Blood pH Balance Is a Matter of Life or Death

There are certain measurements in your body which ideally should not fluctuate much. For example, your temperature should be about 98.6 degrees, but it may increase to more than 100. Likewise, your ideal weight may be 150, but it can increase to more than 200. Blood pH is another measurement in your body that has an ideal level, about 7.3 to 7.4. However, if your blood pH varies just a little bit, it can kill you.

Different areas of the body have different pH levels, which may fluctuate greatly, such as your saliva and urine, but blood pH must stay within a tight range for you to survive. This being the case, your body has several systems in place to regulate blood pH including your lungs, kidneys, and mineral reserves. Everything works together to maintain your delicate blood pH balance.

In maintaining blood pH, your body must deal with everything you consume in your diet. Most of us consume too many acid-producing foods like meats, pasta, breads, and sugars, throwing our bodies into a constant state of trying to eliminate acidic waste from the body and maintaining the all-important blood pH to its slightly alkaline, or basic, level.

One of the first ways your body will work to stabilize what you eat and blood pH is through its own internal buffers. Minerals within the body that balance acidic foods include potassium, sodium, magnesium, and calcium. If you get enough of those minerals in your diet, it helps your body regulate blood pH. If you don’t, then your body must leech these minerals from your bones, muscles, and other areas so that it can buffer the acid-producing foods you consume. Over time, you may find yourself deficient in these minerals and experience all the related symptoms.

There are some dietary choices you can make that will replenish your mineral supplies and also help your body to regulate a healthy blood pH. Eating a diet high in alkaline producing foods like vegetables, fruits, legumes, nuts, and seeds will provide a better match for your blood pH. In turn, your body won’t have to struggle with excess acid and can turn its energies to other important functions.