Acidity/Alkalinity in our Diet

[GotGarlic]

My gastric reflux is definitely worse when I'm stressed and breaks through my meds (usually at about 4 in the morning!)

When hard pressed by the GF and nothing else is working I resort to porridge/oatmeal - very soothing.

Ulcers are not the same as GERD. Most ulcers are caused by bacteria. Stress can worsen symptoms, but it's not the cause of the disease.

 

[cave76]

My grandmother told me that her grandparents used soot to clean their teeth. Never very sure whether to believe her!

I've never heard of that but I have heard stories of people (in the olden days) who used a twig cut at an angle (and used carefully) to clean their teeth. This was told to me by a woman who, though very modern, came from very poor parents who did that.)

I've also heard that some POWs who weren't horribly mistreated but weren't given toothbrushes used twigs to clean their teeth. Some of them came back with the healthiest gums and teeth seen!

But I'll never give up my great tasting toothpaste!

You don't need anything except a brush and floss to clean your teeth (with some fluoridated water to rinse if you're under 15.) Really.

(I won't address the issue about fluoride. Anyone can believe what they want.)

 

[GotGarlic]

I've never heard of that but I have heard stories of people (in the olden days) who used a twig cut at an angle (and used carefully) to clean their teeth. This was told to me by a woman who, though very modern, came from very poor parents who did that.)

I've also heard that some POWs who weren't horribly mistreated but weren't given toothbrushes used twigs to clean their teeth. Some of them came back with the healthiest gums and teeth seen!

But I'll never give up my great tasting toothpaste!

You don't need anything except a brush and floss to clean your teeth (with some fluoridated water to rinse if you're under 15.) Really.

(I won't address the issue about fluoride. Anyone can believe what they want.)

You don't even need a brush Once, I spent the night, unplanned, with a college friend and in the morning asked if she had an extra toothbrush. She didn't, but a washcloth worked just fine

I've heard about twigs used for that purpose, too. Although, in the "olden days," many Americans and Europeans believed that washing was the wrong thing to do.

 

[cave76]

You don't even need a brush Once, I spent the night, unplanned, with a college friend and in the morning asked if she had an extra toothbrush. She didn't, but a washcloth worked just fine

But you flossed your teeth as soon as you got home, right?
(Once a dental hygienist, always a dental hygienist!)

 

[Zereh]

Unless a person has a disease or condition that disrupts 'things' in the body these are working constantly.

Yes, they are working constantly, but SAD taxes that delicate balance.

From the same article:

When people encourage you to “alkalize your blood,” most of them mean that you should eat plenty of foods that have an alkaline-forming effect on your system. The reason for making this suggestion is that the vast majority of highly processed foods - like white flour products and white sugar - have an acid-forming effect on your system.

 

[cave76]

Yes, they are working constantly, but SAD taxes that delicate balance.

From the same article:

Do you mean Seasonal Affective Disorder?

 

[Zereh]

SAD = Standard American Diet

 

[Dawgluver]

I thought Seasonal Affective Disorder too...

Never heard of it being Standard American Diet!

 

[PrincessFiona60]

Standard American Diet is a real description, it is the over-processed and fast foods that many Americans eat on a daily basis.

 

[cave76]

SAD (Standard American Diet) taxes a person's body and pH, as postulated by Zerah, quoting another site, by those people who eat foods that are highly acidic. White sugar, white flour products were named as the culprits.

Meat (including fish and chicken), eggs and dairy, fruit, most grains are also acidic but those weren't mentioned.

Another site:
""Can Diet Change the pH Balance of the Body?

The body's pH levels may change slightly as a result of eating some foods, but will remain in the tightly held range of 7.35-7.45.[...] However, even if you eat large quantities of these foods, your blood pH will barely change and only for a short time."

Alkaline Diets and Cancer: Fact or Fiction? - Intelihealth

I'm confident that Zareh will agree with this. Perhaps she just read the wrong type of articles and not science based ones.

 

[Zereh]

The issue is more with what your body has to do to MAINTAIN that range - in essence it begins to leech minerals from your bones and organs to neutralize the acid. Even moderate levels of high acidity have a cumulative effect which open the doors for things like cardiovascular disease, chronic fatigue, obesity / diabetes, yeast / fungal overgrowth, osteoporosis, and immune deficiencies.

So while you may not be able to influence how much it changes on the overall level, you most definitely can help your body function more efficiently by eschewing white flour and sugar (including HFCS + all other "-tose" additives) and the thousands of food-like products which contain them.

pH and Bone Loss: A recent seven-year study conducted at the University of California, San Francisco, on 9,000 women showed that those who have chronic acidosis are at greater risk for bone loss than those who have normal pH levels. The scientists who carried out this experiment believe that many of the hip fractures prevalent among middle-aged women are connected to high acidity caused by a diet rich in animal foods and low in vegetables. This is because the body borrows calcium from the bones in order to balance pH. — American Journal of Clinical Nutrition

 

[cave76]

The issue is more with what your body has to do to MAINTAIN that range - in essence it begins to leech minerals from your bones and organs to neutralize the acid. Even moderate levels of high acidity have a cumulative effect which open the doors for things like cardiovascular disease, chronic fatigue, obesity / diabetes, yeast / fungal overgrowth, osteoporosis, and immune deficiencies.

So while you may not be able to influence how much it changes on the overall level, you most definitely can help your body function more efficiently by eschewing white flour and sugar (including HFCS + all other "-tose" additives) and the thousands of food-like products which contain them.

O.K.----- Thank you for your input.

 

[GotGarlic]

Quote:
pH and Bone Loss: A recent seven-year study conducted at the University of California, San Francisco, on 9,000 women showed that those who have chronic acidosis are at greater risk for bone loss than those who have normal pH levels. The scientists who carried out this experiment believe that many of the hip fractures prevalent among middle-aged women are connected to high acidity caused by a diet rich in animal foods and low in vegetables. This is because the body borrows calcium from the bones in order to balance pH. — American Journal of Clinical Nutrition

So this says to me that women with chronic acidosis, possibly caused by eating a lot of animal products and not enough vegetables, can have more hip fractures. It doesn't say anything about flour or sugar.

How common is chronic acidosis? From what I've read, it can be a complication of serious chronic disease.

 

[Addie]

And this folks is why I try to keep my mouth shut and not tell others how to live their lives. Too controversial.

 

[cave76]

And this folks is why I try to keep my mouth shut and not tell others how to live their lives. Too controversial.

You can lead a horse to water........

However....... snicker.... I'm not as wise as you are.

GG--- about acidosis-----there's been a huge meta-analysis on this subject.

" The probability that BMD was > or =5% lower in vegetarians than in omnivores (or approximately 0.3 SD) was 42% for the femoral neck and 32% for the lumbar spine."

BMD = Bone Mineral Density.

 

[PrincessFiona60]

You all know I have serious lemon addiction problems so I'm sure it won't surprise anyone to find me posting about them AGAIN.

Recently, a couple of conversations have rolled around to the health benefits of lemons. One friend told me he has taken to squeezing a half a lemon into hot water in the morning and having that instead of coffee. (GASP!) Someone else told me she rubs her teeth with lemon rind to help whiten them.

I'm now on the lookout for lemon facts and fiction and the ideas we have about them. I confess, I like a little hot lemonade myself, but I add a spoonful of honey and would NEVER replace my coffee with it.

Tell me your lemon stories please.

We are so off topic here. How about we prune the thread and setup the current discussion into a different thread. Or maybe the intense scientific discussion can be taken to PM.

 

[cave76]

We are so off topic here. How about we prune the thread and setup the current discussion into a different thread. Or maybe the intense scientific discussion can be taken to PM.

Thank you for suggesting the move. Great idea!

 

[Zereh]

And this folks is why I try to keep my mouth shut and not tell others how to live their lives. Too controversial.

You both know that it is the carbs that put the weight on and it will be the lack of them that will take the weight off. Just step up your protein and you won't want the carbs so much.

And here is another pat for you. You will find that the longer you keep your sugar intake down, the less you will miss it and the less you will be tempted to take a taste. Good work LP. Keep it up!

Once you break through that plateau, those 15 pounds will start to fall off. Just think of how much you have lost already. Try shaking your diet up and try to eat different proteins in the morning.

You DO "give advice". =)

So this says to me that women with chronic acidosis, possibly caused by eating a lot of animal products and not enough vegetables, can have more hip fractures. It doesn't say anything about flour or sugar.

I stated in my first post that sugar and white flour were known caused higher levels of acidity. If someone isn't eating fruits and vegetables -- they're eating more meat and junk food which is full of sugar and white flours (pasta, pizza and loaves of bread, cookies, chips, cereal, etc.).