Part VA: The Chemistry of Nutrition
True or False? Meat has an alkaline pH.
The correct answer is false; meat is alkaline when tested outside of the body, but when metabolized by the body, it is acid-forming. In Parts IVA & IVB of this blog series on aging, we talked about optimizing our digestion and how that is the fourth key to balancing our pH, thus slowing down the aging process. We learned that the best diet in the world can produce acid in our systems if we are not digesting our foods properly. Click Here If you didn't get your FREE quiz to determine which digestive enzymes may be right for you in order to optimize your digestion. As we age, we produce fewer enzymes; this is why so many people have acid reflux and indigestion later in life when they never had problems before.
Although the best diet may not yield the best health if digestion is compromised, that does not negate the importance of a healthy diet. Here is the first of four dietary recommendations that I make to every client:
Drink ½ your body weight in ounces of clear liquids (water, herbal tea, broth) each day
Most of my new clients only drink the equivalent of what a 60-80 pound child should drink on a daily basis. Consider these facts: A baby is 95% water at birth. By the time we die, we are only 50% water; we dry out as we age, and we can influence the rate at which we age by augmenting our water intake. Proper hydration is the cheapest and simplest health practice. Of course, we need to be sure that the water we drink is high quality: free of toxins and pathogens. There are many schools of thought about which kind of water is best, and each school has compelling reasons for their position. The one point of agreement between all philosophies is that chlorinated and fluoridated tap water is a poor option. Chlorine and fluoride both take up receptor sites for iodine, thus compromising the thyroid. This is one reason why thyroid issues are rampant in America today. Chlorine and fluoride are both known toxins to the nervous system, so avoiding these additives through filtration is critical. Download a FREE copy of my WATER RESEARCH where I present the facts, the pros, and the cons about the various kinds of water so you can make the right decision for you and your family.
In addition to being necessary for hydration, water is a purifying agent. The body cannot cleanse itself without adequate hydration. If we allow our digestive tracts to become dehydrated, this leads to dry stools and constipation which results in autointoxication of our system and a host of other health issues. Expecting to move waste properly out of our systems without adequate hydration is like not hooking up the water supply to our dishwasher and still expecting our dishes to come out clean when we run the wash cycle. It simply will not happen!
Stay tuned for my next blog that will cover the next three dietary recommendations that I make to every client, and learn more about The Chemistry of Nutrition.
L'chaim-- To Life!