Which of These Acid Forming Foods
Are the Worst For Your Health?

When our bodies have become too acidic, the last thing you want to do is eat a lot of acid forming foods.

It is important to understand that they are not necessarily acid foods.

Unsure about the difference?

Check out the information about body pH balance.

These foods are important to know if you are trying to reverse the process of low-grade acidosis or just increase your overall body pH to make it more alkaline.

The worst of the acid forming foods

Almost all processed foods top the list, especially those that contain:

  • artificial sweeteners
  • high fructose corn syrup
  • hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils (trans fats)
  • refined white sugar and flour

You're not surprised, are you?

So put down that soda and twinkie and listen up!

The easiest way to figure out which of these foods are the most acidifying is to consider how many of the nutrients have been removed (and, in most cases, replaced with chemicals).

Or, as in the case with soda (or pop, coke, whatever you call it), there were never any nutrients there to begin with.

I am REALLY anti-soda, so I might as well get this out now.

Your body is made up of roughly ten gallons of water. Your body tries very hard to keep that water slightly alkaline. But if you drink just 8 oz of soda, it would be enough to make that water's pH one thousand times more acidic than it should be.

Thankfully, our bodies do not let that happen. But it puts a tremendous amount of stress on our tissues and organs to neutralize all that acid. And that is just from 8 oz of soda. How many people do you know that drink soda all day long?!

And diet soda is even worse because of all the artificial sweeteners added. Drop the soda habit. Your body and your waistline will thank you.

The healthy acid forming foods

Yes, I said healthy. Don't think that the solution is to eliminate all acidifying foods from your diet. Being too alkaline is just as bad as too acidic. Remember - our bodies need balance.

We should be eating a variety of protein-rich foods like eggs, grass-fed beef and other pastured meats, fish, and dairy to supply the critical amino acids.

So if you are looking to reduce the acid load in your body, simply select the less acid forming foods more often.

Here are some quick guidelines:

All grains are acidic, but:

  • Brown breads are less acidic than whole-grain breads
  • Whole grain breads are less acidic than white breads

All meats are on the acidic side, but:

  • Pastured and grass-fed meats are best
  • Fish are less acidic than white meat which is less acidic than red meat
  • All shellfish are highly acidic except for oysters (which are an excellent source of minerals)
  • Deli meats are the most acidic of all, and the ones chock full of chemical preservatives should be avoided

Most dairy products are acidic, but:

  • Soft cheeses are less acidic than harder cheeses
  • The longer the cheese is aged, the more acidic it is
  • Homogenized milk is acidifying, but raw milk is not (good luck finding it though)

Now that you are aware of the highest acid forming foods, check out the alkaline forming foods.


- - Acid Forming Foods