Acid and Alkaline foods

[HealthGuy99]

I got this list the other day from a doctor. It's a break down of acid and alkaline foods. The so-called alkaline foods maintain your body's natural ph (7.35-7.45) while the so-called acid foods cause your body to build up acidic wastes.

I've found that I can reduce soreness after a workout and reduce the prevalance of injuries during a workout by eating more of the alkaline foods and less of the acid foods. Supposedly the ideal ratio is something like 80% alkaline foods to 20% acid foods. Here's the list of foods:

Most Alkaline (most anti-acid): Baking soda, calcium, Limes, Nectarine, Persimmon, Raspberry, Watermelon, Tangerine, Lentils, Yams, Onions, Daikons, Taro Root, Sea Vegetables, Burdock, Sweet Potato, Pumpkin seeds

More Alkaline: Spices, Cinnamon, Grapefruit, Cantaloupe, Honeydew, Citrus, Mango, Dewberry, Loganberry, Kohlrabi, Parsnip, Garlic, Kale, Parsley, Endive, Mustard Green, Ginger Root, Broccoli, Poppy seeds, molasses

Low Alkaline: Herbs (most), Lemon, Pear, Apple, Avocado, Blackberry, Cherry, Peach, Papaya, Potato, Bell Pepper, Mushroom, Califlower, Eggplant, Pumpkin, Collard Greens, Primrose Oil, Sesame Seeds, Cod Liver Oil, Almonds, Sprouts, Quail Eggs, Green tea, Mu tea, Rice Syrup, Apple Cider Vinegar

Lowest Alkaline: Orange, apricot, banana, blueberry, pineapple, raisin, currant, grape, strawberry, brussel sprout, beet, chive, okra, turnip greens, squash, lettuces, avacod oil, seeds (most), coconut oil, olive oil, linseed oil, oats, quinos, wild rice, duck eggs, ginger tea, sucanar

Lowest Acid: Curry, Guava, Dry Fruit, Figs, Dates, Persimmon Juice, Spinach, Fava Beans, Kidney Beans, String Beans, Chutney, Rhubarb, Pumpkin seed oil, grape seed oil, sunflower oil, pine nuts, canola oil, millet, kasha, triticale, amaranth, brown rice, wild duck, venison, fish, chicken eggs, cream, yogurt, kona coffee, honey, maple syrup, rice vinegar

Low Acid: Vanilla, Plum, Prune, Tomatoes, Tofu, Pinto Beans, White Beans, Navy Beans, Adzuki Beans, Lima Beans, Chard, Almond Oil, Sesame Oil, Safflower Oil, Buckwheat, Wheat, Spelt, Semolina, Teff, Goose, Turkey, Lamb, Mutton, Elk, Shellfish, cow milk, goat milk, aged cheese, soy cheese, black tea, balsamic vinegar

More Acid: Nutmeg, Cranberry, Pomegranate, green pea, peanut, snow pea, legumes (other), carrots, chick pea, pistachio seed, pecans, corn, rye, oat bran, chicken, pork/veal, mussels, squid, casein, new cheeses, coffee, saccharin

Most Acid: Pudding, Jam, Jelly, Soybean, Carob, hazelnuts, walnuts, brazil nuts, barley, pheasant, beef, lobster, processed cheese, ice cream, beer, sugar, cocoa, white vinegar

 

[Scrunger]

The whole acid/alkaline food thing is 85% hokum at best. The 'acidity' of foods is determined by burning them and testing the pH of their ash. While foods are 'burned" in the human body, it is much more complex than that. IF you look at the traditional human diet going back thousands and thousands of years, our main food source is MEAT.

 

[HealthGuy99]

The meat most people eat today is much different than the meat our long-ago ancestors ate. Grain-fed meat typically has much more Omega 6 inflammatory fat than Omega 3 anti-inflammatory fat. Grain-fed beef will typically have 8:1 or 10:1 ratios of Omega 6 to Omega 3 whereas grass-fed beef will typically have ratios of 2:1. However, cooking oil and fatty junk foods are likely bigger culprits than meat when it comes to getting way too much Omega 6. Researchers speculate that our ancestors ate a diet that contained nearly equal parts of Omega 3 and Omega 6 whereas the typical western diet today is more like 15:1 Omega6-to-Omega3. Animals that eat unnatural diets may have also changed in other ways.

In any event, balancing acid and alkaline does not mean eliminating meat. According to the theory, you would just need to balance out your meat consumption with the appropriate amount of alkaline foods. Further, it may be that some people's bodies are better at eliminating acidic wastes than others. As I understand it, Bill Pearl was a big meat eater in his younger days but switched to a lacto-ovo-vegetarian diet as he got older due to the pain he felt from eating too much meat. I think I read somewhere that he won the Mr. Universe title in 1971 on his milk, eggs, and vegetarian diet.

Don't take my word for it, though. Try it for yourself. Try eating a big steak after your next workout and see how you feel. Then, after a subsequent workout, try eating watermelon, yams, sweet potatoes or something else in the Most Alkaline category and see how you feel. Maybe you won't feel any difference, but I suspect there are some on this board who would benefit from eating more of the alkaline foods.

 

[Scrunger]

I have tried the whole acid alkaline thing in the past. It's pure BS. I do agree with you on the poor state of grain fed meat. I mean you are seriously preaching to the choir when it comes to the whole n6/n3 thing, in fact most of my studying has shown that the standard American's ratios are more often closer to 60:1 thanks to the prevalence of soybean oil.

I agree just about everyone needs more veggies in their diet, but making those choices based on the ability of the ashes in your food to change the hydrogen ion concentration in water is not the reason at all.

If you really want to eat healthy, look into Weston A. Price. He was a vegetarian Dentistwho wanted to find out what native diet were the healthiest. Being a dentist he was particularly interested in dental health, but did many many many complete physicals. He found out to his surprise that the healthiest people in the world ate (in descending order from most to least):
1) Natural grass fed red meat, especially liver. A significant portion of the meat (including liver and other organ meats) was eaten raw.
2)Fish, poultry, seafood, eggs, etc.
2)Raw fermented dairy made with whole milk or cream, but never skim milk. (It's traditionally used to fatten hogs)
3)Raw fermented vegetables (i.e. traditional raw sauerkraut, pickled beets, etc.)
4)Vegetables in general
5)Fruit
6) small amounts of fermented grains

As far as soy goes the only traditional soy products eaten regularly were fermented. This means soy foods like real soy sauce, miso, natto, and tempeh.
The only healthy cultures that ate a significant amount of grains were Asian. Asians have adapted to the constant grain consumption with larger pancreases, and even so, their rice consumption is not nearly as much as most people think.

He did find that the healthiest traditional diets were generally high in fat, with a large amount of saturated, yes saturated, fat. The unsaturated fat content was mostly omega-3 fats.

So if you look at it, most bodybuilders already eat a lot like this. Chicken, broccoli, and some oats. Pretty much a perfect meal. Kinda low in fat by Price's standards. I'm cutting on a CKD right now, and pretty much eat protein and take fish oil like its going out of style. It's been working great, and I feel great too.