The Ten Best Basic Foods To Balance Your pH

Here are the ten best basic foods to regulate your pH level

Whenever we have eaten a lot of sugar, plain white flour or meat, basic foods help against the excess acids. Therefore, I have put together the ten best basic foods that are not only affordable but nourishing and tasty as well.

The acid-base balance controls the vital balance of all metabolic processes in our body and every single cell. If this gets out of normal range, our metabolism no longer runs as smoothly as usual.

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Acidic or basic: why the pH value is so important

Acids enter our body through our diet. Stress, too little exercise or competitive sports also contribute to acidification.

However, our metabolism only runs optimally when the pH value of our body and also in the blood is in the slightly basic range from 7.3 to 7.4. However, an unhealthy diet, especially with many animal foods, overloads our body’s buffer systems.

Basic range: pH 7 to 14
Acid range: pH 0 to 7

Around 80 percent of the food we eat should be basic. In this list, you will find foods that are particularly suitable for a basic diet.

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The top ten basic foods

1- Spinach

The green leafy vegetables top the lists of many tables on basic foods. Rightly so! Spinach contains extremely large amounts of the basic minerals potassium and magnesium.

Acid-forming amino acids, on the other hand, are not available at all. Thus, spinach contains the perfect combination to actively balance our acid-base balance. It is not just a tasty side dish. Young leaves also taste great in a salad or in a fresh smoothie.

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A little tip on the side

Spinach can contain nitrate, which can convert into poisonous nitrite, especially when kept warm for a long time. It is best to buy organic goods or spinach from regional outdoor cultivation. These contain significantly less nitrate than quickly grown spinach.

Incidentally, other green vegetables are also among the base-forming foods. Eat spinach calmly alternating e.g. with kale, savoy cabbage or leafy salads.

The green leaves of kohlrabi and carrots also have a basic effect. In the following post, you can find out about additional edible vegetable leaves.

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2- Dandelions

Dandelion is especially known for its healthy bitter substances. In naturopathy, it is also considered to strengthen the liver and detoxify it, because the liver is one of our most important detoxification organs.

The detoxifying effect also relates to acids in our body. Our liver is an outstanding organ! It gathers waste products from our metabolism, including acids, and makes them harmless before discharging them via the kidneys.

Tip

In spring you can pick and eat the unopened buds, from spring to autumn the leaves. They taste good in salads and are reminiscent of arugula.

Other wild herbs such as nettles are also basic foods. Therefore, try to incorporate them into your menu as often as possible.

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Lose weight with an alkaline diet

Those who consciously reduce acidic foods or omit them as much as possible automatically eat a lot of vegetables, fresh herbs and fruits.

On the other hand, they stay away from meat, sugar, dairy products and white flour as much as possible. As a result, they automatically consume a lot of vitamins and trace elements – and lose weight healthily!

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3- Fruit

In addition to vegetables, fruits are the basis for a basic diet. Apples, berries, apricots, currants, grapes and pears are particularly recommended. They contain high amounts of the basic minerals magnesium and potassium.

Good to know

All types of fruit are recommended in terms of basic nutrition. However, please note that this only applies to fully ripe fruit!  Fruit that is not fully ripened, as is sometimes the case with cheap imported goods,  has an acidic effect on our body and you should avoid it.

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4- Potatoes

Vegetables and fruits are at the top of our menu if we want to do something for our acid-base balance. Are you missing a filling side dish on your plate? Potatoes are the best choice!

They are rich in vitamins and minerals and also contain valuable vegetable protein. This also applies to the potato-like gnarled Jerusalem artichoke tuber.

Don’t know how to prepare Jerusalem artichoke? Find out more about the healthy tuber here:

Eat with moderation- good acidifiers

Cereals, including whole grains and spelt, are among the so-called good acidifiers. This means that they are weak acid generators, but at the same time provide a lot of valuable nutrients.

If you want to eat a basic diet for a longer period of time, you should, therefore, rely on a base-excess diet. This means that the ratio of alkaline to acid-forming foods should always hover around 80 to 20.

Bad acidifiers such as sugar and white flour are pure “base thieves”, and you can safely remove them from the menu because they do not provide any nutrients.

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5- Cucumbers

Despite their high water content, cucumbers provide plenty of vitamins and basic minerals. However, these minerals are mainly in and directly under the shell. To achieve the full alkaline effect, it is best to eat cucumbers unpeeled and pay attention to organic quality.

6- Parsley

Fresh herbs also belong to basic foods. Good old parsley in particular has more potential than expected. It is an exceptionally good supplier of potassium.  It also contains large amounts of secondary plant substances and the plant pigment chlorophyll.

If you want to use parsley effectively against acidification, you should, therefore, often access it! You can also chew parsley in between or add the leaves to the salad.

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7- Raisins

We combine basic food primarily with vegetables and fresh fruit. Thus, it is surprising that sugar-sweet raisins trend at the top of the table of basic foods.

Why is that? Raisins are one of the best sources of potassium. Potassium is one of the basic minerals and can quickly neutralize acids in our body.

Healthy tip

A nourishing diet should always be as free as possible from additives. It is best to use raisins that have not been treated with sulfur. Pay attention to the note “unsulphured” on the packaging.

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8- Apple cider vinegar

Even what tastes sour can have a basic effect on the body. In our metabolism, apple cider vinegar does not produce any acidic products and, therefore, no acids.

Basically, minerals remain after the generation of energy. The same thing happens with sour fruit such as limes, lemons or oranges.

My tip

Use unpasteurized apple cider vinegar, which, unlike heated products, still contains many natural enzymes. Best yet- use the one which contains “the mother”.

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9- Nuts

Not all nuts are basic foods. But you are welcome to access almonds, walnuts and chestnuts. Likewise with flax seeds, hemp seeds and pumpkin seeds.

Also, try some almond flakes. The healthy earth almond is a very good supplier of minerals and ideal for basic mueslis.

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10- Vegetable oils

If you want to eat a basic diet, you should rely on vegetable oils. Coconut oil, olive oil and linseed oil are considered basic.

About the PRAL value

What does it say? The PRAL value (standing for Potential Renal Acid Load) indicates how great the base-forming effect of a certain food is.

The higher the value, the greater the acid load. The more negative the value, the better the food helps against acidification.

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Dear co-creators

Have your say now. Did you already know about the importance of adding the above foods to your diet? Are you going to consume more of the ten best basic foods from now on?

Remember that organic products are, of course, somewhat pricier, but they also are the only ones that deliver the complete health benefits.

Imported and glasshouse produce never gets the chance to ripen naturally, thus, it remains acidic. You are not doing your body any favor when choosing the cheaper version.

And think about it this way: the investment into your health is the best investment you can ever make.

As always, feel free to share our thoughts, questions and stories with us in a  comment below. We are always happy to read from you.