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Foods That Cause Acid & Foods That Take It Away

Your body works hard to maintain a pH of 7.35 to 7.45 needed for your cells to function properly. Foods that you ingest can have an acidic or alkalizing effect on your body. A pH above 7.45 is termed alkasosis while below 7.35 is called acidosis, both which harm the body and can cause death. It is extremely important to control your pH by balancing foods that are acid-forming and alkalizing.

  1. Fruits

    • Most fruits have an alkalizing effect on the body although there are some that are acid-forming. It is important to note that fruits are most beneficial in maintaining body pH in their raw form. Sour cherries, ripe bananas, fresh coconuts, figs, fresh lemon and limes, tomatoes, avocados, and watermelons are alkalizing for the body. Mandarin oranges, pomegranates, rasberries and rose hips are fruits that are mild-to-moderately acidic.

    Vegetables

    • Almost all vegetables are alkaline and should be consumed raw. Carrots, kohirabi, potatoes, rutabaga, turnips, white radish and yams are mildly alkalizing. Fresh red beets, broccoli, red radish, and summer black radish, barley grass, celery, cucumber and kale are vegetables that are highly alkalizing to the body. Vegetables are one of the best means of addressing your body's acidic problems.

    Meats and Grains

    • Meats and almost all grains are acidic to the body. Beef, pork, sardines, tuna, and veal are highly acidic while buffalo, chicken, duck, fresh water fish, oysters and organ meats are moderately acidic. Brown rice, wheat, oats, rye bread and refined and processed breads are grains have an acidic effect on your pH. However, soybeans, lima beans, navy beans and soy nuts have fantastic alkalizing effects on the body.

    Liquids

    • The majority of liquids are very acidic on your body. Beer, coffee, liquor, fruit juice and drinks with artificial sweeteners are one of the worst sources of acid-forming foods on the market today. Dairy products such as milk or yogurt are also acidic on the body. Water and herbal or green teas are one of the few liquids that are alkaline-forming.

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