The Truth About the Alkaline Diet

What is the Alkaline Diet?

The alkaline diet is founded on the belief that the food you eat has a direct effect on the PH level of your body. The PH scale ranges from 1-14, with 1 being the most acidic, 14 being the most alkaline, and 7 being a neutral PH.

Proponents of the diet claim when we eat certain foods, we can change our body’s PH to become more alkaline, creating an environment where diseases are unable to survive.

While the rhetoric of the Alkaline Diet sounds incredible, none of its claims have been backed by science, and the legitimacy of the diet has fallen under harsh scrutiny over the past few years.

Food Ash

The idea of the PH of the food you eat being integral to one’s health dates all the way back to the 1800s. You see, it’s not the PH of the food itself, but the PH of the residue of your food once it has been digested by your stomach acid.

Much like how wood’s molecular composition changes after being burned into ash, so does the composition change once food has been digested. This “food ash” will often have a much different PH than the original food, and it is the PH of the ash that proponents of the diet believe to be most important.

What are referred to as “alkaline foods” are actually only foods that have an Alkaline ash. This is why highly acidic fruits, like lemons, are considered to be very alkaline.

The Controversy

Though not backed by science, certain advocates of the Alkaline Diet will state that all disease begins because of something called acidosis, which is caused by eating acid-forming foods and creating an acidic environment in the body.

Advocates such as Robert O’ Young, considered to be the father of the Alkaline Diet, made his living producing several books discussing the healing properties of this diet.

Young was even welcomed onto the Oprah Winfrey Show where he was able to showcase how his amazing diet plan had healed a woman, named Kim Tinkham, who was suffering from breast cancer before his treatment.

Despite the claims, Tinkham died from the disease shortly after, and Young was arrested and convicted of theft and practicing medicine without a license.

Another famous advocate for the diet was a Honduran herbalist named Dr. Sebi, who too claimed deadly illnesses like HIV and cancer could be healed through the alkaline diet and herbal treatments.

His treatments became incredibly famous, as he worked in Hollywood with world famous actors including Michael Jackson, John Travolta, and Eddie Murphy.

Dr. Sebi’s real name was Alfredo Bowman and used the title of doctor though he had never completed any formal medical training.

He was arrested several times for practicing medicine without a license and was arrested in Honduras for laundering $37,000 and was kept in a Honduran prison until he died of pneumonia only several weeks after his incarceration.

Issues with the Science

Despite the controversy, the alkaline diet has continued to grow in popularity. This newfound attention has led to more scientific studies trying to authenticate the diet’s lofty claims.

The diet claims that the body’s environment must be at an alkaline PH to help ward off disease. This idea stems from the study that had specific cancer cells thriving in an acidic environment.

Further studies have found that while tumors do not develop in an alkaline environment, this is not due to the diet of the specific patient. This is instead true because cancerous tumor cells create an acidic environment around them.

There is truth to the fact that our blood must maintain a PH between 7.3-7.4 to sustain vital functions in the body that keep us alive. However, this homeostasis is maintained through various systems in the body including the lungs and kidneys.

No evidence suggests that the PH of foods or food ash have any effect on the PH levels of the blood. This thoroughly debunks the notion that such a diet can be used as a “cure all” against disease.

Is it Actually Healthy?

The alkaline diet is entirely plant-based and encourages the restriction of refined sugars, processed foods, trans fats, and starches. Regardless of their ability to change the PH of your blood, restricting or cutting out such foods can certainly improve your overall health, but whether an entirely plant-based diet is a healthy one is a debate for another time.

The alkaline diet plan is heavily restrictive, but many advocates for the diet suggest approaching it with an 80/20 split. This means 80% of the food you eat will be approved alkaline-forming foods, while 20% will be the acid-forming foods that we all enjoy.

I’ve heard concerns that the restrictive nature of the diet could lead to nutrient deficiency, but so long as you make educated allowances for the restricted foods allotted in the 20% you should find a healthy and energizing diet. As an example picture a meal with 80% being a raw vegetable salad with 20% being a small piece of chicken and some dressing.

Acid Forming Foods

Alcohol

-Beer

-Wine

-Spirits

-Hard Liquor

Animal Proteins

-Eggs

-Chicken

-Turkey

-Pork

-Lamb

-Venison

-Beef

-Oyster

-Clams

-Scallops

-Shrimp

-Lobster

-Fish

Dairy

-Milk

-Butter

-Cheese

-Yogurt

Grains

-Wheat

-Oats

-Rice

-Flour

Nuts

-Peanuts

-Cashews

-Walnuts

-Pecans

-Brazil Nuts

Beans and Legumes

-Black Beans

-Pinto Beans

-Kidney Beans

-Red Beans

-White Beans

-Lima Beans

-Lentils

Fats & Oils

-Olive Oil (cooked)

-Coconut Oil (cooked)

-Canola Oil

-Corn Oil

-Lard

Alkaline Forming Foods

Alkaline Fruits

-Lemon

-Lime

-Apples

-Bananas

-Oranges

-Pears

-Peaches

-Blueberries

-Strawberries

-Raspberries

-Cherries

-Plums

-Kiwi

-Watermelon

-Apricot

-Mango

-Pineapple

-Dates

-Papaya

-Coconut

-Green/Black Olives

-Red/Blackcurrants

-Cucumber

-Pumpkin

Alkaline Vegetables

-Broccoli

-Kale

-Carrots

-Peppers

-Green Beans

-Radish

-Celery

-Beets

-Onions

-Cauliflower

-Cabbage

-Spinach

-Lettuce

-Chard

-Cucumber

-Brussel Sprouts

-Mushrooms

Alkaline Herbs and Spices

-Basil

-Chives

-Thyme

-Oregano

-Clove

-Borage

-Parsley

-Sage

-Fennel Seeds

-Vanilla

-Ginger

-Garlic

-Cumin

-Cinnamon

Alkaline Sprouts and Seeds

-Almonds

-Pumpkin seeds

-Sunflower seeds

-Sesame seed

-Flax seed

-Spelt

-Buckwheat

Alkaline Fats and Oils

-Avocado oil

-Flaxseed oil

-Hempseed oil

-Coconut oil (uncooked)

-Olive oil (uncooked)

Health and Balance

When following a new diet plan, it is most important to find a balance with yourself that you can maintain.

 I’m a firm believer in making an allowance for the things in life that bring us joy.

If you want to change the proportions from 80/20 to 70/30 or even 60/40, this could be an amazing diet for you if it helps you to consistently make more fruits and vegetables and less refined sugars and processed foods.

It is the reason nutrition is so complicated, is because we are all different, and the plan that works for you may not work for others.