Acid foods are harmful to our bodies if our diet contains too much of them.
Our bodies thrive in an alkaline blood pH of around 7.365 and when making the positive step to follow the alkaline diet, it is recommended that we eat a ratio of 70-80% alkaline foods and 30-20% acidic foods, in order to maintain this optimum pH.
This leaves room for some acid foods, such as pasta, seeds and grains and ‘treat’ type foods and drinks every now and then – a beer or two at the weekend, a freshly baked bread roll or a bar of chocolate etc.
However, there are some foods that should be avoided at all costs, not only because they are highly acidifying to our bodies but because our bodies simply cannot cope with such toxins and they often hang around in our system for years, potentially causing a lot of damage to health.
These 7 foods are easy to spot and avoid. If you simply make the decision to eliminate them, then it’s easy. It just requires a little bit of vigilance and looking at food labels if you’re unsure if a a particular packaged food contains it or not.
If you can’t be bothered with checking food labels then there’s a simple and preferable solution to that – don’t eat packaged foods, make your own meals and just eat whole, ripe, organic, natural foods.
Make the Decision to Avoid These Acid Foods
- Aspartame – E951 – One of the worst acid foods pushed by the food industry today, aspartame is used in many ‘sugar free’ and low calorie foods. It is a horrible substance – a known neurotoxin and carcinogen and found mostly in diet soda drinks, sugar-free gum, cakes, toothpastes. Many popular artificial sweeteners are pure aspartame. Choose agave, maple syrup, honey or even sugar over this every time. Also, if you think that by eating sugar free foods with aspartame in it will help you lose weight, think again. Aspartame is known to increase cravings for carbohydrates (i.e. sugar), so you’ll likely end up eating more than you would have if you’d just had the non-diet version of your chosen food or drink.
- Hydrogenated fat – also know as trans fats or partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. A chemically altered fat with increased shelf life. Products containing trans fats take years to decay and break down. They have the same effect in your body – hanging around in veins and arteries for years, as our bodies are not designed to digest them. Almost like eating a plastic. Highly dangerous food additive found in cakes, pastries, margarines, peanut butters, deep fried goods and a host of others. Many foods have non-hydrogenated fat alternatives – so check labels and put the hydrogenated fat foods back on the shelf, where they’ll happily stay for another 50 years if necessary!
- MSG (mono sodium glutamate) – E621 – Used as a flavor enhancer mainly in all sorts of savoury acid foods from crisps/chips to meats and fast foods and Chinese restaurant foods. MSG is known as an excitotoxin, a substance which overexcites cells to the point of damage or death. Studies show that regular consumption of MSG may result in adverse side effects which include depression, disorientation, eye damage, fatigue, headaches, and obesity. MSG messes with our hunger/satiation triggers and can often lead to over-eating and contributing to rising obesity.
- Milk – Many people are surprised to find it high on the list of acid foods but milk (especially non-organic) is an acid food to be eliminated ideally. I have written a separate full article on this topic: Is Milk Bad For You? Milk is full of hormones and pus, as well as being simply not designed for our bodies and messing up our hormonal balance. Linked to breast cancer and osteoporosis, despite the food and medical industry propaganda stating otherwise. Almond milk or hemp milk are great alternatives. Do not substitute soy milk for dairy milk, here’s why…
- Soya products – including the very common emulsifier, soya lecithin (E471). Soy kindly offers us a double health danger. Firstly, 90% of the world’s non-organic soy is now genetically modified (GM) – due to the soy bean patent and monopoly by a certain food industry giant bully – and therefore associated with all the dangers of GM foods. See the film ‘Food Inc’ for a fascinating eye opener on this subject. Secondly, soy contains high levels of phytoestrogens. Phytoestrogens are plant-based estrogens that mimic estrogen in our bodies and plays havoc with our hormones. An infant taking the recommended amount of soy formula is consuming a hormone load equivalent of 4 birth control pills a day! Furthermore, soy also contains phytates, goitrogenic and trypsin inhibitors – all of which have a very detrimental affect on thyroid, digestive and hormonal function. Soy and its derivatives are found everywhere these days – chocolate, cakes, soy milk, sauces. Be careful to avoid soya lecithin (E471) – find products with sunflower lecithin instead.
- Soda drinks – Fizzy pop drinks are devoid of any nutrients and very acidifying. Even mineral water’s not great for you, due to carbonic acid it contains. In many states (in the USA) the highway patrol carries two gallons of Coke in the truck to remove blood from the highway after a car accident – what does this tell you about how it affects the human body? The active ingredient in Coke is phosphoric acid (pH 2.8) and it will dissolve a nail in about 4 days. Phosphoric acid also leaches calcium from bones and is a major contributor to the rising increase in osteoporosis. Throw in some aspartame in diet versions of soda drinks and you’ve got a doubly deadly combo. Drink water and herbal teas to stay hydrated, not these vile chemical liquids.
- Microwaved foods – avoid heating any food in a microwave. Make no mistake, microwaves destroy the life nutrients of anything it heats and renders even fruits and vegetables as acid foods . Microwaves agitate the molecules to move faster and faster. This movement causes friction which denatures the original make-up of the substance. It results in destroyed vitamins, minerals, proteins and generates the new stuff called radiolytic compounds, things that are not found in nature. So there is a doubly bad affect: Nutrient-deficient food and dangerous chemically altered and carcinongenic substances that are not recognised by our bodies’ digestive system. It’s not called ‘nuking’ food for nothing. The Russians have banned the use of microwaves, you should take the same stance.
If you eliminate these 7 acid foods, you’ll likely feel calmer and happier, reach and maintain your optimum weight and feel more energised. For a full list of acid foods to avoid, see the comprehensive acid alkaline food list.
I challenge you to check food labels thoroughly and eliminate these 7 dangerous acid foods.
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Leave a comment below about these 7 acid foods to avoid. What acid foods have you find hard or easy to eliminate?
Hi Laura,
I am 60 years old and was diagnosed with Osteoporosis after a fall. I fractured my right hand, 10 stiches on my forehead. I was diagnosed with high Copper levels last November. I have been eating a low copper diet which is hard. I have lost weight and have been adding dairy to get in more calories. I was alkaline when I used to juice and eat lots of raw vegies and avocado and seeds and nuts. They are all high Copper. Do you have any helpful hints for being more alkaline? Thank You, Debby