ALKALIZING
WITH SODIUM BICARBONATE AND POTASSIUM
CITRATE
by Walter Last
Our
metabolism works best when the lymph fluid is slightly acid while the blood is
always slightly alkaline. If the diet is deficient in minerals or the cellular energy
production is inefficient, and produces much lactic acid instead of oxidizing
nutrients to carbon dioxide and water, then the body gradually becomes too
acid. This leads to loss of minerals and inflammations with pain and
oversensitivity. Chronic inflammations cause most of the discomfort and health
deterioration associated with chronic diseases. The most common conditions
associated with inflammations are infections and Candida problems, autoimmune
diseases, including arthritis, and cancer.
To
reduce and eventually stop destructive inflammations the body needs to be
alkalized. This is best done with mineral-rich vegetables, especially green
leaf-vegetables and green protein powders such as spirulina, chlorella, and
wheat grass or barley grass powder. However, until the inflammation is under
control it is often helpful or necessary to use in addition alkalizing remedies
such as sodium bicarbonate and potassium citrate. Both are 'natural' as the body produces large
amounts of sodium bicarbonate to neutralize the stomach acid when it enters the
intestines, and potassium citrate is the strongest alkalizing agent in citrus
fruit.
When
you dissolve sodium bicarbonate in water it is more alkaline than potassium
citrate but inside the body potassium citrate becomes a stronger alkalizer.
Another difference is that sodium bicarbonate should not be taken with meals as
it then reduces our stomach acid which is needed for digestion, but potassium
citrate can be mixed with meals.
All
this seems to show that potassium citrate is a better choice for alkalizing
than sodium bicarbonate but which one is preferable really depends on some
additional factors. The following conditions favour the use of potassium
citrate:
1.
A high sodium and low potassium intake as in a conventional Western diet
2.
Raised and especially high blood pressure
3.
Kidney problems or water retention/edema.
Sodium
bicarbonate, on the other hand, is called for
1.
With
low blood pressure
2.
With
a diet high in fruits and vegetables and low in salted foods.
Those
who do not fit into one of these categories may take both alkalizers.
Commonly a ratio of 2 parts of sodium bicarbonate to 1 part of potassium
citrate is being used, but also 1 : 1 or an excess of potassium is alright.
These may be mixed and taken together in the same drink, or they may be taken
separately during the day. If you take more than 1 teaspoonful then space them
out during the day.
How much and for how long?
Sodium
is the most abundant mineral in the blood and lymph fluid while potassium is
highest inside cells. Therefore a sudden high intake of potassium can cause an
imbalance in the blood, and higher amounts need to be distributed over several
meals. A diet high in fruit and vegetables may provide 5 g of potassium daily
while a normal 'good' diet supplies about 3 g. A level teaspoon of about 5 g of
potassium citrate contains about 1 g of potassium. This amount 3 times a day
with drinks or mixed with meals is about the upper recommended daily intake.
If
there are no contraindications for sodium intake, then sodium bicarbonate in
higher amounts is somewhat less critical. The best way to take it is with a
drink some time (e.g. half an hour) before meals or, generally easier to
'stomach', 2-3 hours after meals. Another recommended way is to dissolve a
teaspoon of bicarbonate in a large glass of water, stir in a teaspoon of
psyllium hulls and drink immediately, best soon after rising. In all you may
use up to 3 rounded teaspoons of bicarbonate spaced out over the day.
There
are two ways of estimating how much to take and for how long. The simpler way
is just to go by the amount of pain and other discomfort caused by an
inflammation. The more inflammation and pain, the more alkalizer you may take.
When problems subside then you reduce the amount of alkalizers,
and eventually the minerals in a good diet may be sufficient to keep you well.
The
other possibility and the better option is from time to time to measure the pH
or acid-alkaline balance of your saliva or urine. The saliva is a better
indicator of the condition of the lymph fluid but urine is easier to test. Take
so much alkalizer that your urine during the day is mostly above pH 7 or
slightly alkaline (pH 7 is neutral). To check your urine you may buy pH papers
with a range from about 4 or 5 to 8 or 9 (see the Internet for suppliers).
Alternatively
you may use turmeric (or even curry powder) dissolved in water or better
methanol. Turmeric changes colour at pH 6.8. Above this it is red and below 6.8
it is yellow. Therefore when the urine sample turns red you can assume that it
is neutral or alkaline. Dissolve a teaspoonful of turmeric in half a litre of methylated spirits (methanol), shake and allow to settle,
producing a yellow solution.
To make a
test pour some of the yellow solution into a test tube or small drinking glass.
Add a few drops of urine or saliva. If it turns ruby red, then what was added
had a pH greater than 6.8 (neutral or alkaline). If it stays yellow, then the
pH is less than 6.8 (acid). For making an extract of red cabbage with a very wide
pH indicator range see the Acid - Alkaline
Balance.
If
the overacidity was caused by an unbalanced food intake with too much acid-forming
foods and not enough alkalizing foods, then the urine may respond within days
to alkalizing remedies and foods. Acid-forming foods are generally high in
phosphorus, such as meat, fish and eggs. Also sugar and refined cereals low in
minerals increase acidity. However, if the overacidity is caused by damage to
the oxidizing component of the cellular energy production then the
overproduction of lactic acid may continue for a long time until health is
sufficiently improved, for instance when a systemic Candida infection has been
removed.
Another
common cause of overacidity are allergies, especially food allergies. If you
avoid an allergenic food for several days the urine may become more alkaline
but if you then re-introduce the food, urine and saliva become again more acid
within hours. You can make a urine test about two and a half hours after eating
the food. To reduce or stop an allergic reaction take in a drink a rounded
teaspoon of 2 parts of sodium bicarbonate and 1 part of potassium citrate. If necessary repeat this dose an hour later.
However,
in the long term there is a price to pay for trying to make your lymph fluid
alkaline: the body may gradually start forming calcium deposits. That is good
for teeth, bones and joints, but you do not want other tissue to calcify as
this will cause stiffness and speed up aging. This is what commonly happens
with chronic inflammations anyway - over the years they cause calcium to
accumulate in the inflamed areas, and this reduces inflammation and increases
stiffness.
Therefore,
when chronic inflammation and its related disease processes are no longer a
problem but stiffness increases instead, then it is best to lower the pH of
urine and saliva to a slightly acid pH level of about 6.4 to 6.8 or to when
turmeric just turns from red to yellow.
Summary for taking Alkalizers
The
following recommendations are the maximum amounts. Start with a lower dose and
increase gradually up to 3 teaspoons daily. It is important to check your pH
and adjust the intake of alkalizers as your pH moves
into the required range.
How to use Potassium citrate: Take up to 1 level teaspoon 3 x a day
directly mixed with meals, or with some diluted vegetable or fruit juice, or
stir into a green drink (a mix of spirulina, wheat or barley grass, and
chlorella is great).
How to use Sodium bicarbonate: Take at least ½ hour before a meal or
2 to 3 hours after a meal, up to 1 rounded teaspoon 3 times daily. You may also
add 1 teaspoon each of sodium bicarbonate and psyllium hulls to a large glass
of water, stir and drink immediately, best soon after rising.
Directions for combining Potassium
citrate and Sodium bicarbonate: You may use both at a ratio of 2 parts of
sodium bicarbonate to 1 part of potassium citrate, or alternatively you may
also mix equal parts or use more potassium. These may be taken together in the
same drink such as diluted juice or a green drink; take at least ½ hour before
or 2 to 3 hours after a meal. If using
them separately you may take 1 teaspoon of sodium bicarbonate each early in
the morning and late in the afternoon, and a teaspoon of potassium at midday;
you may also use any other sequence.
When to test your pH: To beat inflammation initially test
several times a day without much attention to mealtimes and, except for morning
urine, it should be above pH 7. For those who want to reduce stiffness, 6.0 to
6.5 in the morning is OK but then throughout the day it should be between 6.5
and 7.0. After initially testing more frequently it is OK later to test only
occasionally, perhaps once or twice a week, best 3 hours after a meal or snack
at the same time of the day.