The 'pH' Dilemma

Warm Greetings!

I know this topic sounds quite chemical, but it has a crucial link to our bodily fluids. We’ve all been through certain digestive problems like a Heartburn, production of Gas and most commonly Indigestion. And what do we all say in unison? ACIDITY!

Now we clearly have been taught this and our brain automatically presents the word Acidity. So without giving it much thought, we start taking Anti-acids which are really common nowadays. As the name suggests, Anti- acid medication will reduce the acid in the stomach and we feel accomplished thinking acid was the culprit. But little do we know, such an approach is making us extremely deficient nutritionally.

Before I explain the nutrition part, let me give a brief explanation about what pH actually means.

‘p’ stands for Potenz or Concentration.

‘H’ stands for Hydrogen Ion (H⁺)

Therefore pH is the concentration of H⁺ ions in a fluid. It is given by the logarithmic equation,

pH = -log₁₀[H⁺]                       …….. (I)

pH has a scale of 0-14 with 7 as the midpoint for dividing two classes of pH:

So if the pH of any given fluid is between 0-6, it would be considered an ‘Acidic’ fluid. If the pH of any fluid ranges from 8-14, it would be considered an ‘Alkaline’ fluid. A pH of 7 is considered Neutral!

What are Acids and Bases? And why Acid gets to be on the Top? Do Acids have good networks in the pH scale?

All these important questions are answered by equation (I). An acid would have maximum concentration of Hydrogen ions (H⁺) and are capable of donating them.

A Base / Alkali has maximum concentration of Hydroxyl ions (OH^-) which are capable of accepting these donated H⁺ ions.    

SOLUTION	IONS	pH RANGE
ACID	H+	0-6
BASE	OH-	8-14

So when acids and bases are present in equilibrium, the H⁺ ions gets balanced by his brother OH^- ions and we have a Neutral fluid.

H⁺ + OH^- → H₂O
ACID + BASE → WATER

In our body, every fluid in different organs has its own pH thus belonging to either of the three categories. Every food we consume has a pH value which needs to be specific with our organelle pH. Let us consider a few examples,

FLUID	pH RANGE	TYPE
Blood	7.35-7.45	Alkaline
Stomach	1-3	Extremely Acidic
Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF) in Brain	7.5	Alkaline
Lemon Juice	2-3	Extremely Acidic
Vinegar	2	Extremely Acidic
Urine, Sweat, Adrenal Glands, Colon (Large Intestine)	0-6	Acidic
Fluid Inside and Outside of Cells, Tears, Bile	8-14	Alkaline
Water	7	Neutral

You might think what’s the big deal with pH? If we consume some acidic foods, we can push in some alkaline foods to neutralize it. No dear, it doesn’t work that way. Look at Equation [I] again,

Do you see the number 10? It is there for a reason, not just to look good. pH values are divided exponentially i.e. A pH value of 5 is 10x times more acidic than 6, but a pH value of 4 is 100x more acidic than 6 and so on.

Let us consider our Blood pH which is Alkaline in nature in a very specific range of 7.35 - 7.45. If the blood pH drops by 1 whole number, a person would go into a diabetic coma. That’s how serious the concept of pH is!

Maintaining a specific pH in a specific body fluid is of utmost importance. If we closely look at our stomach pH, it ranges from 1-3 which is extremely acidic. This strong pH is mainly due to Hydrochloric acid (HCl) that helps in closing the valve in the oesophagus to prevent regurgitation of stomach contents. Apart from this, acids also help digest protein in our stomach, helps to absorb minerals and kill any pathogenic bacteria which cannot survive in such a strong pH.

But the moment we take an Anti-acid, we deplete the stomach acids that worsen the situation. Depletion of stomach acids leads to partial digestion of food.

Thus Chest pain, Heart burn or GERD (Gastroesophageal Reflux disorder), Bloating, Belching, Burping, indigestion are all symptoms of Low stomach acids. You haven’t gained a lot of acid, you have lost it which is causing all these effects.

You do not have acidity, you have Alkalinity! I know this might come as a surprise, but I’ll help you get through it! Don’t worry!

Apart from all the refined carbohydrates that we consume (Which is Alkaline of course), Chronic stress, Vomiting, Diarrhoea, Dehydration, Anti-acids are the chief causes of low stomach acids. This increases the stomach pH towards the alkaline side. This leads to a series of problems like decreased Calcium and Potassium, Twitching, hyperventilation, Arthritis, Allergies, Bone spurs and Calcium deposits in the wrong places.

You can also create an extremely acidic condition but not in the Stomach, in other parts of the body. This can be caused either by Diabetes, Hypoglycemia, Junk foods and low vegetables. This could cause symptoms like coughing, coma, arrthymias, nausea, weakness in muscles and many more.

Thus an alkaline stomach can be corrected by consuming Apple Cider vinegar, Beets rich in Betaine hydrochloride and Lemon juice which could really build that strong pH of 1-3. Green leafy vegetables should be consumed in ample amounts as they are rich in chlorophyll – Blood of Plants. Chlorophyll helps in curing stomach ulcers.

I hope this clears most of your doubts regarding Digestive problems. Stomach acids also lose as part of the ageing process, so we really need to start building up that acid.

Fun - Fact: Stomach acids help in absorption of Proteins, vitamins and minerals, thus aiding in tightening of loose skin.