Hi everyone, welcome back to the blog! Today we are continuing the "lets talk diet culture" series. The diet trend that we'll be covering today is the alkaline diet. We will review what this diet is, how it is proclaimed to work, what foods are included and if the claims are true or not. Ready? let's go...
WHAT IS THE ALKALINE DIET?
The alkaline diet stands on the premise that our bodies should be at a certain pH. This diet trend stipulates that eating acid promoting foods will knock our body's pH to the more acidic side of the scale. Proponents of this diet think that when your body's pH is consistently being changed to acidic, you are susceptible to a number of diseases. (1,2)
Now, to get into scientific things, pH means potential hydrogen and is a scale that ranges from 0-7-14. This scale measures how acidic/alkaline something is. If pH is less than seven it is acidic and if more than seven it is alkaline. Seven is neutral. Our body's natural blood pH is usually between 7.35-7.45, which is a little alkaline. (1,2) Different areas like the stomach is naturally very acidic to allow for proper digestion and breakdown of proteins and other nutrients. (1)
The diet promises to help you shed the pounds and protects you from diseases like cancer and arthritis due to its "supposed ability to keep your body in an alkaline state." (2) Foods that are included in this diet are described as more alkaline such as fruits and vegetables, and is mostly plant based with inclusion of nuts, tofu etc. Things like food from animals, some grains and processed food are not allowed as part of this diet. (2)
As previously mentioned, this diet was built on the idea that eating foods that are "alkaline promoting" are better for your health as they keep your blood pH alkaline. This is misleading because food cannot change our blood pH.(2) The body has its own mechanisms for maintaining blood pH, for example through respiration. The health improvements brought on by this way of eating might be attributed to the incorporation of more whole foods (fruits and vegetables) and elimination of processed products. (2)
In summary, this way of eating might be sustainable for people who have no problem eliminating all the foods that are not apart of this diet. If this is what you want, and think you can sustain it, then go for it. The foods prescribed by this diet are nutritionally supportive to health. However, for the most part there is still a great deal of restriction which may be daunting for people who enjoy eating foods that are excluded from this diet. My thoughts? consuming a well balanced diet and listening to our bodies is an important key to sustainable living. Also, it is important to remember that your food cannot change your blood pH. So, if this is your goal for adopting this diet, you might want to reconsider.
Peace, health and blessings!
References:
1. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://health.usnews.com/best-diet/acid-alkaline-diet
2. Collins, S. (2018, February 6). Alkaline Diet Plan Review: Does It Work? Retrieved from https://www.webmd.com/diet/a-z/alkaline-diets
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