With the aging population of the United States, the incidence of so-called age-related diseases should be expected to rise. In fact the incidence of cancer, heart disease, diabetes and a host of other diseases have been steadily rising for all age groups until it has reached epidemic proportions. That is because the factors of stress, lack of physical activity, environmental pollutants and a diet high in acid-producing foods collectively create the underlying cause of most degenerative diseases: acidosis.
Proper Acid/Alkaline Balance is Fundamental
What is acidosis? It is the reduced alkalinity of our blood and tissues. Why is this so important? Our body stays alive and healthy only because all of its 100 trillion cells communicate with each other. They do this through electrical, chemical and hormonal processes. In order for these signaling mechanisms to work, the body's internal environment must be in a slightly alkaline state.
If our body becomes too acidic, it adversely affects the functioning of all its parts: heart cells, blood cells, brain cells, nerve cells, muscle cells, bone cells, even skin and hair cells. Obviously, this leaves us vulnerable to all sorts of health problems.
The acidity or alkalinity of a substance is usually expressed as a number on the "pH" scale. The pH scale goes from 1 to 14, with 1 being most acidic, 7 being neutral and 14 most alkaline, (The symbol "pH" is the abbreviation for "power of hydrogen," a measurement of the concentration of hydrogen ions). For blood, a pH level of 7.43 - just slightly alkaline - is optimal. Levels lower than 7.0 indicate an overly acidic state (acidosis) while levels above 7.5 indicate an overly alkaline state (called alkalosis).
(NaturalNews)Labels: anti-aging, health |
