There are no diseases or ailments without the presence of an acidic environment. Lack of energy, colds, inflammation, ulcers, or degeneration cannot occur without metabolic, dietary, respiratory, or environmental acids. But in the context of alkalinity, you might wonder: Can I over-alkalize myself?
Can I Over-Alkalize Myself?
Understanding Over-Alkalization
You cannot be sick and alkaline simultaneously. The body is designed to be alkaline, but its functions are acidifying. This means the body needs external support—through food, drink, exercise, thoughts, and actions—to maintain its alkaline design. However, this fundamental concept is not widely taught in medical schools, and the knowledge about “latent tissue acidosis” or its role in diseases is limited.
What is Latent Tissue Acidosis?
Latent tissue acidosis occurs when dietary or metabolic acids that couldn’t be properly eliminated build up in connective or fat tissues. The body must remove waste products via the intestines, kidneys, lungs, and skin to maintain blood alkalinity, as even a slight imbalance would be fatal.
An adult’s metabolism generates 50–100 meq of acids daily, which must be excreted to maintain pH balance. The body neutralizes these acids using sodium bicarbonate buffers, a process that requires 20 molecules of bicarbonate for every acid molecule—a 20:1 ratio that underscores the body’s need for consistent alkalinity.
The Role of Diet and Lifestyle
A poor diet and lifestyle can overwhelm the body’s natural buffering system, leading to acid accumulation and symptoms of illness. The body prioritizes blood pH balance at 7.365, even at the expense of organs and tissues.
Some misleading claims suggest that pH balance is automatically maintained regardless of diet. However, small changes in pH due to uneliminated acids can disrupt the body and result in diseases such as arthritis and osteoporosis.
The Fish Tank Metaphor
In The pH Miracle Diet, Dr. Robert O. Young explains the “fish tank metaphor”: if a fish gets sick, do you treat the fish or change the water? The obvious answer is to change the water. Similarly, the health of human cells depends on the alkaline balance of the fluids they are in. Without this, cells degenerate, transforming into bacteria, yeast, or fungi.
Why We Age and Get Sick
Aging is essentially the result of acidification or fermentation of the body due to insufficient alkalinity. Alexis Carrel’s 1908 Nobel Prize-winning research demonstrated that cells could survive indefinitely when maintained in a solution of alkaline minerals, emphasizing the critical role of alkalinity in cellular health.
Maintaining an alkaline lifestyle through diet, hydration, and other practices isn’t about over-alkalizing but providing the body with the tools it needs to combat acid build-up. Illness stems from excess acidity, not excess alkalinity. Prioritizing alkaline balance ensures long-term health and resilience.
Remember: just as the health of a fish depends on the water it swims in, your cellular health depends on the alkalinity of your internal environment.
Weight and Acidity
Life depends on the daily dose of alkalinity the body receives through alkaline foods and beverages. Exercise is also crucial in helping the body eliminate tissue acids through the pores of the skin in the form of sweat.
When the body cannot eliminate its own acidic waste products, it stores them in fat tissue.
For those who are underweight due to tissue acidosis, it’s essential to mention that this results from direct damage to the root system of the small intestine, where stem cells are generated. In a state of tissue acidosis, being underweight is more severe than being overweight. At least with excess weight, the body is protecting itself from an acidifying lifestyle and diet, and this can be reversed with an alkaline diet and lifestyle.
Urine pH
Acids stored in connective tissue and Pischinger spaces are mobilized while we sleep. These acids reach their highest concentration (base fluctuation) in bodily fluids, and therefore in urine, around two in the morning. The acid content in urine directly reflects the acid content in the fluids of Pischinger spaces.
If urine is not alkaline at two in the morning, you are in an acidic state, which makes illness or discomfort imminent. The ideal urine pH should range from 7.2 to 8.4. To maintain this pH, supplementing with alkalizing mineral salts like pHour Salts or PuripHy drops to alkalize your water is recommended.
