Hey everyone!

Each fortnight we’re putting the best alkaline diet questions we receive from you to our Alkaline Diet Expert, Dr Young trained blood analyst and highly qualified nutritionist – Gareth Edwards.

Gareth is right at the very top of his field, so these answers are absolutely the best you’ll find from arguably Britain’s most qualified expert in this area!

Q&A With Gareth Edwards

Question One: Vegetarianism & Acid Reflux

Hi Gareth, I have been a veggie for many years and have always eaten a balanced healthy diet. For the past 6 months I have suffered badly with acid reflux, reading your Q/A re sinus, this answers one of my queries too as this is also a problem. I started on an alkaline diet hoping that it would eliminate the excess acid produced but have had no improvement and am now taking medication, which doesn’t seem to be working either, please can you help me, it is so debilitating and miserable. Maggie

Hi Maggie, my sympathies are with you. I know from past experience how uncomfortable acid reflux can be.

My approach would be three-fold:

1. Maintain or dramatically increase of low sugar green plant foods. These should help reduce your desire for the more acidifying components of a Vegetarian diet such as grains, cooked beans and sugars. This should also reduce the need for bicarbonate production in the stomach which in turn should reduce the production of hydrochloric acid. Drinking powdered greens in (importantly) alkaline water is one way to achieve this. Making green vegetable juices (with added lemon juice for flavour) is another. Adding cabbage to the juices (along with other dark green leafy vegetables) can be helful for digestive upsets.
2. Start using the pHour salts product available from Energise for Life. This should help “neutralise” acid in your stomach. You can take one scoop up to three times a day so long as you do not experience diarrhea. Reducing or removing the medication should be possible and it is not desirable to take high quantities of bicarbonate (pHour Salts) with the medication. If the medication is on prescription, advise your physician that you are trying alternative strategies.
3. Do everything you can to eliminate acid from your body. Hydrate with alkaline water (2-3 litres a day) and add unrefined salt to your food. Take regular aerobic exercise, walking for a minimum of 20 minutes per day (ideally in sunlight – outdoors) is a suitable start. Ensure that you have regular bowel (at least once per day) movements. Greens and the pHour salts should ensure this.

Question Two: Genetic Cystinuria & Kidney Health

I have genetic cystinuria as does one of my five siblings. Can you tell me please if an alkaline diet would reduce the risk of cystine stones and grit forming? I have already lost most of my right kidney from this condition and therefore would like to look after what I have left.

I’m not an expert in genetic cystinuria, but I can’t imagine a situation where increasing your intake of fresh and raw vegetables and the juices of low sugar vegetables could cause harm.

My hunch is that the calcification of the cystine stones is caused as much by calcium being used by the body to buffer acids (from diet, hydration and metabolism) as it is from genetic challenges. My understanding of your condition is that it is the calcification of the cystine can contribute to damage as much as the formation of renal calculi from cystine alone.

Two conventional recommended “treatments” for cystinuria are hydration (4 litres of water per day) and an alkaline hydration and dietary programme. On the Doctor’s website that I looked at sodium bicarbonate was suggested. These therapeutic interventions are considered likely to be effective in preventing cystine stones from forming.

I think that further potential benefits worthy of consideration in an alkaline dietary and hydration programme are the facts that cystine is often produced as anti-oxidant by the body. The alkaline diet and hydration programme should promote reduction (the opposite of oxidation) reactions in the body and potentially reduce the need for cystine synthesis. Additionally cystine is produced to de-toxify alcohol, so limited, or ideally, no alcohol consumption would be recommended.

A final factor to consider is that high (or even moderate) animal protein intake is pretty much universally accepted to be a potential cause of increased kidney load and therefore potentially damage. Vegetarian or Vegan alkaline sources of protein such as sprouted beans, seeds and pulses are considered preferable for renal (kidney) health.

I would recommend that you consider consulting with a physician who is familiar with using alkaline diets therapeutically to discuss your situation and review all the factors involved.

Question Three: Sudden Weight Gain & Alkalising

My husband and myself have been eating more alkalising for the past two years. My husband has lost about 40 lbs. and I lost about 10 lbs. In the past few months we both have gained a few pounds and can’t understand it. We can’t seem to get lose this weight. Any suggestions? Does stress play a part in this? Thank you.

It’s a little bit tricky to know without a bit more information. Stress certainly could be part of the issue. Adrenal hormones (or messengers) released into the blood stream can have an acidifying effect on your body, which can in turn lead to weight gain. Additionally stressful situations can lead many of us to crave foods which trigger the release of feel good chemicals. Carbohydrates can have this effect and contribute to weight gain, particularly if they are refined (white) or a large quantity of tinned or cooked beans or pulses are consumed.

Sticking to the basic principles of hydration with alkaline water, eating a high percentage of fresh and mainly raw vegetables (mainly green) and having plenty of sprouted beans and seeds should help you to maintain your desired body weight. You need to be defecating regularly too. pHour salts and green juices can help to keep you regular. Regular enjoyable exercise, sunlight and fresh air are all important too.

It could be that you’ve hit a “wall” where you need to increase the alkalinity in your regime to keep the pounds off, but if the situation persists I’d recommend consulting a pH aware physician who can look at all the factors in your lives in more detail.

Question Four: Alkaline On A Tight Budget

Hi Gareth, I’m unemployed and so my monthly budget to spend is severely hampered right now. I have the pHresh jug so I’m okay for water. What would you recommend that I spend my money on in regards to supplements? Bear in mind I have a budget of around £20 a month to spend on health and the alkaline diet isn’t cheap. Also I find I have to buy more junk at the supermarket because it’s cheaper to eat than healthy fresh foods. Any advice? Thanks, Gavin

OK Gavin, in a curious way your current situation is an opportunity to get creative. I’d actually start with the food issue rather than the supplements. Unfortunately supplements won’t really make up for eating junk.

If you may have a bit of time find a farmer’s market or even buy your veggies direct from a farmer. That should make them cheaper and probably even fresher. If you need to cycle to get them, that’s a health (if not time!) bonus. The other thing you can do is start growing them or find someone who has an allotment and do a bit of an exchange for cultivation work. If you live in the city, growing your own might seem tricky, but you can get a long way with herbs in pots and sprouting beans and seeds. Sprouts are highly nutritious and packed with energy.

A Vegetarian diet should be cheaper than an animal based one and because the food (as fresh as possible) should give you more energy, you should find that you can eat less of it. I often now have two meals a day compared with previously three or four. Make sure that as much as possible is green.

If you can eat well and have enough water the two most important supplements are unrefined salt and some hemp oil to add to fresh raw food. If you have any budget left then a tub of pHour salts, a tub of Mega Greens and a bottle of puripHy could be added. Have a small scoop of pHour salts in water in the morning. During the day mix a tea spoon of Mega Greens and two drops of puripHy with 500-800 ml of water and keep yourself hydrated. The puripHy is highly alkalising and should last a long time at 5 drops per litre.

Disclaimer: These answers are not intended to diagnose and do not replace the advice of a qualified physician.

If you have a question for Gareth leave it in the comments below!

About Ross Bridgeford

Ross is known as THE Alkaline Diet Expert...especially when it comes to implementation and making the alkaline diet REAL in your life. He has been living, learning, teaching, coaching and loving the alkaline lifestyle since 2004 and has written over 600 articles, alkaline recipes, videos and guides on how to live alkaline and stay alkaline for life. Ross loves life in Brisbane, Australia (although is a proud Englishman) and is healthily-obsessed with nutrition, fitness and Tottenham Hotspur F.C.

Mail | Web | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | YouTube

From Energise Alkaline Diet & Natural Health Blog - health news, alkaline diet resources & tips to make you happy! do something nice today...

Hey everyone!

Each fortnight we’re putting the best alkaline diet questions we receive from you to our Alkaline Diet Expert, Dr Young trained blood analyst and highly qualified nutritionist – Gareth Edwards.

Gareth is right at the very top of his field, so these answers are absolutely the best you’ll find from arguably Britain’s most qualified expert in this area!

Q&A With Gareth Edwards

Question One: Alkalinity/Acidity of Vegetables

Dr Young writes that tomatoes when cooked change from alkaline to slightly acidic, does this happen to other veg? onions, garlic and all the rest?

Raw food generally will be more alkalising to body fluids and tissue. The main reason for this is that the bio-photon energy contained by living plants that makes them more alkalising is diminished by cooking. The glaecemic index (how quickly sugar enters the blood) will increase too and levels of some health promoting nutrients (like vitamin C) will also be reduced by cooking.

Cooking vegetables and roots, does not however mean that they become as acidifying as some of the major “acidifiers” such as vinegar, mayonnaise, mushrooms, fizzy drinks and animal protein.

Question Two: pH Levels & Liquid Intake

I had a quick question about the liquids that we intake and the pH before entering the body vs after. If I use a pH strip and test the water I’m drinking with alkalizing drops, green drink and regular tap water – should there be a noticeable difference in the pH of these liquids before they enter my system? I have tested all three and I have noticed very little difference between them. Before I disclose which greens drink I am using and which water drops I just wanted to know if the pH difference occurs in the system once the body processes these liquids or if it is actually supposed to be recognizable before entering my system?

What a great question and great that you are taking your health this seriously. There should be a difference in the pH of the water that you drink with and without the pH drops. They should raise the pH by a whole number, at least. Adding the greens alone (without the pH drops) is unlikely to raise the pH measurably. Because they are dried (with, in some cases, a micro-electronic charge re-attached to them) they are likely to be pH neutral.

There are some potential challenges around measuring changes in pH. While the pH strips or pH paper can act as a useful guide to urinary and saliva pH, I wouldn’t guarantee their accuracy 100%. Particularly if you are using the narrow band pH strips, the changes can actually take the reading outside the range. If you really want to be sure that your readings for any measurement are completely correct then it would be worth investing in a pH meter. You can order one here: Click here!

I have readings from a client who tested the pH of tap water using one of these meters. She tested the effects of Reverse Osmosis, an alkalising jug and Young pHorever puripHy drops. The jug and the puripHy clearly raised pH while RO did not and in one of the tests, significantly lowered it.

Question Three: Restricted Potassium/Salt Diet & Alkaline Supplements

I want to alkalise my water with ph drops but am on a restricted salt and potassium diet for Meniere’s (disease) – can you advise as to which product is the best for me please?

The conventional way to “treat” Meniere’s disease (ringing in the ears, partial deafness and vertigo) is to try to reduce the amount of fluid retention in the head or aural canal by reducing sodium intake and in some cases, by giving diuretics. In the literature that I have read, I have not found any reference to reducing potassium intake.

The reality is that all pH “boosting” drops (that I am aware of) do use sodium or potassium salts in order to achieve increases in pH. You could try using the formulas that have higher levels of potassium than sodium such as Perfectly Healthy’s “pH plus” or Young pHorever’s puripHy, but these both still contain potassium.

I think that my general advice to you, would be to look in a wholistic way at why the fluids in your aural canals may not be draining or may be thickened, rather than trying to “force” the fluid out.

An alkalising diet, fresh air and sunlight are the foundational steps that I would recommend to anyone looking to improve their health. That may need to be followed with detoxification, at a deeper level to promote the free flowing and draining of fluids from the aural canals.

I add the following quote from the dizziness-and-balance.com website, written by Timothy C. Hain, MD:

“Note that it is not the overall level of sodium that is important, but whether or not it fluctuates. It is not necessary or wise to lower your salt intake to amounts barely able to sustain life. We do not encourage use of 1 gram sodium diets. Rather the goal is to keep sodium levels from fluctuation. A 2 gram diet is usually possible.”

Acupuncture can be used to help ear draining and general health too.

Question Four: pHour Salts & Alkalosis

On taking the pHour salts our urine readings went to over 8/9 and stayed there overnight and half the next day? I am a bit nervous about taking it again as I don’t want to become too alkaline?

Thanks for this question. While some practitioners believe that maintaining a urinary pH around seven is healthy, I am in agreement with Dr. Young’s view that a healthy urinary pH is consistently maintained in the 8/9 readings that you achieved.

The fundamental underlying principal of human (and all animal physiology) is that every active, waking minute of every day our body is producing acid through metabolic reactions. These acids are buffered (neutralised) in our bodies and large amount of that buffering takes place in our kidneys. This is where urine is (made). So if you are producing alkaline urine after ingesting pHour salts, that means that this important organ of detoxification and elimination is maintaining it’s alkaline “design” and therefore staying healthy.

If you are eating a highly alkaline diet, free from animal protein and high in green plant foods, their juices and sprouted seeds and beans, with healthy fats and un-processed salts, you may not need to add pHour salts to your regime. Do however remember, that you should be able to support a urinary pH of 8 or 9 quite comfortably and Dr. Young actually recommends that that is where we should all be, in order to facilitate the elimination of metabolic (produced in the body) and ingested (eaten or drunk) acids.

If, in the highly unlikely event that, you did start to experience any kind of urinary discomfort, you should reduce the dose.

Disclaimer: These answers are not intended to diagnose and do not replace the advice of a qualified physician.

If you have a question for Gareth leave it in the comments below!

About Ross Bridgeford

Ross is known as THE Alkaline Diet Expert...especially when it comes to implementation and making the alkaline diet REAL in your life. He has been living, learning, teaching, coaching and loving the alkaline lifestyle since 2004 and has written over 600 articles, alkaline recipes, videos and guides on how to live alkaline and stay alkaline for life. Ross loves life in Brisbane, Australia (although is a proud Englishman) and is healthily-obsessed with nutrition, fitness and Tottenham Hotspur F.C.

Mail | Web | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | YouTube

From Energise Alkaline Diet & Natural Health Blog - health news, alkaline diet resources & tips to make you happy! do something nice today...

This week Gareth Edwards, one of the UK’s best qualified nutritionists and alkaline diet experts, writes about the world of alkaline smoothies and explains why they do not only taste absolutely delicious but are also one of the most nutritious and alkalising foods you can feed your body with.

As they are also very easy to make, there are no excuses not to start juicing your favourite alkaline smoothie straight away!

Alkaline Smoothies: Why They Are Awesome by Gareth Edwards

Can man (or woman!) live on green smoothies alone? Well I have to say that for most of the month of January I’ve been giving it a go. And the answer ….. I’m still here and feeling good.

The great thing about an alkaline smoothy is that it can be both delicious and nutritious.

If you cleanse your body by drinking lots of green vegetable juice and water with powdered vegetables and mineral pH drops added, you can end up ….. hungry! By adding just about everything except the kitchen sink(!) you can make a therapeutic and delicious meal in a glass. The difference between this and something that you might mix up from a packet or a tub though, is that it will be packed with fresh, vibrant, alkalising, living food.

There are two ways of making an alkalising smoothy and which option you go for will be a little bit dependant on the time you have available and maybe your budget. So without further ado let’s get started on how (and why!) I make my smoothies the way I do.

You’ll find an ingredients list here. Do remember that this is a recipe (suggestion) not a prescription. So if you are going to start blending breakfast (or lunch or supper), then have fun experimenting with different alkalising foods.

So, when I’m doing the “deluxe” version I actually start by making a green juice. Not to drink separately, but to provide the fluid for the smoothy. Juicing liberates nutrients (vitamins, minerals and other phyto-nutrients) in a way that will make them more available for absorption than blending will. So if you want to turbo-charge your smoothy, you are going to need to wash up two bits of kit. I’ve got an Oscar Vital Max jucer and that’s pretty straightforward.

I put celery and cucumber into the juice because they give lots of fluid and hen I’ll add cabbage and a dark green leafy vegetables like chard, kale or spinach. Cabbage juice is great for intestinal healing and health and the dark greens are packed with blood building chlorophyll, vitamin C, Calcium, Magnesium and loads more good stuff. I’ll squeeze half an alkalising lemon into it to add a delicious citrus tang.

I add this juice to “food” in the blender. I’m keen to get healthy fats in there, because they will give calories and fat soluble vitamins and essential fatty acids. On top of that our bodies use fat to buffer (neutralise) acids. So in goes almonds (soaked overnight for easier absorption – if you’re keen) olive oil, hemp oil (full of omega 3 and 6 fats) and half an avocado (vitamin E, potassium, omega 3).

I then chop up and add a small lettuce, some broccoli florets and some sprouted sunflower seeds, mung beans or lentils. Like any good meal (or soup) season with crystal or sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

I run the blender in short bursts, rather than a constant long blast. Chopping the ingredients at high speed and increasing heats can lead to oxidation of your lovely fresh plant ingredients.

Three years ago, the next thing that would happen would be that I would pour the (delicious) mixture down my throat at high speed. Don’t! You’ve created a meal and you need to eat it. Juices are easily digested because the plant cell walls are all broken apart. Although a lot of the chewing work is done with a smoothy, you still need to let the digestive juices of the mouth and stomach act on the delicious mixture. So take a teaspoon and chat to your family while consuming it. If that’s out of the question, then have some and put the rest in a thermos with one or two ice cubes and take it to work to finish it off.

Variations:

If the washing up time of cleaning both the blender and the juicer makes you want to have Weetabix or a cup of coffee instead …. don’t! You can make a smoothy by putting the cucumbers (and the cabbage) straight into the blender and adding some (ionised or filtered) water, green powder and pH drops. Add the water slowly or it’ll be too liquid.

If you find the mixture too “green” to start with, then you could put ½ an apple or ½ a carrot in the juice, but give it a go without first. The lemon juice and avocado really do add flavour.

How Much? How Often?

I really have had fairly sustained periods (3 – 4 days), when I’ve lived on green smoothies with water and green powder with pH drops in between. They should contain all four of the essential food groups you need to build healthy tissue and facilitate optimum metabolic body function. These as you probably know are summarised by the acronym COWS. This stands for Chlorophyll (the pigment in green plant foods), Oils (avocados, hemp and olive oil and almonds), Water and Salt.

If you are cleansing by having regular (or even occasional) smoothies you have the added benefit that there will be a lot of fibre still “in the mix”. When you drink juice only some people find they need to use additional fibre or cleansing supplements to keep regular elimination happening. You may find the reverse is true with a smoothy.

What About The Cost?

Once you start changing the pH of your body fluid and tissue and improving the health and efficiency of your digestive tract, you’ll probably find you actually start eating less food.

The smoothy that I’ve described is so packed with nutritious goodness that, as long as you absorb it, it could keep you satisfied for longer than a normal meal. Do keep hydrating with water, green powder and pH drops though.

And anyway, what else would you spend the money on …… a new mobile phone? Naaaah!

Note: This blog is only my opinion. It is not medical advice or diagnosis. Only opinions based upon our own personal experiences or information detailed in medical/academic journals or other publications is cited. WE DO NOT OFFER MEDICAL ADVICE or prescribe any treatments. Please consult with a medical professional before making any diet or nutrition changes.

About Ross Bridgeford

Ross is known as THE Alkaline Diet Expert...especially when it comes to implementation and making the alkaline diet REAL in your life. He has been living, learning, teaching, coaching and loving the alkaline lifestyle since 2004 and has written over 600 articles, alkaline recipes, videos and guides on how to live alkaline and stay alkaline for life. Ross loves life in Brisbane, Australia (although is a proud Englishman) and is healthily-obsessed with nutrition, fitness and Tottenham Hotspur F.C.

Mail | Web | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | YouTube

From Energise Alkaline Diet & Natural Health Blog - health news, alkaline diet resources & tips to make you happy! do something nice today...

Hey everyone!

Each fortnight we’re putting the best alkaline diet questions we receive from you to our Alkaline Diet Expert, Dr Young trained blood analyst and highly qualified nutritionist – Gareth Edwards.

Gareth is right at the very top of his field, so these answers are absolutely the best you’ll find from arguably Britain’s most qualified expert in this area!

Q&A With Gareth Edwards

Question One: Cleansing & Detox Symptoms On The Alkaline Diet

I recently bought the ionizer and also the weightloss pack from Energise for Life. I have used both and at first i felt a bit worse as i was on a cleanse and getting rid of toxins in the body i kind of expected this, i also started to develop some dark circles under my eyes which did concern me at first but i tought it would pass. I eat fairly well drink plenty of greens and rebound every morning. By now i would expect to be feeling great but its the opposite my mouth has broken out with cold sores my eyes have gotten worse and my energy levels are good after rebounding in morning but drop hugely early in the day. Why why why – so frustrating?

I’ d really like to start with a couple of quotes from Dr. Young on the subject of cleansing:

“You will know you are in a deep tissue cleanse when you start feeling sick and tired.”

“Cleansing is a process not an event and comes about in layers. It takes at least 2 weeks before you begin to scratch the surface of a deep tissue cleanse. Once again may I suggest that this process takes at least 3 months.”

“Acids coming to the surface of the skin causes canker sores.”

The bottom line is that we all react to cleansing or alkalising in different ways. It sounds to me like you are doing some great work but that you have stirred up something deep seated in your body tissue.

I would suggest that you start the day with ½ to ¾ scoop of pHour salts in a largish glass of water from your ioniser. You can measure your urinary pH with pH testing strips through the day to make sure that you are continuing to flush acids out. Keep hydrating during the day with ionised water with pH drops in it.

I really think that you are on the right track and moving towards much better health. Keep eating and drinking plenty of green plant foods and make tasty vegetarian meal choices. Use healthy fats (from avocado, olive and hemp oil) and take mineral salts (pHour salts, Himalayan salt). If the symptoms persist for more than 3-4 weeks, or you experience any particularly unpleasant effects, you should consult a pH and nutritionally aware physician.

Baths in Epsom salts and drinking some montmorillionite clay mixed in water may help draw acids from your body tissue too. Gentle exercise, fresh air and sunlight are important. A minimum of 20 minutes daily is required. Be sure that you are having regular bowel movements too.

Question Two: Fruits & The Alkaline Diet

Dr. Herbert Shelton says that all fruits are alkalising if eaten on an empty stomach, but acidifying if eaten with or after other foods. Is this true?

Herbert Shelton, who died at the age of 90 in 1985, is an interesting character. I was not aware of him or his work, before researching to answer this question. He was American, a vegetarian and a pacifist, who frequently found himself at odds with the values (and law) of a country whose economic and political success had strong associations with animal farming and pharmacy.

Seen as one of the fathers of the natural hygiene and raw food movements a lot of his work was focused around healing through fasting and reduction in animal protein. These were the central focuses of his work, rather than encouraging people to eat a lot of fruit. Fasting, obviously, is a controversial area of health care, but calorie reduction and reduced animal protein consumption both have scientific research to support their benefits.

I have actually summarised Shelton’s supposed suggestion about fruit from a longer article. The article circulating the internet, it transpires, is not actually written by Shelton but by a chef and culinary writer from Singapore. Click here to read the article.

Shelton may well have believed that fruit could be eaten on an empty stomach, but this view informed the health educators Harvey and Marilyn Diamond who wrote the book “Fit for Life”. This advocated eating only fruit between waking and mid-day in order to support liver detoxification. American self help and personal development “guru” Anthony Robbins worked very closely with the Diamonds and their views heavily influenced the health messages that he taught in his workshops up until the end of the 90’s. Robbins however found his own health and energy to be compromised towards the end of the 20th Century and turned to Dr. Young for help. Dr. Young showed him the high levels of yeast present in his blood and explained that these “morbid” or disease promoting life forms in the blood were supported by dietary intake of sugars from fruit. The Diamonds also visited Dr. Young and under-went similar educational experiences.

While eating apples and grapes is clearly going to be preferable for health to eating chocolate bars or other confectionary made from refined sugars, consuming large amounts as a central focus to a healthy diet is, in my opinion ill informed. There are certain phyto-nutrients (beneficial plant chemicals) in fruits. Low sugar species (cucumber, tomato, avocado, grapefruit, lemon, lime and even some berries) provide these in packages that do not challenge our metabolism. Fruits also contain fibre, but so too do vegetables, without the sugar.

Research suggests that eating fruit in combination with nuts and seeds actually slows down the sugar “spike” that can occur from eating them alone. This is what gorillas and other primates do. Remember that all sugars have an effect on mood and if you are craving fruit or other sugars a moment of reflection on underlying happiness and contentment in your life might be worth the pause!

Question Three: Dr Young’s pHour Salts & Salt Content

My naturopath has suggested I stop taking pHour Salts because of the high salt content (over a third of total contents). I’m not sure what to do now. I suffer from muscle pain and thought that the salts would be really beneficial.
What is your opinion?

Concerns about salt intake are present in naturopathic, medical and public health circles alike. I am not convinced that these are justified. The movement of sodium ions in the body is the biochemical reaction that allows nerve transmission to occur. We also loose salt through perspiration.

I believe that the alkalinity produced by pHour salts use is likely to help reduce your muscle pain, which is often caused by a build up of acid in the body fluids and tissue. This should however be done in conjunction with an alkalising dietary and hydration regime.

Question Four: Blood Pressure & Dr Young’s pHour Salts

pHour salts now has a label which states that you should not take it if you are suffering from high blood pressure without first consulting a qualified health practitioner. It also suggests that you should seek qualified advice before taking it if you are pregnant, a mother breast feeding, on a prescribed low sodium diet, already consuming a high sodium diet or taking any medication. Can you explain why these suggestions have been added?

While I firmly believe that pHour salts is a very effective nutritional supplement in supporting the digestive system and promoting alkalinity of body fluid and tissue, it is …. strong.

I have had patients who have experienced palpitations and head aches from taking it. When I first started taking it I too experienced palpitations. I do not think that this should put you off using it, but you should be careful to build up the quantity that you take slowly.

The standard medical and health service view is that increased sodium intake is associated with elevated blood pressure. This is, in my opinion, questionable as I have seen several patients with high blood pressure witness reduced readings after increasing alkaline foods and drinks and increasing their salt intake. I have also spoken to someone who, on the advice of another practitioner, was taking pHour salts along-side blood pressure lowering medication. When she stopped taking the pHour salts she felt less good.

The reality however is that it is wise to exercise caution with this strong and effective agent. It can be highly effective at promoting alkalinity and motility (movement!) in the digestive tract. It would advise consulting with a pH aware physician before using the product if you are in one of the groups mentioned on the new label. Interactions with pharmaceutical agents may create undesirable effects. Do however be aware that pHour salts is simply a broader mineral salt version of baking soda.

Question Five: Saturated Fats From Grass Fed Animals

We have been involved with healthy products for years and agree with MOST of what you say on alkaline and acid. One point on acids, however. We have been brainwashed by the health industry that soy is good and that all saturated fats are bad.
Research however suggests that Soya is hard to digest.

We would NEVER drink (pasteurized) milk or eat butter or eggs from supermarkets. We agree that these (which are what most people DO purchase) are terrible for the body.
We also add high quantities of alkaline food now, as well, but did not before.

This is interesting. I do think that a lot of the ill effects associated with the consumption of dairy products and eggs results from intensive farming techniques and subsequent sanitisation of the produce through techniques such as pasteurisation. An experiment carried out with children experiencing adverse effects from consuming dairy products showed an apparent absence of symptoms when raw (un-pasteurised) products from grass fed cows were used instead.

The reality however is that these products are second hand nutrition. We can in fact derive the teeth enhancing calcium, other minerals, beneficial phyto-nutrients and fibre from plant foods that these farm animals feed on. Eating grass has never been high on my special celebration meals list, but drinking wheatgrass or barley grass (for the dedicated!) juice is highly therapeutic.

Eating healthy fats is a valid source of calorific intake. Having some (ideally un-pasteurised, but certainly organic) dairy products occasionally may add variety and flavour to a vegetarian diet. Olive oil, hemp oil, coconut flesh and nuts are however vegetarian sources of fats.

Cooked soya beans, which are used in tofu and soya milk can be challenging to digest, but they do provide some nutritional benefits. Sprouting the beans alters the nutritional profile and digestibility for the better. Regularly consuming large quantities of cooked soya may be unwise.

Disclaimer: These answers are not intended to diagnose and do not replace the advice of a qualified physician.

If you have a question for Gareth leave it in the comments below!

About Ross Bridgeford

Ross is known as THE Alkaline Diet Expert...especially when it comes to implementation and making the alkaline diet REAL in your life. He has been living, learning, teaching, coaching and loving the alkaline lifestyle since 2004 and has written over 600 articles, alkaline recipes, videos and guides on how to live alkaline and stay alkaline for life. Ross loves life in Brisbane, Australia (although is a proud Englishman) and is healthily-obsessed with nutrition, fitness and Tottenham Hotspur F.C.

Mail | Web | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | YouTube

From Energise Alkaline Diet & Natural Health Blog - health news, alkaline diet resources & tips to make you happy! do something nice today...

This week Gareth Edwards, our Alkaline Diet Expert, Dr Young trained blood analyst and highly qualified nutritionist, gives you a quick start guide to the alkaline diet outlining the most important steps to transition to a more alkaline diet and lifestyle.

As Gareth deals with clients every day who want to become healthier and more alkaline, he knows how difficult it can be to change common unhealthy lifestyle patterns and to achieve long term health.

A “Back to Basics Guide” by Gareth Edwards

If the whole idea of alkalising your body is as confusing as a really hard sudoko puzzle or the plethora of products and information on the subject sends you …. off to the pub, then hopefully this week’s article is for you. It’s a “back to basics” guide, but in reality trying to get too complex and clever could make things unnecessarily hard for any of us.

Alkalising really is just “getting healthy” with a few twists from mass media messages on the subject. It’s based around the (back to third form chemistry) principle that the pH of our body fluids, and therefore body tissue, is the biggest factor that affects our over-all health and wellbeing.

As society has become more urbanised food has been increasingly packaged and preserved which makes it more …. acidifying. Add to that the fact that pollution and electro-magnetic fields can all have an acidifying effect on your body and that anything, other than lying on the floor in a trance, makes acid in your body and all of a sudden there is a possible solution to the health tangle we can sometimes find ourselves in.

Literally “washing” your body, on a daily basis, with fresh ionised air, sunlight, alkaline fluids and foods are the most effective and powerful step you can take to achieving health.

So here are three steps you can take:

1. Start to understand which foods have an alkalising effect on your body and which ones are acidifying. There are lots of sources of information on this subject, but I would recommend that you either buy the pH miracle by Dr. Robert and Shelley Young or look at the quick guide that Energise for Life have created here: Click here to view the acid/alkaline food chart.

   While common sense is a great guide as to what is healthy and what not, some finessing on the subject will be helpful. Obvious examples of acidifying liquids would be vinegar, colas and orange (or other fruit juice). You’d be right to avoid these. More confusing might be lemons, limes, grapefruits and tomatoes. They are all alkalising, once you’ve digested them. Let your common sense take over, they’re low in sugar and packed with vitamin C (and other beneficial nutrients).

   Queen or King of the alkaline pantry is any vegetable that’s green. If the thought of eating that sends you …. back to the pub, then hold on! To start with mix them with things you like. Avocados are great alkalisers and so is olive oil and (probably to your surprise) unrefined, raw and unprocessed salt.

   Start making more vegetarian choices generally and use more nuts, seeds, beans and lentils for your protein, rather than meat, poultry, cheese and fish. Sprouted beans and seeds are dynamos and a better way to boost vitamin levels than a pill. The Energise recipe book is packed with great ideas for alkaline meals and drinks too.

2. You are what you drink…… one of the most powerful steps you can take in this process is to keep changing your body fluids. Plain, still, filtered water usually has a slightly alkaline pH. By adding small quantities of alkaline mineral salts to it you can lift the pH (make it more alkaline). Drinking two to three litres of alkaline water a day will …. make you pee more. That’s washing the acid out of your body.

   If you add freshly made green vegetable juice to that water you’ll have a cleansing, energising drink. That could be “hassle” if you’re busy, so adding powdered green vegetables to the water is quick, nutritious and should help to stop you reaching for the biscuit tin between meals. You’ll find a selection of powdered greens and “pH drops” on the Energise site. I personally prefer the ones which only contain vegetables (not seaweed) and low sugar fruits. (such as Dr Young’s Doc Broc Power Plants)

3. Try to get fresh air and winter sunlight. As winter draws in, the comfort of sitting in doors next to the radiator can become magnetic. I’ve just been on a week’s walking holiday with my wife slightly(!) south of England. As I got ready to walk, George Michael’s humorous 90’s hit “Outside” started running through my head. I wouldn’t necessarily recommend going outside for the reasons that George sings about, but getting fresh air and even a little drop of winter sunlight on a daily basis are crucial to eliminating acidic waste and helping your body absorb and use calcium. That also helps keep your body alkaline.

   The more I work as nutritionist encouraging people to alkalise the more excited I am by its potential to help people achieve optimum health and wellbeing. There’s scarcely a week goes by that I don’t hear fantastic stories of people that have overcome health challenges, boosted their energy and achieved a healthy weight by following these principles. Get busy… in an enjoyable, explorative way!

   If you want to read more click here!

Disclaimer: Not intended to diagnose any condition, please seek help of nutritionally aware physician if experiencing health challenges.

About Ross Bridgeford

Ross is known as THE Alkaline Diet Expert...especially when it comes to implementation and making the alkaline diet REAL in your life. He has been living, learning, teaching, coaching and loving the alkaline lifestyle since 2004 and has written over 600 articles, alkaline recipes, videos and guides on how to live alkaline and stay alkaline for life. Ross loves life in Brisbane, Australia (although is a proud Englishman) and is healthily-obsessed with nutrition, fitness and Tottenham Hotspur F.C.

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From Energise Alkaline Diet & Natural Health Blog - health news, alkaline diet resources & tips to make you happy! do something nice today...

Hey everyone!

Each fortnight we’re putting the best alkaline diet questions we receive from you to our Alkaline Diet Expert, Dr Young trained blood analyst and highly qualified nutritionist – Gareth Edwards.

Gareth is right at the very top of his field, so these answers are absolutely the best you’ll find from arguably Britain’s most qualified expert in this area!

Q&A With Gareth Edwards

Question One: Raw Food Diet in Winter

As winter approaches, it seems harder to stick to a raw food diet. Shouldn’t we be eating more cooked root vegetables at this time of year?

Seasonal eating is increasingly gaining weight and momentum amongst the intellectual middle classes, with good reason. Eating what’s available from local food producers makes sense nutritionally and ecologically.

It’s more challenging (but still possible) to grow greens in winter conditions and a cooked leek and potato or butternut squash and ginger soup can certainly create a feel-good inner warmth. The reality however is that low sugar vegetables (that grow above the ground) are still needed to maintain energy and vitality in the winter months.

If you are a super keen alkaliser you may be sprouting your own seeds and beans and even growing your own wheatgrass. You can keep doing that during winter. I’ve also seen Cavelo Nero poking through the snow in my mother-in-law’s garden in Switzerland.

You may choose to eat some more root vegetables during winter, but you need to keep hunting out and consuming fresh produce too.

Question Two: Pregnancy & The Alkaline Diet

I have just found out that I am pregnant. I want to have a super healthy pregnancy, but wonder if green drinks and an alkaline diet will be safe and give the baby all it needs to develop?

In a word “yes”! The same rules apply to healthy eating and living when pregnant, as for the rest of life. Quite often we’re led to believe that animal protein from chicken, fish and dairy products are essential to ensure healthy foetal growth. The reality is that these foods are actually difficult to digest and can cause flatulence, bloating and constipation. It is important that your digestive tract is in peak functioning order during (and before and after) pregnancy. This will mean that the body’s first filtering system is working efficiently. Constipation and bloating are likely to lead to toxic matter passing into the blood.

Green plant foods are the healthiest way to support digestive health and make healthy blood. Both of these will help support the healthy growth and development of your baby.

In addition to this, your body will be “working hard” during this time. Remembering Newton’s principal that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction, we can be aware that the making of bones, eyes, and a brain in your growing baby, creates acidic by-products. These need to be eliminated from your body. This, if anything, increases the need for consuming alkaline water with green powder and alkaline salts. Fresh green juice will also help eliminate acids.

Dark green leafy and other vegetables and low sugar fruits, contain fibre, phyto-nutrients and minerals (calcium and magnesium) in bio-accessible forms.

Powdered green vegetables and mineral salts should be safe to consume during pregnancy and afterwards during breast feeding. You should however still enjoy your food (and life) while new life is growing inside you. You don’t need to become a nun to have a healthy child!

Question Three: Immunisation

I normally have a flu jab at this time of year, but I’m wondering how I can be immunised against all the different strains of flu (bird flu, swine flu etc) with one jab. What can I do to protect myself with food and drinks?

Well it may be a surprise to you (it was to me) to find out that the “formula” for the flu vaccine is debated and developed each year, based on the perceived “threats” from viruses at the time. That said, it probably doesn’t come as great surprise, that I am somewhat dubious about this method of “protecting” yourself from disease.

The idea that you inject small quantities of a disease causing agent directly into the blood in order to “prime” the immune system is, in my opinion, at best questionable. On top of that, some of the ingredients in vaccines (as well as disease causing agents) are toxic to both body and blood.

My preferred course of action would be to maintain your immunity through healthy lifestyle, diet and hydration choices. As we start to move into the festival of sugar and alcohol time of the year, it can be tricky to hold on to the principals of alkalising. If you want to stay energised through the winter, it’s important to keep drinking your greens.

I haven’t had a flu (or any other) jab for years and I haven’t had flu for years either.

Question Four: pH & ORP values for Ionised Water

Ionising machines produce a wide range of PH and ORP levels. What are the recommended pH & ORP values for Ionised drinking water for both therapeutic purposes and long-term maintenance purposes? In Dr Robert Young’s video he states -250 ORP and pH 9.5 but doesn’t clarify how the values have been derived and whether these are for therapeutic or maintenance purposes. Many thanks Saj

Saj has really gone to task on alkaline water and is researching the subject thoroughly. He’s bought an ORP metre to test the water that comes out of his ioniser. My own view is that you should build up slowly to the levels suggested by Dr. Young and then continue drinking water at a pH of 8.5 to 9.5 for maintenance and health.

The levels Dr. Young suggests are likely to be towards the upper end of what he considers safe, based on research on himself and his patients. Drinking or eating over alkaline foods or fluids while your body adjusts could cause nausea and excessive de-toxification.

Saj has also sent us an interesting link relating to how ionised water may contribute positively to digestive health: click here to read!

Question Five: Gareth’s Phone Consultation

I have been thinking to book a phone consultation with Gareth, however would like to know first how a typical consultation looks like and why I should choose this over an actual consultation at the clinic?

Here’s some information about phone consultations. The primary reason for choosing this over a clinic consultation, would probably be geographic. For people in Blackpool, Edinburgh, Belfast, Germany, Monaco or …. Trinidad, a journey to London may not be practical. That said the cost and time saving might appeal to more local people.

The consultation can be done on the phone or with cameras running on Skype. You’ll need to fill in a short questionnaire and a food diary. I’ll need to know your medical history and any medication that you are taking. We’ll review what’s going on in your life, what you’re eating and drinking and any nutritional supplements you are taking.
Based on that information, I’d hope to be able to make some suggestions of changes that may help you start feeling better and having more energy.

Sometimes it’s just a case of helping you understand the maze of information around alkalising, sometimes it’s helping you to understand why you might be finding making healthy food choices tricky.

It’s also a way to put your toe in the water with alkalising and having someone help you to see health from a different perspective.

Disclaimer: These answers are not intended to diagnose and do not replace the advice of a qualified physician.

If you have a question for Gareth leave it in the comments below!

About Ross Bridgeford

Ross is known as THE Alkaline Diet Expert...especially when it comes to implementation and making the alkaline diet REAL in your life. He has been living, learning, teaching, coaching and loving the alkaline lifestyle since 2004 and has written over 600 articles, alkaline recipes, videos and guides on how to live alkaline and stay alkaline for life. Ross loves life in Brisbane, Australia (although is a proud Englishman) and is healthily-obsessed with nutrition, fitness and Tottenham Hotspur F.C.

Mail | Web | Twitter | Facebook | Google+ | YouTube

From Energise Alkaline Diet & Natural Health Blog - health news, alkaline diet resources & tips to make you happy! do something nice today...