In past newsletters I have discussed the health benefits of a proper pH level in our bodies and in our water.This month I want to delve deeper into the topic of pH and the role it plays in our systemic wellbeing.
Ideally our bodies should be slightly alkaline. PH is the measurement used to identify the levels of acidity and alkalinity. A pH of seven is considered to be neutral. A value below seven indicates acidity while a value above seven represents alkalinity.
The ideal blood pH is 7.4, and our bodies will do whatever it takes to keep the blood at this level.
Our body might withdraw or deposit alkaline or acid minerals from other areas such as saliva, tissues and bone. For example, if the blood is too acidic, the body will pull alkaline buffers from the bone. If this is a chronic situation, osteoporosis may result. If the body blood pulls alkaline buffers from saliva, the saliva will becomes more acidic, increasing the likelihood of tooth decay.
I have a friend whose son was living on Tagamet since he was a teenager; and he also suffered from constipation. The father related that the son had started drinking sparkling mineral water. One particular German brand has helped his constipation to an amazing degree. Looking at the composition of that water, I noticed that it was high in calcium, magnesium and bicarbonates. Given that these are important buffers against acids, I decided to study bicarbonates in greater depth. I came upon the work of Dr. Mark Sircus (drsircus.com). Dr. Sircus has done a lot of research in the area of pH, and I recommend reading his works. In reading one of his books, I was astonished to find that sodium bicarbonate, plain old baking soda, is a miraculous, inexpensive treatment for acidic conditions. I knew that taking baths with baking soda are helpful for detoxifying, but I never realized its other applications.
It is beyond the scope of this newsletter to go into the chemistry of what occurs in the body when one ingests sodium bicarbonate, but the bottom line is that the body becomes more alkaline. Using pH paper, one can monitor the pH of one’s saliva and urine to determine the effects of one’s diet and to determine how much sodium bicarbonate is needed.
Dr. Sircus calls the use of sodium bicarbonate the poor man’s treatment for cancer. As I have written previously, cancer is a disease of low oxygen. Dr. Warburg (a Nobel Prize winner) demonstrated that he could turn any cell cancerous by lowering its oxygen level. An acidic condition is characterized by low oxygen. Interestingly, an Italian doctor, Dr. Simoncini has had fantastic results injecting sodium bicarbonate directly into cancerous tumors!
As Dr. Sircus points out, if one is using sodium bicarbonate to treat cancer, and high acidity, there are other things to take into consideration. There are certain precautions necessary, especially if one is diabetic or on a salt-restricted diet. Also, one does not want to get too alkaline. Please read his work before starting a sodium bicarbonate regimen.
Needless to say, my wife and I have started taking Arm and Hammer baking soda on a daily basis. Several nights a week we add a box of baking soda to our bathwater and we have never slept better!
What an easy, inexpensive, and elegant adjunct to my patient treatments!
© 2014, Mark A. Breiner, DDS
