How to Prevent Disease by Eating More Alkaline Foods
According to the United States Department of Agriculture, the typical American diet that is rich in protein and cereal grain is not healthy because it causes acid to form inside the body. This acid can begin to slowly destroy muscle mass and age the body, making it more susceptible to disease. To counteract acid formation, researchers conclude that alkaline foods should outnumber acidic food. Plant based foods, such as fruits and vegetables, can fight the effects of acid in the body and help prevent disease.
Instructions
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Decrease the amount of acidic foods you eat as you increase the amount of alkaline foods you eat so you can create a balance in your body. Acidic foods that should be avoided are alcohol, white flour, sugar, processed foods, soda and sweets.
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Consume more vegetables because they are alkaline, and according to the USDA Agricultural Research Service, can help reduce the muscle deterioration caused by too much acid in the body. These include cucumber, eggplant, celery, mushrooms, green beans and lettuce.
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Replace any desserts, such as cake or ice cream, with fruit. Berries, watermelon, bananas, apples and kiwi are all examples of fruit that can produce an alkaline effect in the body that reduces the risk of disease that too much acid causes.
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Eat more almonds. Raw almonds not only produce alkaline in the body, they also have healthy fats that can lower cholesterol.
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Add some healthy foods that contain low amounts of acid, such as fish, brown rice, oats and beans. To prevent disease by eating alkaline foods, there needs to be a balance of approximately 80 percent alkaline foods and 20 percent acid foods, so don't eliminate healthy acidic foods.
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Tips & Warnings
To easily incorporate more alkaline foods into your diet, make fruits and vegetables the main entree of your meal and have acidic foods be the side dish.
Do not stop eating acidic food; the body needs a pH balance and too much alkaline food without a balance of acidic food can cause the body to miss out on proteins and grains that are healthy in small amounts.
Resources
- Photo Credit PDPhoto.org
