12 Frequently Asked Questions About Alkaline Foods

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It seems everyone is jumping on the alkaline food train! Since cancer and other diseases cannot live in an acidic environment, it makes sense to eat more foods and beverages that encourage a slightly more alkaline pH in the body.

This knowledge is fairly new, however, and many people have questions about alkaline foods. We are going to address perhaps the 12 most frequently asked questions so you can feel comfortable knowing how great your alkaline diet is.

Don’t forget friends that balance is the key to everything in life. Eat a wide variety of natural, whole foods and pay special attention to alkaline foods. Coffee is acidic, yes, but drinking a cup or two each morning won’t kill you. Coffee also has its own health benefits.

1. What Exactly Does “Alkaline Forming” Mean?

When we talk about alkaline-forming foods, we are saying that although a certain food might be acidic as it is (such as lemons), but once it is consumed, the body breaks down the food and it becomes alkaline. This is why it is important to become familiar with foods that might be acidic, but are actually alkaline-forming inside the body.

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2. What do Alkaline Foods do?

Eating a diet rich in alkaline foods and beverages can play a major part in bringing the body’s pH level down to a healthier state of well-bring. Alkaline foods can also help to neutralize excessive amounts of acid in the body, which can lead to lower levels of inflammation, which is the basis for almost all chronic diseases we face today. Since there have not been a great many long term studies in this area, you might hear that eating alkaline foods will or will not do certain things. All you really need to know is that all alkaline foods have their own health benefits and cutting way back on acid-forming foods will give you impressive results no matter how you look at it.

3. Can Alkaline Foods Help with Acid Reflux?

There is absolutely a connection between alkaline foods and reducing the amount of stomach acid in the body. This can prevent, or at least reduce, the symptoms of acid reflux. Alkaline water is an excellent way to reduce indigestion and stop acid reflux before it happens. If you have noticed that certain foods tend to cause reflux, you should avoid these foods. Then you should start eating more of alkaline foods that will help to keep your symptoms under control.

4. Do Alkaline Foods Taste Different?

Although there is a wide variety of alkaline-forming foods and beverages, it is impossible to tell which are alkaline-forming simply through taste alone. Most alkaline-forming foods are considered to be super foods, but even that is not enough to consider all super foods alkaline. Acidic foods don’t taste like acid. Alkaline foods don’t taste bland or soothing. You need to do some research about alkaline foods because there is simply no taste test that you can rely on.

5. Can Alkaline Foods Help You Lose Weight?

Chances are that if you need to make major changes to your diet to include more alkaline-forming foods, you are going to lose weight. This is because most acid-forming foods are processed foods, junk foods, and foods that contain tons of gluten or sugar. By removing acid-forming foods and replacing with alkaline-forming foods, you will be eating a more natural, whole food diet, which should cause you to drop some extra pounds. You will find almost all alkaline foods in most diet plans. Almost every diet in the world advocates eating leafy greens like kale and spinach, which just so happen to be alkaline-forming.

6. Can You Cook Alkaline Foods?

Although cooking alkaline-forming foods does not make them acidic, it can remove the essential vitamins and minerals through excessive heat. You don’t need to go on a raw diet, however, to get the most from alkaline-forming foods. Simply eat the foods that you enjoy raw and steam the remainder to get as many nutrients as you possibly can.

7. Can Alkaline Foods Help Gout?

Gout is caused by a buildup of uric acid in the body. By eating more alkaline-forming foods, you can help lower the level of uric acid, which should prevent gout attacks. If you have ever looked at any of the special diets for gout, they contain a great many alkaline-forming foods. Going on an alkaline diet can help avoid many of the food triggers that are known to stimulate a gout attack.

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8. Can Alkaline Foods Help with Diabetes?

Almost all alkaline-forming foods can help keep blood sugar levels under control. This is because most alkaline-forming foods do not give you the sort of glucose spikes that you get from sugar and gluten-filled foods. Most specialized diets for diabetics are filled with alkaline-forming foods, with plenty of vegetables and beans. If you would like to prevent diabetes, eating an alkaline diet would greatly reduce your risk. Ask your doctor if an alkaline diet would be right for you, and never stop taking your medication unless you speak with your doctor first.

9. Can an Alkaline Diet Help with Allergies?

Yes! On the long list of alkaline benefits is relief from most allergies including pollen, dust, and pet dander. Although how this actually works is unclear, many testimonials state that people who have turned to an alkaline diet have fewer allergic reactions. In fact, some people go so far as to say that an alkaline diet is a cure-all for just about everything. Although we wouldn’t want to go that far, there are plenty of health benefits that go along with an alkaline diet.

10. Can an Alkaline Diet Help with Acne?

Some people believe that acne is caused by an acidic environment, but others say that eating an unhealthy diet, including fast food and greasy, fried foods, is the cause of acne. Of course, fried foods are acid-forming, so these do seem to be connected. Therefore, it only makes sense that eating an alkaline diet can help to lessen breakouts. Eating an alkaline diet will give you tons of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and whole foods for truly beautiful skin.

11. Will an Alkaline Diet Prevent Cancer?

You have probably heard that eating a diet high in alkaline-forming foods can help to prevent cancer, or even reverse it if you have cancer. Cancer cannot survive in an alkaline environment. Cancer itself creates an acidic environment so that it can grow and thrive. By eating more alkaline-forming foods, you make create an environment that is inhospitable to cancer. If you have ever seen the diet hospitals give to cancer patients — although they don’t call it an alkaline diet — it’s is an exact alkaline diet. Although some people say that no matter what you eat, your body is going to maintain a natural pH level, there is one thing that no one can deny: All alkaline foods and beverages are super healthy. When you eat foods that are naturally provided to us from Mother Nature, foods that absorb energy from the sun and minerals from the ground then transfer that energy to you when you consume them, you can only get goodness from that. Eating foods that came from man-made chemicals or processing will only do you harm.

READ ALSO: Alkaline Water: Healthy or Hype?

12. Will Alkaline Foods Help Prevent or Cure Most Diseases?

Although many websites trying to sell you something will say anything to get you to buy their products, there is one thing that you cannot deny — an alkaline diet is a healthy diet. Eating a healthy, natural diet can help to prevent almost all diseases and chronic health conditions. You cannot be susceptible to illness or conditions that require an acidic environment.

References:

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

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