Food Health

Alkaline Diets -a fallacy

The Alkaline diet proponents claim that the high acidic food that we eat leave behind what is called as an Acid ash after nutrients are absorbed from them. And this acidic content changes the blood pH of the body which in turn is the cause for various Diseases to take hold, for the acidic environment of the blood provides that much needed fertile grounds.

According to the Alkaline diet proponents, Meat and Diary are considered high Acid causing foods, while Fruits and Vegetables belong to Alkaline class of foods.

The truth of the matter is that though Foods that we eat will alter the pH levels in the Urine, but they do not alter the pH levels of the Blood. In other words this post will debunk the claim held by Alkaline diet proponents that foods change the Blood pH levels.

It is imperative to understand here that no matter what you eat, be it a Vegan diet or an Animal protein diet, your blood pH will be around the 7.35 to 7.45, mark. Of course this does not mean that acidosis of the blood is not possible, it is, but under certain pathological conditions which you have no control over.

The proponents of the Alkaline diet claim that foods rich in Animal protein often increase the blood pH levels causing the body to strip off important minerals from the Bone so as to reset the pH levels of the blood back to the 7.35 to 7.45, range.

And this stripping off the nutrients from the bone is what causes the condition known as Osteoporosis. But the main fallacy in this assumption is the involvement of the Bones. As a matter of fact, the Bone does not involve in any of the Blood pH neutralization attempts carried out.

On the Contrary, Acidity is caused by increase in the H+ ion or otherwise called protons. Blood pH is primarily maintained by a buffer system called the bicarbonate buffer system. The bicarbonate system has the ability to move the reaction backward and forward mediated by an amazing enzyme called carbonic anhydrase. .

The excess protons produced as a result of metabolic activity is immediately neutralized in the blood by the bicarbonate buffer system. It is at this point the kidneys get involved, what they do is to remove the excess protons bound to the bicarbonate.

Now when you test your Urine for Acidity, for sure it will give you a high positive for Acidity, which does not mean that your blood pH is still highly acidic. This is where the Alkaline diet researchers had failed totally. They promote, profuse and correlate the Urine’s acidic nature to the blood’s, which in fact is a totally fallacy.

High intake of Animal protein does not interfere with the Calcium metabolism. High intake of Animal protein does not erode the Bones off its Calcium neither are they responsible for the onset of Osteoporosis. On the Contrary, Clinical trials now prove that high in take of Animal protein contribute to enhanced Bone health.