pH of the Body

Name: ____________________________ Period: ___________ Date: ___________

Assign an article to each person in your group and then on a separate sheet of paper answer the following questions THOROUGHLY in a group discussion. Each person in the group must WRITE one of the answers down. 1. What is the normal pH of the body? Why is it important to maintain this pH? What happens when our pH becomes too acidic or too basic? 2. What causes the pH of the body to become too acidic or too alkaline (basic)? List specific foods that can cause your body to become too acidic or too alkaline. 3. What are symptoms of a high body acid pH? What does “toxic blood” look like? How does it specifically affect the heart and the enzymes of your body? 4. List at least 2-3 food items per person that you eat at least once a week and find out from the food list whether those items are highly acidic or alkaline. (Make a chart of each persons name with the foods they eat and the foods’ pH) 5. What are some ways to test the body’s pH? How can we reverse or shift the pH of our bodies SPECIFICALLY? (list AND explain at least 3 ways)

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ARTICLE #1 – pH of the Body WHAT MOST PEOPLE DON'T REALIZE; WE ARE BIOELECTRICAL ENGINES In order to accomplish all the many millions of complex functions that occur over the course of the day, your body has to be able to communicate with itself… all the way down to the cellular level. And do you know how it does this? Through pulses of electricity. That's right, electricity. Your body operates on an electro magnetic current. Believe it or not, all of the organs in your body emit these fields of electrical current. In fact, nerve signals are nothing more than electrical charges. What creates this electrical power in your body is a very fine balance that exists in your bio chemistry. And of all the systems in your body that depend on this delicate, bio chemical balance, one of the most important is your blood stream. This is where pH comes into play. But what is pH? WHAT pH IS AND WHY IT IS IMPORTANT TO ALL YOUR BODY FUNCTIONS pH is a scale that measures how acidic or alkaline a substance is. The scale ranges from 1 to 14 with 1 being very acid, 7 neutral and 14 very alkaline. So what does pH have to do with you and your blood? Well, the pH of your blood is extremely important. The ideal pH level for your blood is right around 7.35 and your body goes to enormous lengths to maintain this level. Why? Because if your blood pH were to vary 1 or 2 points in either direction, it would change the electrical chemistry in your body, there would be no electrical power and in short order you would drop dead. As you can see, maintaining the right pH level in your blood is pretty important!! With this in mind a good way to avoid upsetting this delicate bio chemical balance would be to take a look at those things that can compromise the maintenance of the ideal pH level in your body. And what is the main culprit in this case? The answer is the creation of acid in your body. Before we look at what causes acid, here's a graphic example to give you an idea of what can happen in the blood when your pH drops to less than ideal. Red blood cells are how oxygen is transported to all the cells in your body. As red blood cells move into the tiny, little, capillaries, the space they have to move through gets pretty small. In fact, the diameter of the capillaries gets so small that the red blood cells sometimes have to pass through these capillaries one red blood cell at a time! Because of this, and because it's important for the red blood cells to be able to flow easily and quickly through your body, they have a mechanism that allows them to remain separate from each other. This mechanism comes in the form of the outside of healthy red blood cells having a negative charge. This causes them to stay apart from each other, sort of like when you try to push the negative ends of two magnets together. They resist each other and stay apart. Unfortunately, acid interferes with this very important mechanism in a pretty frightening way. Acid actually strips away the negative charge from red blood cells. The result is that your red blood cells then tend to clump together and not flow as easily. This makes it much more difficult for them to flow easily through the bloodstream. But it also makes it harder for them to move freely through those small capillaries. This means less oxygen gets to your cells. Acid also weakens the red blood cells and they begin to die. And guess what they release into your system when they die? More acid. I could describe a whole list of processes that occur when your system becomes and remains acid but I think you get the idea. The 2

point is that aside from the acid that is secreted into your stomach to aid digestion, acid in your body is bad. Really bad. In regard to producing energy in the body, here's an easy question for you. What do you think happens to a person's energy level if over time their system becomes more and more acid, their biochemical balance is disrupted and their red blood cells can't deliver oxygen and nutrients as efficiently to all their cells? The answer is simple. Their energy level drops. Dramatically. Are you beginning to get the picture here as to the importance of pH in your body? Good. Now let's take a quick look at what causes acidity in your body and then look at steps you can take to get your body pH back to an ideal level. WHAT CAUSES ACID IN THE BODY The primary cause of an acidic condition in your body is from what you put in your mouth. In other words, what you eat and what you drink. And it isn't how "acid" something may seem when you eat or drink it. It has to do with what is left over when you digest it. Specifically, does eating or drinking something leave behind an acid or alkaline "ash". For example, I don't know about you but I love seafood. Scallops are one of my favorites. However, when your body digests scallops, it leaves an extremely acid ash. In fact, scallops are one of the most acid foods you can eat. Unfortunately, a lot of the things most people put in their mouths create an acid ash. These include alcohol, coffee and a lot of flesh protein in your diet. Interestingly enough, stress also tends to create an acid condition in the body. STEPS YOU CAN IMMEDIATELY TAKE TO IMPROVE YOUR pH Fortunately, it is pretty easy to immediately change your pH for the better and make it more alkaline. The first step is to understand which of the foods you are eating and the drinks you are drinking are acid and which are alkaline. Then it's simply a matter of eliminating some of the more acid foods you are eating and adding in more alkaline foods. However, before you start, it's important to get a baseline of what the pH is in your body so that you can see how you are improving or if you need to continue to eliminate more acid foods and add in more alkaline ones. You can do this by testing the pH of your saliva on a regular basis. This is really simple to do. More details on how to do this are provided on some web pages I have created for you to help you out. A link to these pages is provided below.

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ARTICLE #2 – pH of the Body pH Balance Information When the body is too acidic as a result of acid forming foods, high fat, mucus forming foods, and toxic food residues, disease and infections proliferate. This is especially true in cases of arthritis and rheumatic situations. Most foods are alkaline by nature, but manufactured processed foods are acidic. It is important to balance each meal with 75% alkaline to 25% acidic to maintain health.Perfect body pH is 6.4, above is alkaline and below is acidic. It is important that your daily dietary intake of food naturally balances your body pH. A Universal diet does not exist. People are individual and personal. So what works for one person may not work for the next. A balanced diet is unique for each person. To find balance, it is helpful to know not only your own personal needs, but the correct preparation of whole foods, how not to overeat, how to choose high-quality foods, avoiding too many unnatural food combinations, and the art of learning the broad range of nutritious foods including chlorophyll-rich plants, the best source of certain fatty acids, and the dangers of food chemicals like aspartame, MSG, and food colorings. When a good attitude and sufficient exercise are combined with a balanced and disciplined diet, you can find no limit to health. Remember that we eat to live; we do not live to eat. When food is seen as an object separate from other aspects of life, we create an imbalance. Preoccupation with food creates the illusion of a mind/body separation. Get back to the basics of eating, and recognize your individuality in relation to nutrition. The human body should be slightly alkaline in order to build an alkaline reserve for acid-forming conditions such as stress, lack of exercise, or poor dietary habits. Acid-forming examples: • • • • • • • • •

Meats fish poultry eggs most dairy (Milk is approximately neutral in acid/alkaline but high in mucus-forming attributes such as fat.) most grains and legumes (Millet and roasted buckwheat are slightly alkalizing. Soy and lima beans are extremely alkalizing.) refined sugars drugs food chemicals Alkaline-producing examples:

• • • • •

Fruits Vegetables Sprouts Cereal grasses Herbs

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The acid and alkaline balance can be changed by simple practices such as: • • •

Soak mildly acid-forming foods such as whole grains and legumes before cooking them, starting the sprouting process, which is alkalizing. Chew thoroughly the complex carbohydrates as grains, vegetables, and legumes in order to mix them with salvia, a very alkaline fluid that begins the digestive process. Do not drink while eating, as this stops the digestive process from beginning within the mouth.

The correct ratio of acid and alkaline forming foods is difficult to know since the balance is altered by chewing, food preparation, individual lifestyle, genetics, exercise, and mental outlook. However, those prone to infections, viruses, excess mucus problems and other toxic acidic conditions need to increase their alkaline diet. Most foods are alkaline by nature, but manufactured processed foods are acidic. It is important to balance each meal with 75% alkaline to 25% acidic to maintain health.Perfect body pH is 6.4, above is alkaline and below is acidic. It is important that your daily dietary intake of food naturally balances your body pH.

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ARTICLE #3 – pH of the Body Disease thrives in acidity. How Do You Know If You're Overly Acidic? New Biology, most simply stated, is the fact that the over-acidification of the body is the single underlying cause of all disease. In contrast, the old biology, based on the work of Louis Pasteur in the late 1800s, stems from the idea that disease comes from germs which invade the body from the outside. Dr. Young has found that when the body is in healthy alkaline balance, germs are unable to get a foothold. Think of your body as a fish tank. Think of the importance of maintaining the integrity of the internal fluids of the body that we swim in daily. Imagine the fish in this tank are your cells and organ systems bathed in fluids, which transport food and remove wastes. Now imagine we back up a car and put the tailpipe up against the air intake filter that supplies the oxygen for the water in the tank. The water becomes filled with carbon monoxide, lowering the alkaline pH, creating and acidic pH environment, and threatening the health of the fish, your cells and organs. What if we throw in too much food or the wrong kind of food (acid-producing food like dairy, sugar, and animal protein) and the fish are unable to consume or digest it all, and it starts to decompose and putrefy? Toxic acid waste and chemicals build up as the food breaks down, creating more acidic byproducts, altering the optimum alkaline pH. Basically, this is a small example of what we may be doing to our internal fluids every day. We are fouling them with pollution (smoking), drugs, excessive intake of food, over-consumption of acidforming foods (dairy food, sugar, animal protein), and any number of transgressions which compromise the delicate balance of our internal alkaline fluids. Some of us have fish tanks (bodies) that are barely able to support life, yet we somehow manage to struggle from day to day, building more severe imbalances until there is the inevitable crash and debilitating chronic, disturbing and disorganizing symptoms to deal with. The pH level (the acid-alkaline measurement) of our internal fluids affects every cell in our bodies. Extended acid imbalances of any kind are not well tolerated by the body. Indeed, the entire metabolic process depends on a balanced internal alkaline environment. A chronically over-acidic pH corrodes body tissue, slowly eating into the 60,000 miles of veins and arteries like acid eating into marble. If left unchecked, it will interrupt all cellular activities and functions, from the beating of your heart to the neural firing of your brain. In summary, over-acidification interferes with life itself leading to all sickness and disease!

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ARTICLE #4 – pH of the Body Balancing Acid/Alkaline Foods A surprising number and variety of physical problems and diseases can be caused by the problem of foods that are acid-producing after digestion. Today the vast majority of the populace in industrialized nations suffers from problems caused by the stress of acidosis, because both modern lifestyle and diet promote acidification of the body's internal environment. The current typical Western diet is largely composed of acid-forming foods (proteins, cereals, sugars). Alkaline-producing foods such as vegetables are eaten in much smaller quantities. Stimulants like tobacco, coffee, tea, and alcohol are also extremely acidifying. Stress, and physical activity (both insufficient or excessive amounts) also cause acidification. Many foods are alkaline-producing by nature, but manufactured processed foods are mostly acidproducing. It is important to consume at least 60% alkaline-producing foods in our diet, in order to maintain health. We need plenty of fresh fruits and particularly vegetables (alkaline-producing) to balance our necessary protein intake (acid-producing). And we need to avoid processed, sugary or simple-carbohydrate foods, not only because they are acid-producing but also because they raise blood sugar level too quickly (high glycemic index therefore fattening); plus they tend to be nutrientlacking and may be toxic too. What is the body's pH? Water is the most abundant compound in the human body, comprising 70% of the body. The body therefore contains a wide range of solutions, which may be more or less acid. pH (potential of Hydrogen) is a measure of the acidity or alkalinity of a solution - the ratio between positively charged ions (acid-forming) and negatively charged ions (alkaline-forming.) The pH of any solution is the measure of its hydrogen-ion concentration. The higher the pH reading, the more alkaline and oxygen rich the fluid is. The lower the pH reading, the more acidic and oxygen deprived the fluid is. The pH range is from 0 to 14, with 7.0 being neutral. Anything above 7.0 is alkaline, anything below 7.0 is considered acidic. Human blood pH should be slightly alkaline (7.35 - 7.45). Below or above this range means symptoms and disease. If blood pH moves below 6.8 or above 7.8, cells stop functioning and the body dies. The body therefore continually strives to balance pH. When this balance is compromised many problems can occur. An imbalanced diet high in acidic-producing foods such as animal protein, sugar, caffeine, and processed foods puts pressure on the body's regulating systems to maintain pH neutrality. The extra buffering required can deplete the body of alkaline minerals such as sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium, making the person prone to chronic and degenerative disease. Minerals are borrowed from vital organs and bones to buffer (neutralize) the acid and safely remove it from the body. Because of this strain, the body can suffer severe and prolonged damage--a condition that may go undetected for years.

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Health problems caused by acidosis If you have a health problem, most likely you are suffering from acidosis. Research shows that unless the body's pH level is slightly alkaline, the body cannot heal itself. So no matter what means you choose to take care of your health, it won't be effective until the pH level is balanced. If your body's pH is not balanced, for example, you cannot effectively assimilate vitamins, minerals and food supplements. Your body pH affects everything. Acidosis will decrease the body's ability to absorb minerals and other nutrients, decrease the energy production in the cells, decrease it's ability to repair damaged cells, decrease it's ability to detoxify heavy metals, make tumor cells thrive, and make it more susceptible to fatigue and illness. An acidic pH can occur from an acid-forming diet, emotional stress, toxic overload, and/or immune reactions or any process that deprives the cells of oxygen and other nutrients. The body will try to compensate for acidic pH by using alkaline minerals. If the diet does not contain enough minerals to compensate, a build up of acids in the cells will occur. Acidosis can cause such problems as: Cardiovascular damage. Weight gain, obesity and diabetes. Bladder conditions. Kidney stones. Immune deficiency. Acceleration of free radical damage. Hormonal problems. Premature aging. Osteoporosis and joint pain. Aching muscles and lactic acid buildup. Low energy and chronic fatigue.

Slow digestion and elimination. Yeast/fungal overgrowth. Lack of energy and fatigue. Lower body temperature. Tendency to get infections. Loss of drive, joy, and enthusiasm. Depressive tendencies. Easily stressed. Pale complexion. Headaches. Inflammation of the corneas and eyelids.

Loose and painful teeth. Inflamed, sensitive gums. Mouth and stomach ulcers. Cracks at the corners of the lips. Excess stomach acid. Gastritis. Nails are thin and split easily. Hair looks dull, has split ends, and falls out. Dry skin. Skin easily irritated. Leg cramps and spasms.

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ARTICLE #5 – pH of the Body Foods: are they Acid or Alkaline-forming? Note that a food's acid or alkaline-forming tendency in the body has nothing to do with the actual pH of the food itself. For example, lemons are very acidic, however the end-products they produce after digestion and assimilation are very alkaline so lemons are alkaline-forming in the body. Likewise, meat will test alkaline before digestion but it leaves acidic residue in the body so, like nearly all animal products, meat is classified as acid-forming. It is important that your daily dietary intake of food naturally acts to balance your body pH. To maintain health, the diet should consist of at least 60% alkaline forming foods and at most 40% acid forming foods. To restore health, the diet should consist of 80% alkaline forming foods and 20% acid forming foods. Food Category

High Alkaline

Alkaline

Low Alkaline

Beans, Vegetables, Legumes

Asparagus, Onions, Vegetable Juices, Parsley, Raw Spinach, Broccoli, Garlic, Barley Grass

Squash, Green Beans, Beets, Celery, Lettuce, Zucchini, Sweet Potato, Carob

Carrots, Tomatoes, Fresh Corn, Mushrooms, Cabbage, Peas, Cauliflower, Turnip, Olives,Soybeans

Fruit

Lemons, Watermelon, Limes,Grapefruit, Mangoes, Papayas

Dates, Figs, Melons,Grapes, Papaya, Kiwi, Berries, Apples, Pears, Raisins

Grains, Cereals

Low Acid

Acid

Cooked Spinach, Kidney Beans

Potatoes (without skins), Pinto Beans, Navy Beans, Lima Beans

Oranges, Bananas,Cherries, Pineapple, Peaches, Avocados

Plums, Processed Fruit Juices

Sour Cherries, Rhubarb, Canned Fruit

Blueberries, Cranberries, Prunes, Sweetened Fruit Juice

Amaranth, Millet, Lentils, Sweetcorn, Wild Rice, Quinoa

Rye Bread, Sprouted Wheat Bread, Spelt, Brown Rice

White Rice, Corn, Buckwheat, Oats, Rye

Wheat, White Bread, Pastries, Biscuits, Pasta

Liver, Oysters, Turkey, Venison, Cold Water Chicken, Lamb Fish

Meat

High Acid

Beef, Pork, Shellfish

Eggs & Dairy

Breast Milk

Soy Cheese, Soy Milk, Goat Milk, Goat Cheese, Whey

Eggs, Butter, Yogurt, Buttermilk, Cottage Cheese,Cream

Raw Milk

Cheese, Homogenized Milk, Ice Cream, Custard

Nuts & Seeds

Almonds

Chestnuts, Brazils, Hazelnuts, Coconut

Pumpkin, Sesame, Sunflower seeds

Pecans, Cashews, Pistachios

Peanuts, Walnuts

Oils

Olive Oil

Flax Seed Oil

Canola Oil

Corn Oil, Sunflower Oil, Margarine,, Lard

Beverages

Herb Teas, Lemon Water

Green Tea

Ginger Tea

Tea, Cocoa

Coffee, Wine

Beer, Liquor, Soft Drinks

Stevia

Maple Syrup, Rice Syrup

Processed Honey

Sugar, Molasses, Jam, Ketchup, Mayo, Mustard, Vinegar

Artificial Sweeteners, Chocolate

Sweeteners, Condiments

Raw Honey, Raw Sugar

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What difference does it make to have toxic blood? In order for the body to remain healthy and alive, your body keeps a delicate and precise balance of blood pH at 7.365, which is slightly alkaline. The body does whatever it has to in order to maintain this balance. The problem is that most people have incredibly acid lifestyles. Acid is produced in your body whenever you have stress, upset emotions and when the food you eat is acid-forming. The typical diet is significantly acidic. So what happens to your body when you're over-acid? Your body will store excess acid in your fat cells (which is why so many people have such trouble losing weight). Over time, your body will leach calcium and alkaline stores from your bones in a desperate attempt to retain the pH balance in your body (which is why some people "shrink" as they get older). Your blood plays a very important role in your healthy and energy: it carries oxygen to all your cells! This gives you energy, and it's what keeps you alive. It also plays a key role in how energizing your sleep is. Here's a picture of healthy red blood cells:

Do you see how far apart the blood cells are from each other? As a result, your blood can move freely throughout your entire body, and get into all your small capillaries, so you feel like your whole body is getting energy. During deep sleep, proper blood flow and hydration is important. When your blood looks like this, your sleep is also really energizing and you need less of it! Blood cells have a negative charge on the outside and a positive charge inside; this is what keeps them healthy and far apart from each other. However, when your body is over-acidic, the acid strips your blood of it's negative charge. Your blood cells no longer have the same repelling force and clump together like this:

When your blood is clumped together, it no longer can get to all the little capillaries in your body to give you the life giving oxygen you need. It no longer can give ever cell of your body the energizing and rejuvenating effects. This is the major reason why some people feel horrible when they wake up, and why they need to sleep longer. It's also why you tend to wake up feeling de-hydrated. 10

ARTICLE #6 – pH of the Body How You Rot & Rust According to many health researchers, total healing of chronic illness takes place only when and if the blood is restored to a normal, slightly alkaline pH. In case you missed it, let me say it again... Total healing of chronic illness takes place only when and if the blood is restored to a normal, slightly alkaline pH. The magnitude of meaning behind this research is of incredible importance to someone who is fighting a disease, overcoming an illness, or just desiring to feel better. What it means is this... Your Body pH Effects Everything Human blood stays in a very narrow pH range right around 7.3. Below or above this range means symptoms and disease. When pH goes off, microbial looking forms in the blood can change shape, mutate, mirror pathogenicity, and grow. When pH goes off, ENZYMES that are constructive can become destructive. When pH goes off, OXYGEN delivery to cells suffers. A Word About Oxygen More and more research is showing that low oxygen delivery to cells is a major factor in most if not all degenerative conditions. Nobel laureate, Dr. Otto Warburg of Germany, won his Nobel Prize for his discovery of oxygen deficiency in the CANCER growth process. As stated above, when pH is off and our bodies are running more acidic, our cells are getting less oxygen. Cancer thrives under an acid tissue pH/oxygen deficient environment. Is it any wonder today that cancer rates are up? To recall how important oxygen is to your life, just stop breathing for a minute. Get the idea? Each cell in your body can breathe fully or not. Which it is depends upon having an optimum pH balance. Do you think keeping an eye on your body pH might be important in your life? pH Controls the Things You Can't Live Without... Like your BRAIN. Your brain needs fuel to run, and the fuel it uses is glucose. But unlike other cells, your brain can't store glucose. It depends on the second to second supply from the bloodstream - a bloodstream that is affected by pH, which controls the efficiency of INSULIN, which allows sugar to enter into cells, which in turn controls blood sugar levels. Your HEART. William Philpott M.D. in his 'Biomagnetic Handbook' made an important body pH/electrical connection. As the pH of the blood goes more acid, fatty acids, which are normally electromagnetically charged on the negative side switch to positive and automatically are attracted to and begin to stick to the walls of arteries which are electro-magnetically charged on the negative side. (And as science states, opposites attract.) It should start to make sense that a society which over-emphasizes food that could push blood to be more acid will have a high rate of heart disease. And so it goes. pH control impacts every biochemical process in the body including... ENZYMES which are part of that biochemical process. There are hundreds if not thousands of enzyme processes which take place in the body. Many are so specific that they are like complex square pegs that need to "fit" into specific square holes in order to carry out their duty. If blood pH is 11

off balance even a little, some important pegs are not "fitting" their respective slots. Enzyme function and thus life itself begins to suffer. Mineral assimilation in the body is also affected by pH. Iodine, which is high up on the atomic scale, requires near perfect pH for its assimilation into the body. Iodine you may know, is one of the most important minerals for proper functioning of the THYROID. But, the thyroid doesn't get access to iodine unless the body pH is near perfect. With a society in a largely pH unbalanced state, one would suspect a lot of thyroid problems. Malfunctioning thyroids have been connected to arthritis, heart attacks, diabetes, cancer, depression, overweight, fatigue and more. Are you starting to see the basic metabolic picture evolving here? Due primarily to agricultural soil depletion and over-acidic food consumption, mineral deficiency is a large problem facing most people today. And mineral deficiency relates to the quantity of life energy or, more specifically, electricity, in our bodies. pH Balance and the Mineral Connection There are complex biochemical processes taking place in the body constantly in an attempt to keep blood pH as near perfect as possible. These are known as the pH buffering systems. These buffering systems need a good balance of minerals to work effectively. If we are getting inadequate mineral intake from the food we eat, we are going to start having problems with our pH balancing systems. And if our pH is unbalanced, what is the result? Well, by now you should start having a good idea. Pick your disease, choose your unbalance. Cancer, arthritis, diabetes, heart disease, chronic fatigue, allergies, obesity, just name it. If you don't feel good, one of the basic things that stands between you and perfect health is your body's pH. Your basic metabolic body balance. While We're on the Subject of Minerals.... Minerals are as important as, if not more important than, vitamins. Minerals are co-enzymes which help vitamins function. In the absence of minerals, vitamins can't do their job. Many minerals are referred to as trace minerals, which might make it seem as though they are of little importance, but nothing could be further from the truth. Minerals and their deficiencies have been implicated in a wide range of off-balance health conditions. Here are some examples: • • • • • • • • •

Supplementing a diet with sufficient chromium and vanadium can help prevent diabetes and has been seen to reverse diabetes in those already diabetic, as vanadium is reportedly able to replace insulin in some cases. Copper deficiency is implicated in aneurysms (brain, aortic, etc.) Magnesium is quite possibly the most important mineral for the reduction of coronary heart disease. Boron helps keep calcium in the bones, helps women preserve and make estrogen, and helps men keep testosterone. Boron affects alertness. Boron can help eliminate arthritis. Potassium and magnesium (along with organic sodium) are some of the most important minerals for rebalancing the electrical properties of the cell, for eliminating excess acidity, and for helping to balance calcium. Magnesium helps conduct electrical messages between all the neurons of the body. People get irrational when potassium levels are low. Zinc is involved in over 200 brain enzyme interactions. Drinking zinc mixed with distilled water can stop anorexia nervosa in a day. 12

• • •

• • • • •

Zinc deficiency symptoms include loss of taste and smell. Zinc deficiency in children results in moodiness, depression, irritability, photo phobia (light sensitivity), antagonism, temper tantrums & learning problems. Children who do poorly on achievement tests tend to have low iron levels. These children also display disruptive, impulsive and irritable behavior in the classroom. Children who have high lead levels do more poorly overall. Most of these children's mineral imbalances go undiagnosed and instead are medicated with drugs. Likewise, ADD - Attention Deficit Disorder can often be eliminated by balancing nutritional trace minerals. There is no need to drug our children. Cigarette smoke is rich in cadmium (the blue color in the smoke). Cadmium is the most neurotoxic substance known to human beings. A low zinc/high cadmium ratio is implicated in learning disabilities. Too much copper is an irritant to the brain. High manganese levels show statistically high correlation with violent behavior., while lithium balances and helps control manganese. The cities of the world with the highest lithium concentration in their water show the lowest homicide rates. The trace element rubidium cures manic depression. This information shows just a teeny fraction of how minerals and mineral imbalances can affect your health. Much of this information is buried in professional journals, there for the taking. It appears that due to politics and the influence and strength that the medical/drug industrial complex has over the suppression of information, these things stay buried.

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