The Most Important Medical Test
Informative and easy to understand article on alkaline PH
Recently I spoke at a health conference and had several great
conversations with many health-conscious people.
Although the questions I was asked during and after my presentation
ran the gamut, there was one general reaction that came through loud
and clear.
Sheer surprise.
You see, I talked about the number that is THE most telling indicator
about your state of health and is arguably the most important number
to pay attention to if you want a life free of pain, inflammation and
disease.
It's not your weight.
Your BMI? Nope.
No--it's not your cholesterol.
Or your triglycerides.
It's not even your blood pressure!
It's your pH.
Here is what kept my audience on the edge of their seats...
Alkaline pH--why in the world?
In a flashback to high school chemistry, remember that the pH scale
goes from 0 to 14. 0 is pure acid, 7 is neutral, and 14 is pure
alkaline.
You came into this world with an alkaline pH. It's how your body was
designed and how you're meant to stay.
Without exception, ALL of your organs, tissues, bones and joints work
best when your blood pH is slightly alkaline (around 7.365).
If your pH is even just a little too acidic, that's when your body can
begin to literally break down. Aches and pains begin to creep up.
Tumors (including cancer) can flourish. Diseases can rear their ugly
heads.
Although a number of factors can contribute to an acid pH, (including
stress, environmental toxins, lack of exercise and smoking), far and
away the number one factor is your FOOD.
Eating acid-creating foods (especially fast food, processed food,
meat, dairy, refined carbs and hard to digest meal combinations) pulls
your pH down toward the acid range.
On the other hand, when your diet contains many alkaline foods (like
fresh fruits and vegetables) and is easy for your body to break down,
you encourage a more alkaline pH.
A snapshot of your innards
Let take a look at your innards and see some examples of how your body
can break down when you're acidic:
Your Heart
Your heart pumps an unbelievable 13,000 quarts of blood a day--enough
to fill a small swimming pool!
If there are toxins in your blood, that puts a huge strain on your
heart to do its job.
Acid wastes in your system also rob your blood of oxygen, which causes
your heart tissue to deteriorate.
And you don't want your ticker breaking down, do you?
Your Liver
The liver serves over 300 different functions-with two of the most
important being to remove acid wastes from your blood and make
alkaline enzymes for your body.
If you're like most people who live in industrialized countries, your
blood resembles a war zone with far too many toxins floating around,
and your liver is constantly being stressed cleaning them out.
If that goes on long enough, it can completely shut down. And so will you.
Your Pancreas
The pancreas is super important... in fact, it's responsible for
completing digestion in your small intestine. And it helps regulate
blood sugar by producing insulin. Like I said, super important.
More so than any other organ, the pancreas is extremely sensitive to
your pH and absolutely CANNOT function when you're acidic -- it MUST
have an alkaline environment.
If your pancreas is not working right, you can be looking at type II
diabetes, pancreatitis or even pancreatic cancer (which can kill you
FAST).
Your Kidneys
The kidneys create urine and help get rid of excess acid from the
body. About one liter of blood passes through them every single
minute!
If your blood has too much acid and toxins, your kidneys are
over-stressed and unable to do their job. (Ever hear of dialysis?
Kidney stones?)
Your Stomach
When your stomach properly breaks down your food, the small intestine
can finish the job and digestion is completed like it should be.
But foods that are acid-creating are hard for your stomach to break
down, and in its efforts to do its job, it may overproduce acid. The
result can be poorly digested food, fewer nutrients being absorbed,
and acid rising up into your throat.
Acid reflux, GERD, IBS, hiatal hernia and gastritis are all on the
rise and this is why. The typical American diet is LOADED with hard to
digest, acid-creating food.
Your Colon
Wastes are supposed to easily pass through the colon and "out your
back door." But if digestion has not been accomplished properly, they
don't move through like they should.
Instead they can clog your colon walls, become a breeding ground for
bacteria and disease and cause you to put on weight. Plus, the toxins
can be reabsorbed into your bloodstream, make you ill and encourage
the development of food sensitivities.
It's no surprise that colon cancer is the number one cancer killer,
and that so many people suffer with IBS, diverticulosis/itis and
chronic constipation, is it?
An acid pH is GOOD -- when you're DEAD
There is one time when you're SUPPOSED to have an acid pH.
When you're DEAD.
Your body automatically becomes acidic upon death so it can decompose
like it's supposed to.
I don't want that happening any time too soon, do you?
So...how do we get this magic 7.365 pH?
Hopefully you've gotten the idea of how important it is to have a
slightly alkaline pH while you're still breathing and vertical.
Now I'll tell you the 4 steps to attaining and maintaining an optimal
alkaline pH:
Step 1- Check your pH at regular intervals
You can get a saliva test or urine test kit at most drug stores or
health food stores. The saliva test is the least accurate and Urine is
slightly more accurate.
You can also have your blood tested by a doctor. This is the most
accurate measure but also the most expensive. If you want this done
and your doctor won't do it, find one who will.
The normal pH for urine is about 6.5-6.8 (it's acidic because urine is
an exit for toxins), for saliva 7.0-7.4 and for blood 7.365 is your
target.
If you're testing your pH with saliva or urine, it's important to
perform the test several times at different times of the day, since pH
can be affected by what you eat or drink.
Step 2- Drink pure water
Aim for at least 5-8 glasses per day. Stir in a little fresh-squeezed
lemon juice to make it more alkaline if you'd like. Alkalizing drops
are also available at health food stores.
Water means water and does not mean coffee, tea, Gatorade, soda or
other sweetened drinks.
But avoid drinking tap water as it can contain chlorine and/or
fluoride. Strive to drink filtered or bottled water.
Step 3- Eat more alkaline foods
The important thing to note here is you CAN continue to eat some
"good" acid foods that have valid nutrients - so if you don't want to
give up that juicy steak you love or that roasted chicken, you don't
have to.
Just make sure that those acid foods are counterbalanced by a good
portion of alkaline foods. 50/50 is a good place to start, and the
more alkaline, the better.
"Good" acid foods include nourishing things like:
* Eggs
Fish
* Chicken, turkey
* Brown rice
* Yogurt
* Beef (preferably grass fed and organic)
These foods have nutrients that do benefit your body. So it's not
necessary to eliminate them. You just need to make sure to keep them
under control, and make sure they represent no more than 50% of your
calories.
And remember it's NEVER a good idea to eat processed food, fast food
or drink soda. Keep those to a bare minimum or preferably none at all.
Step 4- Keep your digestion efficient
In order to keep your digestion humming, it's vital to eat meal
combinations that are easily broken down and don't cause your stomach
to overproduce acid, and make sure you have adequate enzymes to do the
job.
Simply put:
Easy digestion = proper elimination of wastes = a more alkaline pH
Poor digestion = acid waste build-up = Sickness and a more acid pH
Without the proper enzymes for digestion, you can suffer from gas,
bloating, constipation, waste build-up...
...and you'll have a more acidic pH!
So remember--while your weight, blood pressure, cholesterol, etc. are
all very important too, it's vital to keep your eye on the MOST
important number--your pH. Do that and your body will thank you many
times over.
Always be cool because apart from food habit tension and restlessness also may lead to more acidic nature into our body.
