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Excess acidity is a
condition that weakens all body systems. Excess acidity forces the body to
borrow minerals - including calcium, sodium, potassium and
magnesium - from vital organs, bones and teeth to buffer (neutralize)
the acid and safely remove it from the body. Acidosis leads to
serious problems with major organs such as the liver, heart or kidneys. In
this article, we will be looking into some of the reasons as to why we
should avoid acidosis. An acidic pH may result in
weight problems such as diabetes and obesity. 2.) It accelerates free-radical damage and premature
aging. 3.) It disrupts lipid and fatty acid
metabolism. What then happens when the body is
too acidic? An acidic
balance will:
Some people who have high
acidity levels tend to exhibit these symptoms such as:anxiety, diarrhea,
dilated pupils, extroverted behavior, fatigue in early morning,
headaches, hyperactivity, hyper sexuality, insomnia, nervousness, rapid
heartbeat, restless legs, shortness of breath, strong appetite, high
blood pressure, warm dry hands and feet. Most of the
time, the body becomes acidic due to a diet rich in acids,
emotional stress, toxic overload, and/or immune reactions or any
process that deprives the cells of oxygen and other nutrients. Two main factors
leading to cancer are an acidic pH and a lack of oxygen. About The
Author Michael Lam, M.D.,
M.P.H., A.B.A.A.M. is a specialist in Preventive
and Anti-Aging Medicine. He is currently the Director of Medical
Education at the
As a result, the body can suffer
severe and prolonged "corrosion" due to high acidity - a
condition that may go undetected for years.
1.) It leads to weight gain and diabetes.
When our body is too acidic, we suffer from a condition
known as Insulin Sensitivity. This forces excessive insulin to
be produced. As a result, the body is flooded with so
much insulin that it diligently converts every calorie into fat.
It is very likely that an acid
pH, from an imbalanced diet, produces a condition, which stimulates the
predetermined genetic response to starvation and famine. Thereafter, the
body will have to increasingly hoard every calorie consumed and store it
as fat.
Some people reckon that an acid pH immediately signals the
powerful genetic response to an impending famine,directly interpreting
with the all important and very sensitive Insulin-Glucagon Axis. When this
happens, it makes thebody produce more insulin than usual, and in turn,
produce more fats and store it.
On the other hand, a healthy and slightly alkaline pH will
yield normal fat burning metabolic activities, making no demands on the
body to produce extra insulin and make fats.
As such, this allows fat
to be burned and naturally lost. A healthy pH diet is also less likely to
have any yo-yo effects, or rebounding from a diet with additional weight
gain.
We should try
to maintain a healthy slightly alkaline pH so as to allow fats to be burnt normally
for energy, rather than hoarded and stored under the mistaken biochemical
belief of an impending famine.
Acidosis also disrupts the insulin
producing pancreatic beta cells.
These beta cells are
especially sensitive to pH and cannot survive if the body is too acidic.
When this occurs, beta cells will lose phase with one another. Their
cellular communication will be thwarted and the body's immune system will
start to over-respond. Stress within the cells will increase, making them
more difficult to perform adequately and survive.
Acidosis leads to partial lipid breakdown
and destructive oxidative cascades accelerating free radical damage of
cell walls and intracellular membrane structures. In this process, many
healthy cells are destroyed.
Acidosis is the first step towards
premature aging and accelerated oxidative cascades of cell wall
destruction. Signs of acidosis may include wrinkling, age spots, failing
hormonal systems, interfering with eyesight, memory, and a host of other
age-related phenomena.
Unwanted wastes not properly
eliminated from the body actually poison the cells.
Acidosis generally disrupts lipid and fatty acid,
which are involved in nerve and brain function.
This disruption causes
neurological problems such as MS, MD as well as problems with hormonal
balance within the endocrine system.
An acidic environment also causes
LDL-cholesterol to be laid down at an accelerated
rate in the
heart, inappropriately
lining and clogging up the vascular network.
In other words, an acid pH
initiates electrostatic potential, damaging arterial walls, which in turn
initiates a PDGF-dependent immune response, causing cholesterol oxidation
and the formation
of plaque with heavy
metals.
4.) It corrodes arteries, veins, and heart
tissues
All living tissues are
sensitive to their chemical environment. The muscle cells of the heart are
no different. The entire cardiovascular system is directly affected by
blood plasma pH and works as one large working "system of tubular muscles"
to carry blood and nutrients to all living tissue in the body.
The pumping of the heart
drives blood through the arteries, veins and capillary beds and helps to
regulate blood pressure and the flow of blood circulation.
The heart is normal when
the pH of blood plasma is slightly alkaline, having a pH of 7.35 to
7.41. When the heart
plasma rises to an acidic pH of more than 7.35, it gradually erodes away
the smooth muscle tissues of the inner walls of the arteries and
veins, as well as the heart itself. This
process will start to weaken the structural composition of the heart,
arterial and venous walls, causing lesions and microscopic tearing
throughout its framework.
At the same time, an acid
pH destabilizes free ionic balances within circulation, increasing the
populations of positively charges particles (cations, an ion with a
positive charge of electricity: H , Ca ) which directly interfere with the
muscle contractility (contraction and relaxation) of the heart and
arteries.
Acid
pH changes of blood are now thought to result in the
following:
A. Development of arteriosclerosis (hardening of the
arteries)
B. Aneurysm (widening and ballooning of artery walls)
C.
Arrhythmias (abnormal rhythms of the heart including tachycardia)
D.
Myocardial infarction (heart attacks)
E. Strokes (a cardiovascular
accident).
The structural
weakening of the cardiocascularity also creates irregularities of
blood
pressure, which further exacerbates the above
problems.
5.) It alters the energy metabolism and
reserve.
When your body has an acidic pH, it
will prevent efficient cellular and body metabolism. Acidosis results in
chemical ionic disturbances, interfering with cellular communications and
functions. Acidosis reduces plus calcium binding of plasma proteins,
therefore reducing the effectiveness of this intracellular signal. It
also
results in a
disease of calcium cations (positive calcium) entry through positive
calcium channels.
This
leads to a reduction of cardiac contractibility, or the ability of the
heart to pump efficiently and rhythmically.
Positive calcium and
hydrogen regulate the activities of intracellular proteins and are driven
out of the cells by the "Sodium-Potassium pump" (Na-K pump).
This pump provides a strong
incentive for sodium to be driven into cells. It also regulates the amount
of both sodium and potassium in the body stores, and uses as much as 25
percent of our caloric input daily.
Positive calcium
exchanges the plus sodium, being forced out of cells, but naturally, the
electrochemical gradient for positive calcium favors both positive
hydrogen and positive calcium entry into cells, as there is less calcium
and positive
hydrogen in
cells than in the extra-cellular fluids. In extra-cellular fluids, there
is 10 times more the amount of positive sodium.
In acidic
solutions, less plus sodium is available, therefore slowing down the
processing and induction of nutritional items going into the cells. This
increases positive hydrogen and calcium buildup within the plasma, making
it more available to electro-statically bind with LDL-Cholesterol.
As a result, with free
positive calcium populations and channels being disrupted, calcium may
become inordinately leached from the bone masses.
This causes
osteoporosis. In a
nutshell, an acidic pH drains us of energy and disallows stored energy
reserves to be used.
6.) It slows
the delivery of oxygen into the
cell.
Acidosis reduces oxygen in the blood. As all
living tissues, especially the heart and brain need oxygen to function; a
lack of it will lead to eventual death.
Having an acidic pH will
reduce the amount of oxygen that is delivered to the cells. They will
eventually die.
Diseases Associated with
Acidosis.
It is important to note that the body's biochemistry
is an important but just one of many tools to help the physician
understand the whole body..
pH in an of itself is not a diagnostic
tool and is not a medical diagnosis as a disease
entity.
1. Decrease the body's ability to
absorb minerals and other nutrients
2. Decrease energy
production in the cells
3. Decrease the body's ability to
repair damaged cells
4. Decrease the body's ability to
detoxify heavy metals
5. Enable tumor cells to thrive
6. Make
the body more susceptible to fatigue and
illness.
When this happens, the body
will try to compensate for acidic pH by using alkaline
minerals such as calcium.
As a result, calcium is removed from the bones, causing
osteoporosis.
Acidosis, which is an
extended time in the acid pH state, can result inrheumatoid
arthritis, diabetes, lupus, tuberculosis, osteoporosis, high blood
pressure and most cancers.
As such, are we able to
manipulate these two factors so as to prevent and control
cancer?
Everyone knows that cancer needs an acidic and low oxygen
environment to survive and flourish. Research has proven that terminal
cancer patients
have an acidity level of 1,000 times more than normal
healthy people. The vast majority of terminal cancer patients have
a very acidic pH.
Why is this so?
The reason is simple.
Without oxygen, glucose undergoing fermentation becomes lactic acid.
This causes the pH of the cell to drop to 7.0.
In more advance cancer
cases, the pH level falls further to 6.5.
Sometimes, the level can even fall to 6.0 and 5.7 or
lower.
The basic truth is that our bodies simply
cannot fight diseases if our pH is not properly
balanced.
Academy of Anti-Aging
Research, U.S.A. He received his Bachelor of Science degree from Oregon
State University, and his Doctor of Medicine degree from
Loma Linda University
School of Medicine, California. He also holds a Masters of Public Health
degree and is Board Certification in Anti-aging Medicine by
the
American Board of
Anti-Aging Medicine. Dr. Lam pioneered the formulation of the three
clinical phases of aging as well as the concept of diagnosis and
treatment
of
sub-clinical age related degenerative diseases to deter the aging
process. Dr. Lam has been published extensively in this field.
He is
the author of The
Five Proven Secrets to Longevity (available on-line). He also
serves as editor of the Journal of Anti-Aging
Research.