What's so great about alkaline diet food? What factors make a food alkaline? How can make certain that I have enough of these foods in my diet to create an optimal pH? This article will answer these common questions about the alkaline diet.
To begin with, the name "alkaline diet food" is synonymous with "alkalizing food" and "alkaline-forming food." Innumerable people also use the term "alkaline diet food" to refer to foods that raise the body's alkalinity. Nevertheless, I like to avoid the phrase "alkaline diet food," which can be confusing.
To give you an example, all kinds of vinegar are acidic when their pH is measured in the laboratory. Most kinds of vinegar, such as white vinegar, also have an acid-producing outcome on the body. But apple cider vinegar actually raises the body's internal pH. As can see, it is an error to suppose that all acidic foods cause the body to become more acidic, or that all alkaline foods make the body more alkaline. Consequently, I like to use the term "alkaline-forming" to refer to foods that cause the body to become more alkaline.
To answer the second question, the aspect that makes a food alkaline-forming is the presence of alkaline diet minerals. Those minerals include calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium, and sodium. In spite of the fact that all those minerals are necessary for health, potassium has the largest influence on acid-alkaline balance.
It is interesting to note that our hunter-gatherer predecessors ingested more potassium than we do, owing to their heavy consumption of whole produce. In addition, they ate considerably less sodium. The average hunter-gatherer probably ate something like 700 mg of sodium per day. In contrast, the ordinary American eats four to eight times that amount. Therefore, even though sodium is an alkaline diet mineral, it would be a poor idea to attempt to increase your body's alkalinity by increasing your salt intake.
Instead, you must stress maximizing your intake of potassium-rich fruits and vegetables. This will help to alkalize your body at the same time it will reduce your risk of hypertension and water retention by improving your sodium-potassium ratio.
