What is the Alkaline Diet

The alkaline diet is a regimen that is suggested to allow the body to re-establish and maintain its normal blood pH level. The pH (power of hydrogen) reflects the concentration of hydrogen ions in a water-based solution.

The diet was created by Dr. Robert Young, a doctor in naturopathy and nutrition from Clayton College of Natural Health, who claims that the diet can help in curing several illnesses and prevent diseases from developing.

In his book "The pH miracle", he also explains how this diet can provide energy and mental clarity in just few weeks, and improve overall health.

This is because a normal and healthy blood pH is slightly alkaline, and ranges between 7.35 and 7.45 (ideal 7.36). A pH of 7 being neutral, a pH of zero is considered completely acidic, while a pH of 14 would be completely alkaline.

However, our blood pH level has been dropping drastically over the years to become more acidic, which is thought to have detrimental effects on our health. Research and studies have shown how blood pH has been changing over the past 200 years because of the modern diet we have been following and the agricultural revolution. As a result, this has caused several health diseases and illnesses.

The alkaline diet healing science is based on the belief that the body is designed in a way to function effectively on its own and heal itself. The optimal environment for the body to be able to operate efficiently is by having an alkaline blood pH. 

Hence, the diet focuses on creating and preserving this healthy blood pH environment which can be achieved through omitting foods that are acid producing, while focusing on alkalinizing and healthy ones.

This diet became very famous and gained a wide reputation in the news when Victoria Beckham adopted it and tweeted about it in 2013.

What makes the blood acidic: the Alkaline Diet perspective

Due to several changes in the modern diet, such as increased consumption of sodium containing foods, GMO (genetically modified organism), and processed foods among many other things, the pH of the body is drifting away from its optimal levels, and becoming more and more acidic.

Other factors can also influence the blood pH such as anxiety, fever, or any complication from trauma or illness. This can even lead to a state known as acidosis which is excessive acid production. This condition can be quite dangerous.   

Furthermore, environmental and respiratory factors do affect our blood pH. In addition, our way of living and thinking, including our emotions, do play an important role in influencing our blood pH level.

Research and studies have also shown that the blood pH changed over the past 200 years to become more acidic, because of the modern diet and agricultural revolution. As a result, this has started causing several health diseases and illnesses, including bone diseases.

How the Alkaline Diet works in the Body

The alkaline diet is based on “The Acid-Ash Hypothesis” that claims that acid producing ash foods, such as meat, poultry, cheese, fish, eggs, and grains, will make the blood pH more acidic.

As such, the alkaline ash is mainly produced by fruits, nuts, legumes and vegetables that would make the blood pH more alkaline. 

It is important to understand that the food impact on blood acidity or alkalinity is not related to the food type itself, but it is related to the metabolic wastes or ashes that the food produces.

By eating the proper food and living an alkaline lifestyle, the alkaline diet can help the body restore and maintain its normal alkaline environment. Hence, this will prevent several diseases and illnesses, and help fighting their development. 

By also maintaining a normal alkaline blood pH, the alkaline diet is believed to promote health, energy, and vitality. It can also fight inflammation which can provide tremendous health benefits for the human body. 

Furthermore, since minerals usually work as a buffer in balancing the blood pH, when blood becomes acidic, the body extracts minerals from the cells, tissues, bones, and organs to neutralize the pH environment. This can cause several health issues and bone diseases, hence maintaining an alkaline blood pH helps also in fighting bone diseases. 

Alkaline Diet misconceptions: 

There are many misconceptions and wrong ideas revolving around the alkaline diet. These are even being shared by many health care experts. That’s why it’s important to clarify the following:

A- “Acidic food” versus “acid producing” food: the Potential Renal Acid Load  “PRAL”

There’s a common false belief thinking that eating acidic foods in nature, results in turning the blood pH acidic.

While this can be true for certain foods, yet there are many food types that are actually acidic in nature, but when they are eaten and metabolized, they have an alkalizing effect. A typical example of this is “lemon”.  

To better understand the difference between “acidic food” versus “acid forming food” we need to look into the “Potential Renal Acid Load of foods” (PRAL). 

The PRAL is the correct way to assess if a food has an acidic or alkalinizing potential. The PRAL is calculated given the following equation:
PRAL = 0.49 x protein (g/day) + 0.037 x phosphorus (mg/d) – 0.021 x potassium (mg/day) – 0.026 magnesium (mg/day) – 0.013 x calcium (mg/day).

Accordingly, a food with a positive PRAL is acid-producing, compared with a negative PRAL that is more basic.

The alkaline diet focuses on replacing “acid promoting foods” with “alkaline promoting foods”, irrespective whether they are acidic or alkaline in nature. Eventually, this will help body fluids restore homeostasis, and keep the body in its natural and appropriate alkaline environment.

B- Blood pH measurement:

The ideal way to measure the body pH is through a blood test. However, some healthcare experts do use other methods such as saliva and urine tests to get the body pH, as they believe this is also a reflection of the blood pH.

Still, there are some disagreements around these methodologies, especially the urine testing. But regardless of the approach used to measure the body pH, you need to be aware of these important guidelines to avoid any misperception about the results you get:

1- Blood test measurement: the normal and healthiest blood pH is between 7.35 and 7.45. So this is the pH you should be considering. A drop under this level would reflect an acidic environment.

2- Saliva test measurement: saliva has a normal pH between 6.2 and 7.6. The average pH being 6.7. The saliva pH should not drop also under the critical pH level which is 5.5. Any drop beyond this level will result in dental erosion.

The ideal time to measure the saliva pH is in the morning upon awakening. The ideal pH you should be looking for is believed to be 7.2.

It’s also important to understand that if you eat acidic food your saliva pH will drop instantly to become acidic. Yet, this is not a reflection of your body pH as you need to give time for the effect of the food or beverage to clear out. The clearance rate (time to clear) can depend from one food type to another. 

3- Urine pH measurement: the urine pH ranges between 4.5 and 8.0, with an average pH value of 6.0. Urine under 5.0 is considered acidic, and above 8.0 is alkaline. Accordingly, these are the levels to be considered. 

It is important to understand that the food we eat does actually affect the urine pH results. For instance, alkaline food will make urine more alkaline, while acidic food will make it more acidic. 

Healthcare experts debate around this approach to measure body pH, as some do believe that the food we eat influences only the urine pH and not the body PH, while others believe that it does.

Furthermore, if you have kidney stones or other different diseases and medical conditions, this would impact your urine pH. Hence this would not be a correct reflection of the blood pH level. 

The Alkaline Diet program structure

The alkaline diet suggests consuming 80% of the food we eat from alkaline forming food, and 20% from acidic forming food.

When the pH balance of the blood begins to improve and you reach the targeted level, the consumption of the alkaline forming food can be lowered to 65%, and the acidic forming food can be raised to 35%.

There is no specific time frame in which the alkaline diet should be followed. However, it is recommended to maintain the blood pH in a long lasting state of alkalinity, which involves constant commitment to the alkaline diet. 

This long term dedication to the alkaline diet poses a challenge for the followers of the diet, and might decrease the rate of commitment over time. However, it is important to be aware that extreme pH levels, greater than 7.45, might drive the body into “alkalosis” which poses several dangerous side effects to one’s health.

The focus in the alkaline diet is on the quality of the food eaten, meaning that highly acid producing foods should be avoided, while alkaline promoting foods should be abundantly consumed.

It should be noted that some foods that are naturally known as acidic, don’t necessarily translate into acidic wastes or metabolites. For example, lemon juice is naturally acidic with a pH of 2, but once it is subjected to digestion and metabolism, its pH rises above 7 in the body.

Dr. Sebi’s diet plan

Dr. Sebi, a native Honduran who refers to himself as an intracellular therapist and herbalist, claims that an organic, vegan, largely raw diet will cleanse your cells of toxins and cure diseases.

He founded the USHA Healing Village in Honduras to help teach his ideas about dietary and herbal therapy.

Basic diet guidelines

Sebi divides all foods into six categories: live, raw, dead, hybrid, genetically modified or drugs. His diet emphasizes live and raw foods, which he terms "electric foods."

According to Sebi, these foods are alkaline and can help heal the body of the effects of "dead," or supposedly acidic foods, which include all meat, poultry, seafood, and products containing a leavening agent like yeast, synthetic or processed items, alcohol, sugar, iodized salt or anything fried. 

By following this diet plan, you'll avoid all seedless fruits, insect- or weather-resistant crops like corn or certain tomatoes, and anything with added vitamins or minerals. Instead, you'll eat plain ripe fruit; non-starchy vegetables, especially leafy greens; raw nuts and nut butters; and grains like quinoa, rye or kamut.

What are the Alkaline Foods: knowing What to Eat

It is important to understand that the food impact on blood acidity or alkalinity is not related to the food type itself but it is related to the metabolic wastes or ashes that the food produces.

Therefore, if the food produces acidic metabolic wastes or ashes, it will influence the blood’s pH to become more acidic. The same mechanism happens with foods that are more alkaline ash or metabolic waste producing.

In this regards, it’s important to read the section about the diet misconception, because people might confuse “acidic food” with “acid forming food”. A typical example is lemon which is actually an acidic food, however it has an alkalinizing effect on the body.

Alkaline Diet food types

The various food types incorporated in the alkaline diet include alkaline forming foods such as fruits, vegetables and some nuts, legumes, seeds, and spices among others. Below we cover the various types of foods that are incorporated in the alkaline diet:

- Fruits: consuming a variety of fruits in the diet is highly suggested. These fruits include apples, cherries, berries, bananas and oranges among others.

- Vegetables: consuming a variety of vegetables in the diet is highly suggested. These vegetables include asparagus, broccoli, kale, sweet potatoes, zucchini, and cucumbers among others.

- Lentils: eat lentils as they are mainly the only legumes considered in the alkaline forming group

- Some nuts and seeds: consume nuts such as cashews, pine nuts, almonds, chestnuts, and seeds like pumpkin, sunflower, and flaxseeds as well.

- Spices: adding a variety of spices to your food is encouraged such as cayenne, cinnamon, ginger, curry powder, and black pepper.

- Green drinks: green drinks made from green vegetables are encouraged. 

- Alkaline water: alkaline water is suggested because it has a pH range of 9 to 11 and boosts alkalinity.

Alkaline Diet foods: List of alkalizing foods

The following is a list of some alkaline foods. These include Zucchini, Wheatgrass, Watercress, Tomato, Tofu , Thyme, Swiss Chard, Sweet Potato, Sunflower Seeds, Squash, Sprouts, Spinach, Soybeans, Sesame Seeds, Rhubarb, Red Beans, Radish, Quinoa, Pumpkin & Pumpkin Seeds, Pomegranate, Peppers, Peas, Parsley, Onion, Olive Oil, Okra, New Potatoes, Navy Beans, Mustard Greens, Mung Beans, Mint, Millet, Lime, Lima Beans, Lettuce, Lentils, Lemon, Leeks, Khorasan Wheat, Kelp, Kale, Herbal Teas, Green Beans, Grapefruit, Goat’s Milk, Gluten Free Breads, Ginger, Garlic, Flax Oil & Flax Seeds, Endive, Eggplant, Dandelion, Cumin, Cucumber, Collard Greens, Coconut, Cilantro, Chives, Chia, Celery, Cauliflower, Carrot, Cabbage, Buckwheat, Brussels Sprouts, Broccoli, Beetroot, Basil, Avocado & Avocado Oil, Asparagus, Arugula, Artichokes, Amaranth, Almonds & Almond Milk, Apple, Banana, Berries, Cantaloupe, Grapes, Melon, Lemon, Orange, Peach, Pear, Watermelon, Cinnamon, Curry, Ginger, Mustard, Sea Salt.

The Alkaline Diet: Recommendations to Follow

- Consume organic foods: focus on organic foods that are naturally grown, and free from pesticides and other chemicals. This is recommended because these chemicals can influence the blood pH and make it more acidic, even if you are consuming vegetables.

- Differentiate between “acid food” and “acid forming food”: it’s important to understand the difference between acidic foods and acid forming foods. For instance, while lemons are acidic foods, however when they are consumed, they promote alkalinity in the body.

The Alkaline Diet: What you should Avoid

The alkaline diet suggests limiting the consumption of acid forming foods such as:

- Fresh and processed meat: limit all meat and chicken products.

- Fish: limit fish products such as salmon, tuna, and mackerel among others.

- Dairy and eggs: limit all dairy products including cheeses, butter, yogurt, ice cream, as well as eggs.

- Avoid GMOs: GMOs are suggested to cause acidity in the body, and other negative health effects.

- Legumes: limit most legumes such as peas, beans, chickpeas, and soybeans.

- Sugar: limit sugar consumption and any products containing high amounts of sugar such as syrup.

- Coffee: avoid coffee and other caffeine products.

- Alcohol: avoid drinking alcoholic beverages.

- Avoid grains:  whole grains are an important part of the American diet, however they should be avoided because they are acid-forming foods. Limit grains such as whole wheat bread, rye brad, white flour, bagels, white rice and pasta among others.

- Processed foods: avoid processed foods, they are high in sugar and salt.

- Some nuts: limit nuts such as walnuts, peanuts, and hazelnuts.

- Sodas and sweet beverages: limit all processed and sugary drinks such as sodas and juices.

Alkaline Diet benefits

The alkaline diet is considered a diet that focuses on foods rich in antioxidants and phytochemicals, and omits products that are highly processed and produce acidic wastes.

Hence, by all means, it is a healthy diet regimen by itself, and thus can provide tremendous gains for the human body and health.

Supporter of the alkaline diet state several benefits from following a lifelong alkaline diet as it can be quite effective for weight loss. 

It can be also followed for treatment and prevention of several diseases, and provides several health benefits.

These include improving immune function, curing cancer, decreasing blood cholesterol levels and blood pressure, promoting bone health (arthritis, osteoarthritis, and osteoporosis) and muscle health, decreasing the risk of chronic diseases such as heart diseases (strokes and hypertension), diabetes, and decreasing several nutrient deficiencies.

Alkaline Diet precautions

The alkaline diet recommends removing major healthy sources of proteins that are considered acidic such as eggs, meat, fish, and walnut. These foods are major sources of omega 3 and omega 6 which should be a part of a healthy and balanced diet.

The decrease in consumption of these types of foods would lower satiety and might contribute to more hunger, brain fogginess associated with forgetfulness, mood changes, and risk of depression. This would be something to take into consideration when following an alkaline diet.

It is also important to be aware of the constant exposure to pesticides due to the increased consumption of fruits and vegetables, which majorly correlate with pesticide usage. That’s why it is always important to consume organic food as it does influence the blood pH as well. 

Another important factor to be aware of is extreme pH levels. Increased alkalinity in bodily fluids can drive the body into “alkalosis”, defined as a pH greater than 7.45. This can pose several dangerous side effects to one’s health. 

Alkaline Diet side effects

The alkaline diet is of limited side effects because it is mainly focused on fruits and vegetables.

However, due to the high concentration of fibers, which contributes to more bulk and a decrease in transit time through the digestive tract, it might be best if avoided in cases of diarrhea, gastritis (inflammation of the stomach), acid reflux, and in some periods of Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS).