Let’s go into detail on one of my favorite topics for health. The acid-alkaline balance…
What is pH?
pH is a measure of acidity (like vinegar) or alkalinity (think baking soda) from 0 to 14. Zero being the most acid and 14 is the highest level of alkalinity possible, with neutral being in the middle.
The body’s pH is much tighter and has to work hard to balance your blood at just a slightly alkaline rate of 7.36. However our stressful lifestyles and highly acid-forming diet (sugar and other sweets, dairy products, meat, wheat and white flour baked goods and pastas, coffee, tea, trans fats, and food additives found in most packaged and prepared foods) can sabotage our body’s pH balancing mechanism, leading to acidity.
To clarify, it is not the acidity of the food itself that matters, but rather the effect of the food on your body chemistry. In a laboratory setting food can test acidic or alkaline, but when metabolized by the body it has no direct impact on whether it will have an acidifying or alkalizing effect. A good example is lemon, that tests highly acidic in laboratory, but once inside your body they help alkalize it.
Microorganisms like yeast, fungi, bacteria, viruses, and others love acidic environment. They can also interfere with enzyme and coenzyme production in the body, including those essential to hormone health. If a particular coenzyme is depleted, hormones that are critical to fertility and reproduction (in both men and women) can become imbalanced. Additionally, many of the microorganisms that begin to thrive in an acidic body can feed on hormones, causing deficiencies.
All the above can be linked to reproductive concerns such as infertility, vaginal yeast or fungal overgrowth, vaginal infections, menstrual difficulties, urinary tract infections, prostatitis and impotence.
‘A study of the relative acidity or alkalinity of the cervical fluid has shown a positive correlation of pH with the ability of sperm to penetrate it. The vagina is a naturally acidic environment most of the time, and relies on alkaline cervical fluid to protect sperm as it travels through. Diet has not been specifically researched as a factor here, but if the rest of the body chemistry’s pH is increased by an alkalizing diet, it’s a fair bet that reproductive chemistry would follow suit.’
While acidity is not the cause of all fertility issues, our bodies require a certain level of pH balance for reproductive health and for general health as well. If you are concerned about your fertility, you may benefit from alkaline diet. Adding more alkalizing foods and monitoring your pH balance regularly – as I did.
My story
Before I fell pregnant, my husband and I hadn’t been using any contraception for 3.5 years. I was told that my body was too acidic by both an Ayurvedic and Homeopathic doctor. I had read about the pH diet, so I thought I would give it a try. Not only did I lose some weight but felt healthier as well. Then at the beginning of November 2010 my husband and I made a bet that he wouldn’t have any coffee until Christmas (he loves his coffee) and I wouldn’t have any sweets or refined sugar. I maintained my healthy, alkaline diet with no meat consumption. I was also studying Life Alignment at that time and lots of energy balancing had been done on my female organs. By the beginning of January 2011 we were expecting :). I contribute this to my diet, yoga and balanced energies.
So before you give up trying to have a baby naturally and consider having an IV, try to follow these simple dietary tips:
For an ideal pH balance, 70-80% of your diet should be from alkaline foods, while 20-30% can come from acidic foods. Saliva is alkaline so remember to chew your foods well!
DO
- Try switching protein sources. Replace beef, pork and chicken with vegetable protein sources, such as veggie burgers, cooked dry beans or nuts – this reduces the risk of ovulatory infertility
- Take vitamins containing folic acid (reduces the risk of spinal cord and brain defects)
- Eat wholegrain, this will add much needed B and E vitamins, and fibre
- Increase intake of fruits and vegetables. Eat at least one big bowl of salad a day. Leafy greens are great to increase alkalinity.
- Get Omega 3 from walnuts, flax seed, chia seed or fish. Omega’s benefit a babies brain and nervous system development and reduces the risk of an immature birth.
- Eat Colein containing foods like egg yolks, beef liver, cauliflower. (Colein stops harmful gene defects and is important for brain function)
- Water, water and more water! When you don’t drink enough water your cervical fluid, the stuff that helps the sperm to find the target egg becomes sluggish, the same goes for a man’s ejaculative fluids. Drink enough fluid so that your urine is light yellow in colour.
- Your Partner should get enough Vitamin C, D, zinc and folic acid as well
- Exercise daily. Find what works for you and just do it 🙂 It doesn’t have to be something complicated, walking is good too. Yoga is great if you ask me 😉
AVOID
- Watch herbal teas, avoid sassafras, ginseng, St. John’s Wort, ephedra before or while pregnant
- Avoid fish with high mercury content due to their environment, examples are; swordfish, tile fish, king mackerel and shark – basically the higher up the food chain, the higher the levels of mercury
- Cut out caffeine, it interferes with conception, cut it out if you really want to stay fertile
- Smoking, drinking alcohol and fizzy drinks increase sperm mortality
Enjoy the process and let me know how it goes! 🙂 And if you need a bit of inspiration and guidance to follow through your goals, please contact me for a free initial consultation.
If you would like to have a list of, which foods are acidic and alkaline you can download it here.
Some reference from Babyzone.com
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