Before I heard about eating alkaline foods for health it didn’t even cross my mind. How could the pH levels in our body affect our health? Our hunter-gatherer ancestors consumed a diet different from what we eat today. Their meals were based on plant and animal foods minimally processed. But with the growth of agriculture, the standard Western diet changed greatly.
All the foods that we eat, after being digested, absorbed, and metabolized, release either an acid or an alkaline base (bicarbonate) into blood. Mostly all animal products and highly processed foods are acid forming. Such as Grains, fish, meat, poultry, shellfish, cheese, milk, and salt all produce acid, so the introduction and dramatic rise in our consumption of these foods meant that the typical Western diet became more acid-producing. Over the years our consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables has decreased making our diets even more acidic.
Our blood is slightly alkaline, with a normal pH level of between 7.35 and 7.45. The reason why we should be eating an alkaline diet is that our diet should reflect this pH level as it did before we started eating processed foods and animal products.
There are so many benefits to eating an Alkaline diet. Some benefits include increased energy levels, improved immune function, healthier teeth, reduced inflammation and slower ageing.
If you have a disease or cancer the best thing you can do for your body is to eat an alkaline diet as it helps the body to recover faster. Disease has trouble surviving in an alkaline environment, where as it thrives in an acid environment as it acts as a fertile breeding ground for chronic illness.
My tips to eating an alkaline diet:
– Buy a water filter that has a pH level so that you can set the water to the alkaline level of your choice.
– Switch your diet gradually. Try to eat 80% Alkaline in the day
– Have an alkaline rich smoothie for breakfast to start the day off well! Green Smoothies are great!
– Try to eat raw when possible
– Avoid highly processed and packaged foods
– Stay away from fatty meats, cheeses, dairy and cigarettes
-Supplement daily with natural alkalising supergreens (Email tegan.steele@hotmail.com)
Here is the table of Alkaline foods you should eat more of.
Here is a table of Acid foods you should try to limit for improved health.
References:
http://www.naturaltherapypages.com.au/article/Alkaline_Foods
Tegan Steele - Vegie Girl 