Hey guys, Dr. Axe here, doctor of natural medicine and founder of DrAxe.com. In this post I’m going to share with you the truth about alkalinity including the alkaline diet and how to naturally balance your pH. I will tell you this, that alkalinity is important, but not necessarily exactly what you think it might be. I see a lot of people out there, even a few doctors, who are recommending you follow a purely alkaline diet. The truth is you don’t want to follow a purely alkaline diet. You want a balanced diet of a lot of alkaline foods and then also some good acidic foods to balance things out.
Why a Balanced Diet is Essential
There are foods that are completely healthy that are acidic that you would think would be alkaline. For instance blueberries, the number one fruit super food on the planet, high in resveratrol, bioflavonoids, loads of antioxidants, that’s acidic. Certain foods like apple cider vinegar, that’s acidic. Sauerkraut we know to be full of probiotics, and kefir, even lemons, those are acidic. Many of them over time might have an alkaline effect on your body, but overall those are acidic. So as you can see, it’s not necessarily cut and dry of eat a bunch of alkaline foods and stay away from acidic foods.
The Importance of Nutrient Dense Foods
Here’s what’s important. Rather than just an alkaline diet, you want to follow a nutrient dense diet that’s high in alkaline foods. Here are some of the best foods. Number one is green leafy vegetables. Now green leafy vegetables, such as kale and spinach, they are loaded with something called chlorophyll which helps in detoxing and cleansing your body. It’s great for liver detoxification. Getting those in your diet, those are very, very alkaline and those are great for your body.
Incorporating Berries
Also, you want to get berries in your diet. Now berries are borderline. Some are acidic. Some are more alkaline. They are still nutrient dense and over time help get your body to the right pH. Blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, cherries, blackberries, cranberries are all fantastic. Then, of course, other fruits are great as well. Kiwis are packed with vitamin C. We know oranges are great and apples. Really all fruits and vegetables are going to fall within these categories and be very alkaline.
Surprising Alkaline Foods
Now here’s a surprise alkaline food for you — bone broth. Bone broth has been consumed for over 5,000 years we know. That’s where you take the bones and ligaments of animals. You put them in a one-pot or a Crock pot. You put in a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar, and you cook it. The amino acids and minerals come out of the bones. Now what we’ve found is minerals are very alkaline. So consuming bone broth actually helps your body alkalize.
Bone Broth and pH Balance
In fact, one of the things I’ve had my patients do, when they needed to balance their pH, is I would have them do veggie juice along with bone broth and do a liquid fast for three days and completely transform the pH of their body and their overall health. Again, bone broth is very surprising but a very alkaline super food. You can do bone broth liquid or even buy bone broth protein powder or collagen protein. Put a few tablespoons in a super foods smoothie every day. It’s fantastic for tissue repair and getting those amino acids in your diet.
Super Foods for Alkalinity
Again, when it comes to alkalinity, we know that vegetables, fruits, and bone broth are the best. Also super foods like seaweed, specifically spirulina, chlorella and ALA, those three algae are very, very alkaline. Spirulina is a super food of the future, packed with vitamins and minerals. Adding a simple scoop of a grain super food powder or an organic super grains every morning to a smoothie is fantastic. Great way to alkalize your body. With Synergreens, you will obtain a healthy balance of acidity and alkalinity.
Herbs that Alkalize
Then, of course, you want to add in some herbs. Cilantro and parsley and dill, these are very alkaline herbs. Cilantro and parsley and basil, I use those almost every single day in my cooking. Getting them fresh is the best, but dried is great as well. Getting more of those herbs in your diet as well is definitely going to help you alkalize.
Balancing Emotions for Better pH
Then if you want to alkalize as well, you’ve got to get your emotions right. It’s so important. One of the things that I recommend you do every single day is wake up and do a spiritual triathlon. Here’s what that looks like. Your first five minutes you wake up you say everything you’re grateful for. For me, I pray to God. That’s maybe what you do, or maybe you just speak it out. The first five minutes, get up and say everything you’re grateful for in your personal life, your financial life, your recreational life, your work life and any other area of your life. Say everything you’re grateful for.
Spiritual Triathlon
Then the next five minutes either read a devotion or a Bible or a personal growth book. Read something. The next five minutes either pray or meditate on those things or visualize. Do a spiritual triathlon every morning. Getting your emotions balanced and uplifting your own mood and spirit can actually help balance your pH and make your body more alkaline, versus if you wake up and just are in a bad mood and start taking care of emails and emergencies. That can actually cause your body to be more acidic and flood your body with bad hormones versus the good balanced hormones that you actually want.
