Is Sodium Bicarb a good way to alkalinize the system?
My doctor tells me that most of us have systems that are too acid.
My doctor tells me that most of us have systems that are too acid.
drnovlamas
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Well, yes and no. Yes, many of us who have meat and grains in our diets tend to be acidic…and some argue that cancer tends to thrive in an acid environment--so your doctor is correct.
Sodium bicarbonate supplies bicarbonate ions…and the body’s main system for pH maintenance is the bicarbonate one, so it sounds like we’re on the right track. On the other hand, it also supplies Sodium ions, and many of us are also wanting to increase Potassium and lower the Sodium level (having to do with cardiovascular health), so we may be working at cross-purposes here, by resorting to Sodium Bicarb (baking soda). Kinda too bad, as this substance is so darn cheap!! I have seen it as inexpensive as two boxes for a dollar!!
You can add some Potassium Bitartrate (an excellent source of potassium) to the Sodium Bicarb to help balance this out, but then THIS substance is pretty acidic, so we’re fighting ourselves again. The best solution is to eat a LOT of vegetables, or do juicing. And, one may use Potassium Bicarbonate, but this substance is much harder to find, than the Sodium Bicarbonate. And, you may have to do some searching. Hope this helps. ; )
I courteously disagree. I have rountinely tested my patients for pH with strips, and some have saliva or urine which is too acid. I can also tell you that patients of mine who have had canker sores, who have taken measures to correct their pH, find that they have much less frequent outbreaks. The body is self-regulating, but sometimes is not totally up to the challenge.
JLI
The body is by nature slightly alkaline. Various regulatory mechanisms in your body work to maintain a stable slightly alkaline pH. This is necessary for the body to function properly.
So one really can't (and shouldn't wish one could) make the body more alkaline/acidic. The rumours that claim that altering the body pH will prevent/cure cancer, and that this can be achieved through certain diets or supplements are false. The changes in urinary pH are simply a result of the body's regulatory mechanisms, where excess acid/base is eliminated through the kidneys.
If you want to read further details on this myth, these sites are recommended:
http://anaximperator.wordpress.com/2010/02/02/ph-balance-and-cancer/#more-4028
http://www.quackwatch.org/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/DSH/coral2.html
http://foodconsumer.org/7777/8888/C_ancer_31/080202532008_Busting_Cancer_Myths_Acidic_Foods_and_Cancer_Risks.shtml
Tink
Your system has an operating range of few one hundredths of a percent in terms of pH - anything outside of that range and your proteins will literally start to 'cook' themselves, your cell membranes start going haywire, and very shortly your breathing, heart rate and everything else start going out the window...
Sodium bicarbonate is good in small doses for the occassional upset stomach, but don't count on it to change your pH - nature has gone out of it's way to make sure you wouldn't be able to for precisely the reason that if you were to do so, you would kill yourself.
And don't be going around signing your credentials as being a naturopath if you don't know something so basic.....deal? (bats eyelashes)
John de Witt
What system are you asking about? If it's a vague term for general acidosis, as I suspect, then your doctor's a quack, and you need to get away before you come to harm.