Chronic fatigue is becoming a way of life for many people in today's fast paced society. We blame it on many things; increased workloads, longer working hours, longer commutes and, not incidentally, on the increased stress brought about by all of these things. But did we ever consider that what we are eating may play a distinct role in our collective exhaustion?

The Effects of Acidity and Alkalinity on the Body

To understand the difference between acidity and alkalinity one must first understand what an alkali is. An alkali is the ionic salt of an alkaline earth metal or earth metal element. These salts have a pH of greater than 7.0 and easily dissolve in water On the other hand, something that is acidic is derived from an acid; a chemical mixture which has a pH of less than 7.0 and, when it's dissolved in water, it produces a compound with a high hydrogen ion activity. When we take into account the fact that everything that we eat or metabolize produces either alkaline or acidic bases into the bloodstream depending on its constituent components, as well as the fact that the human body achieves optimum performance at a pH level between 7.33 and 7.4, it makes sense to say that a diet that leans towards alkaline foods makes the most sense when we're looking to achieve optimum health.

If that is not enough, consider the fact that the human body is composed of roughly 75% water. Alkaline bases dissolve easily in, and are easily absorbed by water, unlike acidic bases which, while they break down in water, leave what is known as an "acidic residue" which can build up and eventually cause bodily functions to "slow down" (hence that tired feeling) and sometimes even to malfunction or shut down altogether. Also, if the body's pH goes too far below 7.0 (acidic) the body will find a way to counter it. It will borrow from internal alkalinity sources, usually minerals such as calcium, magnesium or potassium which it will leech from the bones. Depletion of calcium is one of the key causes of osteoporosis. Plaque is another problem of a diet high in acidic foods. Plaque can take the form of plaque on the teeth - but also plaque in the arteries, which is a primary contributor to heart attacks.

But even without the major concerns like osteoporosis or heart disease, high acid levels have been shown to encourage the growth of bacterial, viral or even fungal infections, all things that we could easily keep under control if we were to maintain the optimum pH balance. Keeping all of this in mind it an alkaline diet may sound perfectly reasonable, but there is just one major problem; the average diet of western society produces high levels of acid. It is a diet that we have grown accustomed to over the last 100 years and which takes some determination to change, but once it has been adopted has proven to yield phenomenal improvements to one's overall health.

What Constitutes an Alkaline Diet?

There are two ways to increase one's pH balance: eating more alkaline-rich foods, and decreasing acidic-based foods. The optimum solution is of course to do both until your body has maintained the optimum pH balance. But first it is important to know what your body's current pH balance is. This is easy enough to do by purchasing urine or saliva test strips at most any drug store. Remember, you are aiming for a pH balance between 7.33 and 7.4. Roughly speaking, a balance between alkaline and acidic can be maintained by eating approximately 75% alkaline-rich foods and 25% acidic foods. High alkaline foods include things like most all vegetables and fruits (though it is recommended that fruits be eaten in moderation), non-dairy and non-meat proteins (with the exception of cottage cheese, chicken breasts and eggs) and drinks such as koumbacha, herbal or green tea. Unfortunately, high acidic based foods include things like all meats, almost all grains, sugars and sweeteners, butter, cheeses and all alcoholic drinks (complete lists of high-alkaline and high acid foods can be found online).

Strangely enough, even water is not immune to the western tendency towards acidity. Tap water in particular has been shown to have a high acid content thanks to the additives that are put into the water to make it "safe" for drinking. Drinking bottled water or water that has been ionized by a water ionizer such as those made by Chanson Water have been shown to bring the pH level of water to a more alkaline level.

A Balancing Act

The good news is that while we may have subjected our bodies to years of acid abuse; abuse that is coming to light as increased infections and chronic fatigue; we can undo the damage by bringing the body's pH balance back into alignment. Optimum health is a delicate balancing act, but with practice, all of us can learn to walk the wire.