Speaking with a group in my coaching program, I realized how much medical information we get that’s defeating our quest to be healthy and vibrant. After one class I was telling everyone about how your skeletal bones may become weakened, based on the type of diet you consume.
If you eat an acidic diet, it can throw your body chemistry off-kilter and your blood pH may become acidic. It should normally be between 7.35 to 7.45, but an acidic diet may drive it lower. When that happens, calcium is one of the nutrients used to raise it back to the normal range. But, where does your body get the necessary calcium from? It leaches it from your bones.
One lady in my class took a bone density test and found that she was losing density. Her doctor gave her recommendations regarding what to eat, such as milk, cheese, salmon and sardines and also told her to take a calcium supplement.
Yes, those foods have calcium, but they are all acidic, so consuming them does not promote strong bones. And, when taking calcium supplements, most of the calcium is excreted in your urine and not absorbed. That said, with those recommendations, it’s difficult to replace the calcium you are losing over your lifetime, due to an acidic diet.
On the other hand, green leafy vegetables contain lots of calcium and are not acidic. This is something we should all have been told since kindergarten.
That said, we must continue to question every bit of traditional nutritional advice we’re getting. Consuming milk after infancy can be a dangerous proposition. Eating cheese at any age can also be dangerous.
The beneficial nutrients in salmon and sardines are there because of the green veggies they consume, therefore we can go directly to the source and simply eat green vegetables ourselves, without worrying about the acidity. As usual, plants seem to be the answer to promoting healthy bones and living a healthy life.
