Alkaline Foods: What You Should Know

There’s a slight chance you may have never heard of alkaline foods before, let alone what good they do for your body. For starters, they’re typically low in both calories and fat, which is helpful to those that are looking to lose weight, or are in much need of lowering their cholesterol. Alkaline foods: what you should know.

Please check with your medical professional before making any changes to your diet or exercise regimen. Life is good if we are healthy and strong, right? In case you missed this post Why Eating Whole Foods Is Good For You

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Alkaline Foods: What You Should Know

For years, health experts have told us to eat complete and balanced meals, instead of avoiding entire food groups as certain diets tell you to do. Alkaline foods are important because they help to counter the acidic foods that you enjoy eating so much. But the good news is, many alkaline foods are also ones that most people love to eat.

The secret is to know what those alkaline foods are, and to eat more of them. Here’s more on alkaline foods and everything you should know about them.

So What are Alkaline Foods?

Green Leaf Vegetables

Growing up your mom and dad probably always told you that you should eat your green leafy vegetables because they’re good for you. Well, it turns out they were right again. As you expected, they are a good source of alkaline, as well as several other nutrients and minerals that your body can’t function properly without.

Root Vegetables

You’ll also find alkali in root vegetables like sweet potatoes, beets, carrots, and lotus roots. Root vegetables taste wonderful when they are roasted and sprinkled with seasonings, placed in a salad or soup, or along with a sizzling stir-fry. Just be careful not to cook them too much, or you’ll miss out on some of their nutrients.

Citrus Fruits

When you think of citrus fruits such as oranges, lemons, and limes, you’re probably wondering how highly acidic foods would be considered to be a good source of alkaline. Surprisingly, they’re among the best. They are chock-full with vitamin C and several antioxidants that help detoxify your system, and bring relief from symptoms like heartburn and acidity in the stomach.

Seasonal Fruit

Seasonal fruits are also considered alkaline foods that have several vitamins and minerals, along with important antioxidants that benefit your health and improve certain bodily functions.

They taste sweet and delicious too! Some of the best alkaline seasonal fruits are ones you may already be eating. A few of them include apples, watermelon, kiwi, nectarine, pineapple, apricots, and grapefruit.

Garlic, Onion, and Ginger

Onion, garlic, and ginger are all flavor-enhancing ingredients that are absolutely necessary when you’re cooking up Indian dishes, as well as some of your favorite homemade meals. They too are rich in alkaline.

Most people can’t eat their spaghetti dinner without a bit of garlic bread, and garlic also tastes good on toast in the morning. Onions taste great in soup or a salad, while ginger can be sprinkled into your tea, on fish, or also in a soup.

Nuts

Certain types of nuts are a good source of both fat (the good kind) and alkaline. That’s good news if you enjoy almonds, cashews, pecans, and walnuts to curb your hunger.

Unfortunately, if you’re a peanut or pistachio lover, they don’t make the cut due to their high level of acidity. Just be careful to watch your intake of these delicious nuts because most nuts tend to have a decent amount of calories.

Seasalt and Seaweed

Did you know that sea vegetables (like seaweed) come jam packed with nutrients nearly ten times the amount of those that are grown on land? Both seasalt and seaweed are said to be highly alkaline, and they have several other health benefits as well.

Both kelp and nori, a Japanese name for certain types of seaweed, can be enjoyed as a stir fry or in a soup, while sea salt can be sprinkled on just about anything.

Health Benefits of Alkaline Foods

Promote Weight Loss

Alkaline foods contain fewer calories, which is helpful for weight loss. Yet it’s also important to eat fewer calories than what you burn in a day to make losing weight possible.

Reduces the Risk of Heart Disease

Heart disease is the number one cause of death every year. Alkaline foods help reduce the negative effects that acidic foods (like red meat) have on the overall health of our hearts. Cutting down on red meats and processed meats will also drastically lower those risks.

Prevent Cancer

More studies need to be done on the matter, but there is evidence that suggests that alkaline foods (fruit and vegetables) may help to reduce the risks of getting cancer, and also may work alongside chemotherapy for patients that do.

Improves Growth Hormone Levels

Who couldn’t use a better memory or cognition? That’s just what alkaline foods do by improving our growth hormone levels, which in turn improves the overall quality of our lives.

May Improve Back Pain

It’s not a 100% guarantee that alkaline foods help with chronic back pain, but if you’ve suffered from pain in your back, it sure wouldn’t hurt to try anything that possibly helps.

Promotes Healthy Muscles and Bones

Research has shown that alkaline foods can improve our muscles, especially as we start to get older, keeping us from falling down and fracturing bones as easily. Eating more foods like fruits and vegetables can help prevent osteoporosis, especially in older people and women.

Go Easier on Acidic Foods

Now that you know what alkaline foods are, it’s important to know which foods are considered to be highly acidic. As painful as it is for me to tell you this, (because I love just about every single one) they cover a majority of your favorite goodies and snacks we eat.

First up, sugar. (Ouch) Behind that are processed foods, fresh meat, processed meats, fish, grains, certain dairy products, soda pop, and high protein foods, as well as many supplements.

Final Word

As I mentioned earlier, acidic foods have their value and health benefits too. It’s just important that you eat smaller amounts of them, and if you do decide to indulge in them every once in a while, make sure you complete your meal by adding alkaline foods to your dinner plate.

If you’re wanting to find out more on the alkaline diet, here’s more information by clicking on the link. What do you think about Alkaline Foods: What you should know? Please stay well, stay safe. May God bless this world, Linda