treating osteoporosis, age-related muscle wasting, calcium kidney stones, exercise-induced asthma and can slow the progression of age-related chronic renal insufficiency, according to a paper in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition called “Origins and evolution of the Western diet: health implications for the 21st century.”
- Naturopathic doctors often recommend changing the diet to more fruits and vegetables, which are alkaline-forming, to prevent or treat acidosis or alkalosis.
- Cures for an acid stomach include increasing consumption of raw fruits and vegetables (alkaline-forming foods) in Ayurvedic (traditional Indian) medicine. Ayurvedic healers have an understanding of the basic underlying principles of acidity and alkalinity; they say an excess of acid in the body related to having certain body type known as a ‘pitta dosha.’
- Cancer and Alkaline Balance: “Currently, there is no research evidence suggesting that having a more ‘acidic environment’ contributes to cancer starting or growing in the body. Fortunately, the same foods that make the body less acidic also happen to fight cancer in many other ways. For this reason, you should include more of these foods in your diet whenever you can,” says Caring4Cancer. They go on to say “…cancer cells can create acid. This can make a small area in and around cancer cells more acidic. But this does not make the entire body more acidic.”
- A balanced body that is not highly acidic makes it easier for cells to cleanse out waste and toxins. Thus, a balanced alkaline pH will help in protecting the cells in your body and may discourage the growth of cancer cells. An acid diet is not the way to go.
“Consider that Americans consume more calcium-rich dairy foods than almost every other nation, and we have one of the highest rates of osteoporosis; dairy may be rich in calcium, but most dairy foods also produce an acid yield,” says Loren Cordain, Ph.D., professor/researcher in the department of health science at Colorado State University.
My Own Story
Learning about food combining and balancing my diet acid/alkaline-wise was what truly helped me to stabilize a very weak digestive system. Here is a link to my health struggle: My Fibromyalgia Story (warning: my before pictures are somewhat shocking).
This article is a portion of my mini-ebook Balance Your Body. Check it out here Balance Your Body
Learn More About How to Balance the Acid Acid-Alkaline Your Body
- I feel so strongly about this health principle that I now teach Weekend Web Alkalizing Bootcamps. Check out our October BoootCamp which uses alkaline balance and food combining for weight management. Click here: Acid-Alkaline Diet BootCamp for Weight Loss and Balance
- Read my mini e-book “Balance Your Body… with proper Acid/Alkaline balance.
- It contains full description and understanding.
- The book has useful colour charts to print and put on your fridge
- Contains explanation of key foods to add to your diet and simply delicious recipes.
Click here to purchase: Balance Your Body
Are you eating too many Acid Foods?
My Favorite Alkaline Forming Recipes 
How to Cook Perfect Millet: This delicious superfood is one of the few alkalizing grains. It’s also gluten-free and highly nutritious.
Alkalizing Lemon Aid: Lemon happens to be the most alkalizing food, even though it starts out being acidic.
Watermelon Soup: Sounds strange, but this raw recipe is easy and delicious. Watermelon is highly alkaline.
Power Spinach Salad: Spinach was the first ‘green’ superfood and has a host of health benefits.
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It is very commendable to read your message about health it really helps me alot.
Hi. Loved the article. I liked it so much, I want to paraphrase some of your comments for a term paper I am writing. Do you have a date that this was written or last edited.