  |
|
|
|
The Definition of AcidOne of the Five Classes of Nutrients in Food CombiningIn order to plan out a proper diet it is important to understand all of the nutrients. Acids are important to understand in order to maintain the body's acid/base balance
One of the nutrients that can have a dramatic effect on food combining is acids. Specifically the acids being referred to are free range acids not the acid forming properties of a food. It is important to distinguish between the acid content and the degree of acidity. The acid content is simply a measure of how much acid there is per unit volume of food. The degree of acidity is the actual pH value of food. A high acid content actually gives a low pH value whereas a low acid content results in a high pH value. For the purposes of food combining it is usually fruits that contain acid as the dominant nutrient. Other foods that have acid as the dominant nutrient are but not limited to vinegar, alcohol, yogurt and sauerkraut. For instance where fruit would have trouble digesting in combination with milk since it is a protein it has no trouble digesting with yogurt because it is an acid. There are several issues with eating acids with certain foods. One of them is that acidic foods can damage the enzyme ptyalin in the mouth. Ptyalin is required for the digestion of starch. Chewing starch mixes it with saliva and ptyalin which is how starch is primarily digested. If the enzyme is inhibited proper digestion cannot take place. In the stomach too much acid can actually inhibit the production of hydrochloric acid which is vital for the digestion of protein. One also has to be careful to not consume too much acidifying foods so as to not make the body too acidic. It is important to consume four times as many alkalizing foods to acidifying one to help maintain the acid/base balance within the body. Now alkalizing does no refer to an alkaline food. There is no such thing an alkaline forming food. While there are foods that are close to the neutral end of the pH scale they are still acidic. Only fruits are acidic not vegetables and yes the tomato is a fruit. Vegetables fall in the starch or protein category. The degree of acidity of vegetables falls in the range of pH5 to pH 6.6. This is a reason why it is a good idea to include nonstarch vegetables with rice to balance its acid forming properties. Eating too many acid forming foods can lead to constipation if it upsets the body's acid/base balance. It is important to distinguish between acidic foods and acid forming foods. This will make it easy to create a diet that will allow one to achieve the all important acid/base balance.
The copyright of the article The Definition of Acid in Microbiology is owned by Marc Anthony Rios. Permission to republish The Definition of Acid in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
|
|
|
|
