Is Excess Acid Ruining Your Health?

Leigh Erin Connealy, MD

Our bodies are designed to thrive, but that means correcting acid/alkaline imbalances, an often overlooked element in true health.

"You need to lower your body's acidity levels."

How often have you been told that by a health-care professional? Odds are, for most people the answer would be "Never." That's really a shame, because high acid levels have been linked to a long list of health issues and degenerative diseases, including everything from random aches and pains to fatigue, nausea, a poorly functioning immune system, osteoporosis, digestive disorders, including GERD, heart disease, cancer and diabetes.

If excess acidity has such a impact on our health, why does it seldom come up during health care visits? The simple answer is that doctors aren't aware of it. Acid/alkaline balance isn't a topic that's taught in traditional medical schools. Doctors have to discover it on their own, and then take the time to explore the subject. With overwhelming workloads already consuming nearly every hour in the day, few physicians have the opportunity to do that.

Fortunately, integrative medical specialists, like myself and the other doctors at my clinic, understand the importance of acidosis, the term given to excess acid, and how correcting it can benefit our patients' health.

How Acidosis Happens

Although there are no statistics on its incidence, acidosis is thought to be quite common. Since it's largely caused by an unbalanced diet that includes large amounts of processed foods, white flour and sugar – typical ingredients in the Standard American Diet (SAD) – it's clear that millions of people are at risk.

A diet full of low-nutrition, processed and fast foods allows high levels of acid to accumulate in the body. Some of this excess is eliminated by the lungs, kidneys and skin. The body's ability to neutralize the acid during the digestive process helps remove more. But after a steady diet of acid-producing food, the body's mechanisms for reducing acidity are eventually overwhelmed. As a result, cells throughout the body lose the ability to communicate. In addition, the protective membranes surrounding the cells weaken. Jobs that are normally simple undertakings for the cells, like repairing and replicating themselves, fail, resulting in faulty new cells that continue to undermine overall health.

The body recognizes something is wrong and takes the next step in protecting against high acid levels – it stores excess acid in bones, joints and tissues. In addition, alkalizing minerals, like calcium, magnesium and sodium, are removed from bones and organs and delivered to the bloodstream, in the hopes of lowering acid levels. But all these acid-lowering tricks just create new problems, including skin conditions like eczema and dermatitis, skeletal disorders like rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis, dental issues and difficulties like chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia. Even the aging process is accelerated when acid levels are high. Not surprisingly, memory and other mental functions can be impaired by chronic, excess acidity.

An Easy Test for Acidity

Our bodies work hard to maintain a balanced pH. (The term pH is simply scientific shorthand for "potential of hydrogen," a means of measuring hydrogen ions.) Ideally, the pH level of blood should be a bit on the alkaline side, at about 7.43. When pH drops below 7.0, acid is becoming a problem. On the other hand, a pH above 7.5 indicates an overly alkaline condition.

If you suspect acidosis may be undermining your own health, it's easy to determining your own pH. Simply purchase some litmus paper (available at most pharmacies as well as at perfectlyhealthy.com) and check the second urine of the day. The body's pH should be 7.43, just a bit more alkaline than water, which has a pH of 7.0. If your test shows a pH lower than 7.43, acidosis could be a problem. On the other hand, a pH higher than 7.43 means your system is too alkaline, a less common issue.

Getting in Balance Starts with Diet

Changing your diet is the easiest and most effective way to correct pH imbalances. Start by cutting back on foods that are at the top of the acidic chart. Processed foods – those made from flour and sugar, like cake, breads, packaged, sweetened cereals and pasta – are an excellent place to begin. Eliminate these low-nutrition goodies and replace them with whole grains, like brown rice, quinoa, barley and couscous.

High protein fare, including meat, eggs and beans, produces a significant amount of acid and should be avoided. The same goes for coffee and alcohol.

So what can you eat and drink if excess acid is a problem? Start with raw fruits and vegetables. Almost all fruits and veggies are helpful for decreasing acidity, with the exceptions of blueberries, cranberries and tomatoes. Although they contain citric acid, citrus fruits have the opposite effect in the body, and can help reduce acid leaves. Soybeans and foods made with soy are also recommended.

On the supplement front, consider green vegetable powder, like my Perfectlyhealthy Mega Greens

It contains an assortment of vegetables in a great tasting, no-sugar formula.

Another Perfectlyhealthy product I recommend is pH Plus, which is designed to "jump start" the process of balancing acid – alkaline conditions.

When it comes to beverages, pure, filtered water should be your first choice. If you prefer a bit of flavor, add a wedge of citrus fruit, a slice of cucumber or a melon ball. Or stock up on mineral-enhanced water, like Qure 9.5+ alkaline water, available at Center for New Medicine.

In addition, supplementing with the minerals calcium, magnesium and potassium is a good idea. Furthermore, buffered Vitamin C supplements – as opposed to non-buggered – are another good anti-acidity strategy.

Correcting high acidity doesn't take long for most of my patients, once they convert to a low-acid diet and incorporate appropriate supplements. You can check to see how you're doing after a few days by trying the litmus paper test again. Keep retesting every few days until your pH returns to a safe, balanced level. At that point, you can gradually resume regular eating habits, with occasional retests to make sure your pH remains healthy.

If giving up so many favorite foods and beverages isn't appealing, remember: Along with an improved pH, many patients report increased energy levels, as well as better blood pressure, sugar metabolism and hormone levels. Relief from symptoms of chronic health conditions is likely to occur, too. So while the first few days of a reduced acid diet may be a bit of a challenge, the end result is a happier, stronger, healthier you – and who doesn't want that?