Acid & Alkaline and Overeating

ACID AND ALKALINE

I found it necessary to reinterpret acid and alkaline to make it more effective and easier to understand. I am not a scientist, but this interpretation is based on my understanding of macrobiotics. This understanding has passed the test of time, as I’ve used it with clients over the years to create healthy alkaline conditions. People have said that grains and beans are acidifying, but that has not been my experience. I think you’ll find when grains and beans are cooked in water with a little sea salt or kombu, and digested properly, they create alkaline conditions. If this wasn’t so, macrobiotics would not have such a large number of recoveries from serious illnesses, which is what it is so well known for. My observation throughout the years is that macrobiotic children have been stronger and healthier than their peers not raised in this way. Healthy digestion, which starts with thorough chewing, is essential for creating a mildly alkaline condition.

When digested properly, complex carbohydrates, such as grains and beans, and temperate land and sea vegetables create a mildly alkaline condition in the blood. On the other hand, simple sugars, refined carbohydrates, and alcohol quickly become absorbed into the bloodstream, creating an acidic condition. Animal and dairy foods, tropical fruits, and nightshades also acidify the blood. We lose minerals, especially calcium, to neutralize the acidity. This loss of minerals weakens not only our bones, but our muscles, organs, and nervous system. It also weakens our digestive and thinking abilities.

For food to become alkalized, three important things must happen. First, we need to sit down to eat without doing other things. Second, food must be chewed well. Third, complex carbohydrates must slowly break down in the digestive process, alkalize in the duodenum, and finally be absorbed in the small intestine. A combination of complex carbohydrates creates the most healthy alkaline condition. In essence, the importance is to differentiate between good quality and poor quality carbohydrates, because the complex carbohydrates are the ones that break down slowly and pass through the duodenum.

Create alkalinity with food by eating a variety of complex carbohydrates that are digested slowly, and are absorbed in the small intestine. In life, anything that promotes good digestion and circulation promotes alkalinity: chewing our food, laughter, a nice walk outside, a great conversation, green plants, natural materials and activity, etc. Alkaline conditions allow hemoglobin to bind with more oxygen and transport it through our body. Indicators of an alkaline condition include a sense of inner peace and joy, having a positive attitude, feeling strong and energetic, good muscle tone, healthy skin, and youthful appearance.

Acidic conditions are caused by stagnation. Overeating is one of the most common causes of stagnation and acidity in our body. Contrast the freshness of a walk outside with one in a shopping mall or sitting in front of a computer all day. Common symptoms of acidity are fatigue, negativity, irritability, weak bones and muscles, and a weak resistance to illness.

You can get a pretty decent indicator of your overall condition by observing how you wake up and feel every day.

OVEREATING

Overeating is one of the most harmful and common habits that many people experience today. Eating while standing or doing other things sets the stage. The most common practices that break our connection with food are reading, watching TV, or listening to engaging radio broadcasts while trying to eat. These practices interfere with our digestion and feelings of satisfaction. Another cause for overeating is having a diet that is too simple and repetitive, whereby we try to get satisfaction by eating more and more food. Eating unhealthful foods causes a biological frustration and imbalance that causes us to overeat. One unhealthful food makes you crave another.

My analogy is this: if you have a comfortable number of people in a room, people tend to be thoughtful and accommodating to everyone else. However, if you double the number of people in the room, beyond the capacity of the room, the same caring people often become irritable and negative instead. The same goes for the food we eat. Once we eat beyond our capacity, we start to bring out the negative aspects of the food.

There is a physical limitation as to how much our digestive system can process and eliminate. Overeating can cause food to putrefy in our digestive system and create the buildup of toxins. This also produces a more acidic condition, as the food cannot move naturally and efficiently through our digestive system.

Another analogy is the mountain stream. As long as the stream can move and flow naturally, it continually cleans and purifies itself. However, if a boulder falls and breaks the natural movement of the stream, stagnation builds up around the boulder. Overeating creates stagnation which interferes with the natural movement of the digestive system. Overeating healthful food is harmful enough, and overeating unhealthful foods brings out the worst aspects of the worst foods.

Almost everyone overeats these days, and it may be difficult for you to tell if you are overeating. A good rule of thumb that they use in Okinawa is to “only eat to 80 percent capacity.” If you’re not sure what that feels like, try reducing the overall volume of food by 5 to 10 percent at each meal. Then try it again until you get down to a comfortable amount. Once you get used to this, you’ll feel more energetic and clear-headed.