Contents
The menu for the week will help you try a new type of food, and the food table will help you come up with your own menu options.
Benefits of an Alkaline Diet
An alkaline diet is also called an alkaline diet. The principle is to eat foods with an alkaline pH and avoid foods that produce acid as a by-product.
It is believed that a change in the pH level of the blood (which is normally 7,35-7,45 and constant) in the direction of oxidation adversely affects the state of health. A shift in any direction leads to acidosis or alkalosis – exceeding the permissible level of acid or alkali, which causes various pathologies and even death. Diabetes mellitus, poisoning, alcohol consumption, circulatory disorders and heart disease, starvation lead to an excess accumulation of acid – acidosis. In this state, immunity decreases, nausea occurs, the absorption of nutrients is defective, which causes beriberi – a lack of vitamins.
The inventors of the diet believe that eating alkaline foods balances overall pH and neutralizes acid, which improves overall health and reduces the risk of type 2 diabetes, osteoporosis, kidney stones and heart disease, and even cancer. Several studies and journal publications (such as the US Journal of Environmental and Public Health) claim that an alkaline diet reduces the risk of chronic disease and reduces pain.
Cons of the Alkaline Diet
Opinions on the alkaline diet vary. Some sources indicate that the diet has no scientific basis and cannot significantly affect the overall pH of the blood. This is explained by the fact that the stomach is very acidic, since there is a lot of acid in the gastric juice for digesting food. The pH of the gastric juice can fluctuate under the influence of diseases, infections and nutrition, but remains acidic. Therefore, any food that enters the stomach will have an acidic pH when it exits the intestines. Further, the acid is neutralized by special enzymes, and the pH of the food changes to alkaline, the process of digestion continues and the absorption of nutrients begins. Thus, all foods in the stomach will become acidic, and in the intestines – alkaline, regardless of their original acidity.
The homeostatic mechanisms of the body maintain the acidity of the blood in a very narrow range, because the slightest fluctuations can lead to death. With a sufficiently strong reaction to a change in nutrition, this could become dangerous for the body. Therefore, the mechanisms of maintaining the constancy of the internal environment do not allow external phenomena to excessively influence the acidity of the blood.
The diet eliminates many foods, and the body suffers from a lack of vitamins and nutrients. With an alkaline diet, malaise and fatigue are often present.
The alkaline diet involves the rejection of all foods with an acidic pH, and replacing them with alkaline ones:
| Forbidden foods (sour) | Allowed Foods (Alkaline) |
|---|---|
| Black tea, coffee, alcohol, soda, cocoa | Herbal decoctions, green tea, milk, fruit and vegetable juices |
| Cheese | Goat cheese, tofu |
| Poultry, red meat, oily white fish, red fish | Pike perch, flounder |
| White rice, wheat, wheat flour, pasta | Wild brown rice, pearl barley, germinated cereals, soy |
| Sweet: chocolate, ice cream, flour, pure sugar | Honey, molasses, jams |
| Peanuts, walnuts | Seeds, other nuts |
| Animal fats, butter | Vegetable oils |
| Eggs | Fruits: citrus fruits, figs, dried apricots, watermelon, avocados |
| Smoked products, pickles, fast food, mayonnaise sauces | Vegetables and greens: root vegetables, spinach, asparagus, green beans, cabbage, broccoli, seaweed, garlic, cucumbers, zucchini, eggplant, carrots, radishes, corn |
The diet is similar to vegetarianism, as it consists mainly of vegetables and fruits and practically excludes meat. A multivitamin is required.
Day 1
Breakfast: germinated cereals, fruit, toast with jam, tea
Lunch: soup puree of asparagus and green beans, a glass of orange juice
Dinner: stewed eggplant, a piece of cheese
Day 2
Breakfast: yogurt without additives, dried bread, a spoonful of honey
Lunch: vegetable salad, greens, boiled potatoes
Dinner: a glass of milk, soy cutlets
Day 3
Breakfast: fruit salad with yogurt, tea
Lunch: tofu cheese, tomato soup, herbs
Dinner: boiled white lean fish, corn on the cob
Day 4
Breakfast: barley porridge, a handful of dried fruits, tea
Lunch: vegetable soup, soy cutlet, greens
Dinner: boiled potatoes, asparagus, a handful of berries
Day 5
Breakfast: muesli with yogurt
Lunch: baked zucchini, celery, boiled broccoli
Dinner: spinach and goat cheese salad, grapefruit
Day 6
Breakfast: a glass of yogurt, a handful of berries, almonds
Lunch: wild brown rice, boiled pike perch
Dinner: beetroot salad
Day 7
Breakfast: fruit juice, toast with jam, a piece of goat cheese
Dinner: fish soup, vegetable salad
Dinner: baked vegetables with sesame seeds, a glass of milk
The results
The main purpose of the diet is to improve health, disease prevention, not weight loss. Fat mass may decrease in the process if a person has previously abused foods that were excluded from the alkaline diet.
It is also widely believed that an alkaline diet can reduce the risk of cancer or even treat it. This statement has some scientific basis: in the foci of the appearance of malignant tumors, the pH balance is usually disturbed. Therefore, the idea arose that reducing acidity could reduce the likelihood of tumor initiation. But studies have shown that cancer cells themselves change the initially alkaline environment to acidic, as cells progress more actively in it. Therefore, an alkaline diet cannot prevent cancer.
Dietitian Reviews
The diet was born as an experiment and subsequently gained popularity as a diet for weight loss, as huge restrictions led to weight loss. However, the alkaline diet is contrary to the principles of rational nutrition. With a normal diet, according to WHO standards, vegetable and animal proteins are divided approximately equally. On this diet, we control the pH balance and greatly change the proportions: 80% alkaline food, 20% acidic. The diet is not recommended for obesity, as well as for certain types of diseases inherent in patients with obesity: hypothyroidism, dysfunction of the pituitary gland, non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. It can be tried by people with a weight close to normal as an experimental nutrition. You should consult a specialist to prescribe this diet, – believes Dmitry Bobunov.