Just as acid can ruin your car battery, increased acidity in your cells and tissues can eat away at the linings of your arteries and increase your chances of both brain and cardiovascular problems erode cartilage and cause inflamed joints and damage skin cells which can contribute to premature wrinkling and other aging issues.
The critical balance between acidity and alkalinity is measured on a scale of 0 to 14 known as the pHor potential of hydrogen. On this scale, 0 to 7 is acid, 7 is neutral and 7 to 14 is alkaline. If youre a healthy person with perfectly balanced pH, you would have a reading of about 7.4 in your blood and about 7.25 in your tissues. However, most people fall in the acidic range of 6.2 to 6.4.
If you suffer from pH imbalance, it can:
- Thicken your blood and increase your risk of heart problems.
- Block vitamin absorption and starve your body of essential nutrients.
- Create toxic buildup in clogged cells.
- Slow down organ function and make you feel sluggish and weak.
- Prevent proper digestion and create excess gas and bloating.
- Cause unhealthy weight gain.
- Speed the aging process and make you look and feel older.
To help prevent acidity, you should avoid acid-forming foods like high-fat meats, processed foods, fried foods, refined sugars, pasteurized dairy products and white flour products.
Why not try to add more nutritious alkaline foods like fruits, veggies, whole grains, beans and other foods high in fiber. If you follow the 80/20 rule, where you consume 80 percent alkaline foods and only 20 percent acid-forming foods, you should see a difference in your pH balance.