[EN] Acido-basic Balance of our pH

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Hello everyone!

Today, my article will be related to the balance of our pH which we must preserve at all costs to be in good health. Why is this important?

Basic notion of the pH, small reminder:

Source: click here. 

The pH makes it possible to qualify if a substance is rather acid or basic (alkaline)

 pH: Hydrogen potential. The more there are hydrogen ions in a solution, more it will be acid.

 It is measured between 0 and 14, 0 being very acid and 14 very alkaline. 

AND only a base can neutralize an acid. 

Mechanism allowing the balance of the pH 

The balance of the pH is vital, especially in blood. Our body puts all works about remain it stable. The ions able to plug this acidity are calcium, magnesium and potassium. They can be brought by the food or drawn in our reserves, for example in the bones, nails, teeth and hairs. 

Other system make it possible to eliminate the acids. 

The lungs eliminate the volatile acids from the fruits and yoghurts. This elimination is done more or less according to the pulmonary capacity of someone. To open this emunctory, it's necessary to do breath exercises (yoga, cardiac coherence, sophrology…) or quite simply to do sports (running, swimming…). The sauna and the hammam help too. On the side of plants infusion there is the plantain (cleans the lungs and helps to stop cigarette), eucalyptus, pine and fir tree of Landes. These plants have an fluidifying and expectorante acton.

The kidneys eliminate acids coming from proteins degradation (uric acid). To stimulate the kidneys carefully, drink bottled water not very mineral-bearing. For that, it's necessary that the dry residue with 180°C is about approximately 32mg/L. They are in general the water adapted to the preparation of the feeding-bottles for the babies. You can make cataplasms of green clay on the level of  dorsal vertebrae, of castor oil or with rags (often sliced thinly with onion, reduced in boiled and heated). You can make infusions containing horsetail,  meadowsweet, blackcurrant (well for cystitis) with moderation not to tire your kidneys too much. 

The liver plays a significant role in elimination and degradation of various acids (eliminates the biliary acids, degrades 50 to 70% of the lactic acid…). Any hepatic disturbance will obstruct the maintenance of acido-basic balance. To support it, after a good meal you can apply a hot-water bottle in top on the right of your belly. The liver adores heat and need it for working well. From time to time, you can make an infusion of rosemary, the evening after the meal, in addition, that can help you with sleeping well! (I speak with experience). There is also the Milk Thistle which helps to clean the liver and the intestines. Desmodium rather have a protective and repairing action for the liver (can help at the time of a chemotherapy, ask to your doctor). The lemon juice has good reputation, but carefull with the people who are sensitive to cold, does not like the acid taste too much or have an anxious temperament. I would not advise it for them. We alos have the dandelion, artichoke and horseradish. 

The intestine makes it possible to eliminate waste and acids coming from food. One needs a good transit and thus to go to saddle 1 to 3 times per day!!! Yeah yeah, it's not good to go one evry 2 days, even if it is in your practices! For that, it's necessary to drink approximately 1L500 water (and only water) per day. If you drink tea or coffee that doesn't count because this not hydrate as much as water. Also consume fibres of the fruit and vegetables (for example, it's to better eat a whole orange that to press it). And especially made sport and move! That makes it possible “to mass” your intestines and to prevent that your saddles stagnate and become dry. 

The skin eliminates the acids by sweats, therefore do not hesitate to do sports, sauna and hammam or a good hot bath (except against medical indication!) 

The limits of these systems of eliminations

Despite everything these systems of plug and elimination of the acids, the organization can quickly be found in overload, we called that the acidosis. In this case, the acids will be stored in conjunctive fabrics (support fabric), articulations and in the lubricating cells. Moreover, the boy can cause retention of water on the level of fabrics of the skin (oedema) or in blood-vessels (causing arterial hypertension) to dilute these acids. In consequence, the acidosis can cause (on the long run) pathologies of the inflammatory types: œsophagite, gastritis, cystitis, dermatitis, sciatic nerve, arthritis… It causes also a demineralization of the fabrics (bone, nails, teeth, hair…) involving for example the osteoporosis (has force to collect osseous calcium to plug, the bone is demineralized), falls of hair (often in link with the stress which exhausts our magnesium reserve, and less there is magnesium and more one is stressed…), soft and striated nails, of the dental problems as of the decays (yes industrial white sugar demineralizes us). Then our body beacome dirty and develops rather chronic pathologies like osteoarthritis, of the fibroses (abnormal increase in the quantity of fibrous fabric conjunctive in a fabric or a body), articulations which crack, renal calculi… 

  
What is causing the acidosis :

I will give you a standard list of product which increases acidity in our body. But do not worry, you will be able to always consume them but with reason. That involve avoid consuming same a food the every day: 

- Animal protein but especially: meat from chasing anmals, offal, pork-butchery, red meat, cheese and ESPECIALLY dairy produce of cow. The goat's cheeses and of ewe are tolerated well better because are smaller animals (our weight approaches more their than cow…) and charged in growth hormone are normally intended for their kids(not counting the intensive livestock are often nourished with soybean GMO and receive antibiotics regularly, and these substances are found in the milk we drink.) 

- “Purins” contained in the coffee, the tea, the chocolate, yeasts food (ex: brewers' yeast) and leguminous plants. 

- Grease saturated resulting from the animal kingdoms, or in refined and hydrogenated industrial vegetable oils.

 
- White sugar (prefer natural whole cane sugar or Rapadura, or coconut sugar. In fact natural sugars are mineralizing) 

- Sodas
- Industrial food in general, even organic! 

- Alcohol, tobacco

 
There are the acid products with the taste but who are less harmful and are more easily eliminated (acid volatile): 

- Acid fruit and fruit juices, in particular citrus fruits

 
- Tomatos and especially the tomato sauces 

- Lacto-fermented food and drink: fermented yoghurts, sauerkraut, juices lacto (like kefir)

 - Vinegar

 - White and rose wines. 

As it is often heard, everything is about balance. I know how hard it is, but if you want to avoid a maximum of these products, it's necessary to take time to cook and choose primary products (the gold rule for me is to avoid the industrial food as much as possible, already all loans and cooked). What I do to optimize my time is that 1 to 2 times per week, with my boyfriend, we prepare dishes for midday in advance stores in tupperwares and bo consumes in the 2 or 3 days max. That enables us to vary a little and avoid eating pastes or rice with tomato sauce every day, which is not really great… and the evening in all way we eat salad or soup with an egg or a steak from soybean (made house with a block of tofu) and 1 /2 evening, we eat cheese (I love Camembert cheese and the Maroilles cheese but it is cow's milk: - (… we all have our weaknesses!). To say more about this list, it should be known that your organization will supportmore or less this food according to your vital energy (innate reserve of energy). But if you deceive too much it, your vital energy will decrease over years. For citrus fruits, you can without problem consume them around 4-5pm. 

Other factors which causes the acidosis: 

- The stress because it stimulates the production of lactic acid, it decreases the oxygenation of the fabrics (hypoxia), disturbs digestion (fermentation acids), decreases the activity of the bodies emonctories and thus disturbs the elimination of the acids, starts a mineral loss in the urines (calcium, magnesium and potassium) and high magnesium consumption by the nervous system. 

- All that causes abnormal fermentations digestive like the incompatibility food (for example ground beef + pastes or potato), food intolerances, nibbling, stress… 

- Lack of oxygen because of pollution, stress, sedentariness, tobacco. 

- The less stimulated bodies émonctoires (sedentariness, stress, lack of water, medicine) 

- Some medicine, in particular anti-inflammatory ones. 

The alkalizing food
  - Raw or cooked  vegetables (except tomato, the sorrel, watercress, spinach, asparagus, the blettes and rhubarb)

 
- Cold extracted oils

 - Starchy foods: potato, chestnut, sweet potato, Jerusalem artichoke

  - The banana

 - Dried fruits (except apricot)
 

- Fresh or dried oleaginous fruits (lawyer, olive)

 - Algae +++

 - Complete Sugars (Rapadura, sugar of coconut)

 - Herb teas

 - Alkaline water

 It should be noted that the vegan food (no consumption of product resulting from an animal) is more alkalizing. I do not say that is necessary to become vegetarian or vegan, but for the people who loves  meat and eats that every day or almost, I strongly encourage you to make between one and three times per week a “vegan” day. That will put your body a little more at rest, and you will assimilate all minerals of the fruit and vegetables. 

To help with the good assimilation of vitamins and minerals, you need to do sports, to expose yourself to the sun, even in winter (UV in contact with the cholesterol of our skin allows the synthesis of the D3 vitamin, which will allow the assimilation of calcium on the level of bones) or to take food supplements of D3 vitamins. And especially you need a good intestinal flora because the porous intestines let pass in our blood more bad substances and less nutrients. 

Once again all is in balance. I invite you to be curious and to change your practices gradually without frustrate yourself! The food must remain pleasure, and it's possible to combine health and pleasure. I spent years to change my food and my hygiene of life and I know that I will never finish it. But the difference is now, at 26 years old, I feel much better in my body and my head than when I was 20 , and it's thanks to these changes. All that I wish is to age in good health and to benefit from the good moments, because everyone knows that the life is not always a long quiet river… 

That's all for today, I hope you enjoyed this article. Do not hesitate to comment , vote or ask questions, it will be my pleasure to answer it.

 
Thank you all fot taking time to read my article, sorry about my bad english, and see you soon for the next article : - D .

Célia.  

Source: Naturopathy training- Euronature school at Aix-en-provence - Vital Hygiene course 2018 

More informations: 

 - Wikipedia : Acidosis 

Sorry I couldn't find more related articles in english.