Your body is a complex matrix of systems. Blood, lungs and nerves are three that come to front of mind.
Your cardio-vascular system (blood, arteries, veins and heart) carries vital nutrients to and waste products from all your tissues. It’d be useless without lungs to pull oxygen from and discharge CO2 into the air.
And your lungs won’t work unless the nerves trigger the rib cage to expand and diaphragm to contract.
The Obvious
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The point is, these functions are inter-dependant biological systems. And they’re obvious, but not often thought about (unless they stop working normally that is!).
None of our major systems will operate long without the others. No food, no air, no blood, no water and you’re dead! Obvious, but that’s not what this web site or this article is about.
It’s the complex interaction of these systems where the chronic problems lie. You can exist without a diagnosed disease and still have sub optimal health, still not feel great, or still suffer in silence.
And left un-addressed, the problem grows, until eventually people accept these conditions as part of getting older or they show as disease and that becomes the focus.
Treat Causes Not Symptoms
Tired, stressed, cranky, unhappy, depressed or just plain not feeling right. You may even have slight irritations, minor discomfort in your bowel, minor skin diseases like tinea, unhealthy hair or nails. Nothing specific and nothing requiring medical intervention. Your body is just not operating 100%! Why?
It’s not age and its not the same for everyone. We’re all different, and yet there are some things for which everyone is the same. Oxygen, water, rest, sleep and good broad nutrition are basic requirements. So is maintaining consistent body temperature and the correct acid base balance.
If you’re cold, you’ll seek warmth and add clothes. And the opposite is true of course. But what do you do about an acidic body? How do you know if you even have one? Why is it important?
The Not So Obvious
Acid base balance is critical to your health and your body has many major mechanisms to adjust and maintain your body pH at an even level, aiming for the optimum of 7.4. Variation by 0.05 pH unit is normally unaccompanied by ill effects.
Different body substances vary widely, saliva is slightly acidic, stomach secretions even more so while bile and pancreatic juices are very alkaline. Urine has a minimum pH of 4.5 no matter what the acid load of the body.
The pH range is logarithmic and small changes have large effects. Movement of 1 pH unit is a ten fold increase or decrease in the concentration of H+ ions. To put that into perspective, your stomach acid is 1,000,000 more concentrated in terms of H+ ions than your plasma (the liquid portion of blood with no cells in it) pH of 7.365.
A plasma pH of 7 would be extreme acidosis and one of 7.8 is extreme alkalosis. In either case you’d be very ill. Acid or Alkaline - Which Food? for an easy to understand pH chart.
About the only time anyone really gives any consideration to acidity is if they are suffering indigestion or heart burn, and then they’re looking for symptomatic relief and jump for the antacids. This is fine for short term relief but is not an effective long term health strategy.
What Do You, Camelias and Tropical Fish Have In Common?
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Gardeners know that camelias wont flower if they are grown in soil with too much lime. Their leaves turn yellow and they fail to thrive. They need healthy acid soils to ensure they produce the biggest blooms and have the shiniest dark green leaves.
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Tropical fish also have optimal ranges of acidity (or alkalinity) in their water. People with fish tanks know about this and work hard to establish a tank and then regularly change the water to manage toxic build up and acidity levels.
What Do You Do To Maintain Your Body pH?
Chances are, nothing! You may not have even given it a thought depending on your age and illness history.
Chances are you wont have any idea what pH range your body is in right now. But you will know if you’re hot or cold, hungry or not and thirsty or not. Here’s the challenge with your body pH balance – it’s not obvious.
Chances are you wont have a clue what common foods push your body towards acidity and which can help your body maintain its pH status quo.
But the good news is you can easily find out and I’ll share these later in this article.
Why Is Having The Correct Acid Level Such An Issue?
Just like the camelias and tropical fish, other organisms have a preferred pH range as well.
The healthy bacteria vital to optimal performance of your intestinal tract need the correct range to maintain their population concentrations.
Candida, the sometimes persistent and often recurrent yet vital yeast will rapidly get out of balance with other micro-organisms and bloom in an acidic body.
There are many many different forms of bacteria, fungi, yeasts and viruses that thrive in an acidic range. The problem is not with their direct presence but the consequence of their presence.
Many of these microbes discharge waste into our body and it is these substances, many that enhance or maintain the acidic environment, that our body must deal with.
Symptoms
Microbial overgrowth can cause symptoms ranging from pain, fever, infection, fatigue, indigestion, diarrhoea, food cravings, depression, antisocial behaviour, asthma, endometriosis, thrush, receding gums, PMS and menstrual problems, mood swings, finger/toe nail bed infections, hormonal imbalances, hayfever, low blood sugar, acne, headaches, insomnia, malabsorption and chemical sensitivities to name just a few.
Simple Solutions
Step 1: Monitor your body pH. More regularly to start with as you observe how your body reposnds to different food. You can buy pH test strips from your chemist, tropical fish retailer or from our store.
Step 2: Ensure your breathing is regular and deep. Inhaling plenty of oxygen and expelling CO2 is your body’s most effective way of reducing acid load.
Step 3: Adjust your diet to include more alkaline producing and less acidic producing food. Acid or Alkaline - Which Food? is a list of foods and their effects on your pH and a handy pH reference chart.
Step 4: Supplement with Wheatgrass, Barleygrass or Chlorella – see below for some great specials on Wheatgrass for Newsletter Readers Only Sorry this offer has expired.
Till Next Week
To your Optimal Health
Dr Nick Lyttle B Sc BVSc
some very interesting angles to look at Nick. I have skimmed over and will come back to list of foods – somehow I think my diet might be in need of a make-over. You are a mine of interesting information.
ciao
I have bronchitis and asthma
Some tell me my two large tropical fish tanks in the small apt. contribute to frequent coughing and fluid build up.
Is this possible?
Hi Nan,
There is a saying – common things occur commonly – and where ever possible look at them first. I think it is unlikely providing you have a lid over your tanks like my son does. If not even then there are likely to be far more severe allergens and harmful substances potentially affecting your respiratory system than the fish.
You can check out more information here or visit http://www.nationalgeographic.com and search under toxic homes.
Add to that the pleasure you undoubtedly get from having the fish and I’d pick their impact is overall more positive than negative.