The number that is most revealing indicator about one’s state of health and is the most important number to pay attention to if we want a life free of pain, inflammation and disease, is one’s pH factor, the number that indicates acidic versus alkaline ratio in our body.
In
a flashback to high school chemistry, remember that the pH scale goes from 0 to
14: zero is pure acid, 7 is neutral, and
14 is pure alkaline.
Each
of us came into this world with a certain alkaline pH. It's how our body was designed by our Maker
and how we are supposed to stay. Without exception, all of our organs, tissues,
bones and joints work best when blood pH is slightly alkaline (around 7.365).
Also,
our body is designed to stay in contact with the Earth. Positive electrons in
the form of free radicals can build up in our body and direct contact with the
ground balances this out as earth is naturally a negative grounding source.
If
your pH is even just a little too acidic, that's when your body can begin to
literally break down. Aches and pains begin to creep up. Tumors (including
cancer) can flourish. Diseases can rear their ugly heads. Although a number of
factors can contribute to an acid pH, (including stress, environmental toxins,
lack of exercise and smoking), far and away the number one factor is your FOOD.
Eating
acid-creating foods (especially fast food, processed food, meat, dairy, refined
carbs and hard to digest meal combinations) pulls your pH down toward the acid
range. On the other hand, when your diet contains many alkaline foods (like
fresh fruits and vegetables) and is easy for your body to break down, you
encourage a more alkaline pH.
A
snapshot of your innards shows how two examples of how your body can break down
when your system is acidic:
Your
heart pumps an unbelievable 13,000 quarts of blood a day--enough to fill a
small swimming pool! If there are toxins in your blood, that puts a huge strain
on your heart to do its job. Acid wastes in your system also rob your blood of
oxygen, which causes your heart tissue to deteriorate. And you don't want your
ticker breaking down, do you?
Your
liver serves over 300 different functions --with two of the most important
being to remove acid wastes from your blood and make alkaline enzymes for your body.
If you are like most of us who live in urbanized countries, your blood
resembles a war zone with far too many toxins floating around, and your liver
is constantly being stressed cleaning them out. If that goes on long enough, it
can completely shut down. And so will you.
So...
how do we get this magic 7.365 pH? Hopefully you've gotten the idea of how
important it is to have a slightly alkaline pH while you're still breathing and
upright.
Now
here are the steps to attaining and maintaining an optimal alkaline pH:
Step
1- Check your pH at regular intervals
You
can get a saliva test or urine test kit at most drug stores or health food
stores. The saliva test is the least accurate and urine is slightly more
accurate. The normal pH for urine is about 6.5-6.8 (it's acidic because urine
is an exit for toxins), for saliva 7.0-7.4 and for blood 7.365, which is your
target. If you're testing your pH with saliva or urine, it's important to
perform the test several times at different times of the day, since pH can be
affected by what you eat or drink.
Step 2- Drink pure water
Aim
for a liter upon waking up or at least 5-8 glasses per day. Stir in a little
fresh-squeezed lemon juice to make it more alkaline if you like. Water means
water and does not mean coffee, tea, Gatorade, soft drinks or other sweetened
drinks. But avoid drinking tap water as it can contain chlorine and/or
fluoride. Strive to drink filtered or bottled water.
Step 3- Eat more alkaline foods
Cancer
cells thrive in an acid environment. A meat-based diet is acidic and it is best
to eat fish, and a little chicken rather than beef or pork. Meat also contains
livestock antibiotics, growth hormones and parasites, which are all harmful,
especially to people with cancer.
A
diet made of 80% fresh vegetables and juice, whole grains, seeds, nuts and a
little fruits help put the body into an alkaline environment. About 20% can be
from cooked food including beans. Fresh vegetable juices provide live enzymes
that are easily absorbed and reach down to cellular levels within 15 minutes to
nourish and enhance growth of healthy cells.
To obtain live enzymes for building healthy cells, try and drink fresh
vegetable juice and eat some raw vegetables 2 or 3 times a day. Enzymes are
destroyed at temperatures of 104 degrees F (40 degrees C).
Step
4- Keep your digestion efficient
In
order to keep your digestion humming, it's vital to eat meal combinations that
are easily broken down and don't cause your stomach to over-produce acid, and
make sure you have adequate enzymes to do the job.
Without
the proper enzymes for digestion, you can suffer from gas, bloating, constipation,
waste build-up... and you'll have a more acidic pH!
So
remember--while your weight, blood pressure, cholesterol, etc. are all very important, it's vital to
keep your eye on the MOST important number--your pH. Do that and your body will
thank you many times over.
Getting
Grounded
Basically,
the theory is that our bodies, which are naturally slightly alkaline, are also meant
to come into contact with the Earth on a regular basis. Modern living enables positive
electrons in the form of free radicals to build up in our bodies and direct
contact with the negatively charged ground is needed to discharge this stored
charge in the body.
The
way we live now, our bodies and cells are bombarded by electrical energy, and
especially with the high prevalence of Electro Magnetic Fields (EMF), such as Wi-Fi
and mobile phone waves, many of us have a high amount of positive electrons
built up in our bodies.
Throughout
history, humans have spent time outdoors much more than we do in modern time
and have been in direct contact with the soil. From walking on the ground
barefoot, to gardening or tilling the soil, humans have always touched the
earth… until recently.
Now,
we live in houses, wear rubber shoes, are exposed to EMFs daily and don’t often
come into direct contact with the ground. Some even wear rubber gloves to touch
the soil.
Have
you ever noticed that you sleep better on a beach vacation after walking barefoot
in the sand or being in the ocean? The sand and ocean water are both naturally
conductive materials and both help ground the body and remove excess positive
electrons. For the same basic reason that we ground electrical outlets to avoid
the build-up of excess positive charge, our bodies need the same grounding
effect.
When
in direct contact with the Earth, your body becomes suffused with negative
charged free electrons and equalizes to the same electric energy level as the
earth.
If
you were to ask about the most impressive recent medical breakthrough, the
answer would have nothing to do with high-tech at all. It is the very Earth we
live on – back to nature, literally, the ground beneath our feet.
http://www.naturesplatform.com/earthing.html
http://www.naturesplatform.com/earthing.html
Back to basics:
Electron Balance, Slightly Alkaline Blood and Optimal Health
The
hippie wisdom in getting back in touch with our earthly roots just may have had
something to do with grounding’s health benefits. Earthing can protect our bodies against
chronic inflammation, which is, in part, caused by lack of electrons with which
to neutralize positively-charged free radicals. As with antioxidant deficiency,
electron deficiency due to insufficient contact with the earth’s
electromagnetic surface, or “disconnect syndrome,” can result in excess
oxidative damage.
Many
of earthing’s benefits, such as chronic pain relief and faster wound recovery,
may simply result from reduction of free radical activity and inflammation,
which frees up the immune system to perform other reparations. Other
antioxidant benefits such as lowered blood pressure and better circulation may
also result from slightly alkaline blood and the thinning effect of grounding.
An
acid pH is GOOD – only when you are DEAD.
This is one time when you're SUPPOSED to have an acid pH. When you're
DEAD -- your body automatically becomes acidic upon death so it can decompose
like it's supposed to. And thus becomes permanently
grounded for recycling!
Acknowlegments to Dr. Sadhir V. Shah, M.D. &
Dr. Stephen Sinatra, M.D.
