The Alkaline Diet

The alkaline diet is a type of diet that claims that changing the pH in the body and making it alkaline improves health or prevents cancer.

Every organ works at a certain pH value. The stomach works in an acidic environment and the blood in a neutral one, and the body has buffer mechanisms to keep life going through small pH changes. An environment that is too acidic is turned towards alkaline, and one that is too alkaline is turned towards acid.

For this reason, when the body's pH changes significantly, life cannot continue for long.

Robert O. Young, who helped popularise the alkaline diet abroad, has been imprisoned over charges relating to endangering public health.

In conclusion, the alkaline diet has no place in modern medical literature.

Does the Alkaline Diet Change Blood pH?

No. In a healthy person, the pH of the blood is kept tightly within a range of about 7.35-7.45 by the kidneys and lungs; what we eat does not change blood pH in any meaningful way, and at most it can affect urine pH. The positive effects reported with the alkaline diet most likely come from eating more vegetables, fruit and pulses, and less processed food and salt.

Who Is the Alkaline Diet Not Suitable For?

• People with kidney disease: increasing potassium-rich foods requires a doctor's supervision.
• People with higher protein needs (pregnant women, athletes, older people): unnecessarily restricting animal proteins can lead to inadequate intake.
• People with a chronic condition who take medication: plan any change to your eating with your doctor and dietitian.

This article is for general information only; please consult your doctor and dietitian about your own situation.