Throughout the human body, pH is tightly regulated.
pH and the Body
monitor blood pH in patients in the ICU is crucial because this can alert you to a number of problems such as complications arising from diabetes, infection, and other serious medical issues can cause dangerous shifts in the body’s pH levels.
pH is important — both inside and outside the body. And using harsh pH-disrupting soaps or solutions may contribute to skin-related problems. But to date, there’s little evidence to support claims that pH-centered diets or drinks can predictably improve any element of a person’s health.
the top layer of the skin functions best in a mildly acidic state.
This acidity encourages the healthy turnover, repair, and maintenance of the skin’s cells. Except of some cases, like for example someone who has eczema. Friedman said.
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“Acidity also affects the health of the skin’s microbiota,” Friedman says, referring to the billions of microscopic organisms that live on the surface of the skin and help form its protective barrier. When the skin’s pH levels are out of whack, this can encourage the growth of some bacteria over others, which can leave the skin vulnerable to breaches or infections.
That's why a lot of skin care products tout the ability to regulate pH
But in some cases, products can also interfere with the skin’s pH levels. Friedman says that a lot of traditional soaps are “very basic” and contain charged particles that break apart fats in the skin. While these attributes can help these soaps clean away dirt and grime, they can shift the skin’s acid balance in ways that dry it out and cause damage.
Food and drinks
In the stomach, digestive enzymes produce a highly acidic environment, which facilitates the breakdown of food.
Some researchers have speculated that acid-promoting or acid-reducing diets may affect the gut’s microbiome. And online, there’s no shortage of people making claims that low-acid or high acid diets are able to induce health benefits in part by influencing the diversity or well-being of the microbiome. But Mayer, who studies the microbiome and gut health, says he’s aware of no evidence to back up these claims.
“The body has very powerful mechanisms to adjust pH regardless of what you eat or drink"
Fenton says a plant food’s fiber and other beneficial nutrients, not its effects on dietary acid, better explain its health benefits. “Focusing on diet acid load just confuses matters,”
Some studies, including a 2015 paper in the Journal of Bone and Mineral Research, have found that supplementing older adults’ diets with alkaline salts of potassium seems to “neutralize” dietary acid load in ways that may safeguard bones and muscles from age-related breakdown. But these effects were observed primarily among those who had a big dietary acid disparity to begin with — that is, people who tended to eat a lot of meat and grains and not enough fruits or vegetables.
Chemists use the pH scale, which generally ranges from zero to 14, to measure acidity.
Something that has a pH below seven is termed acidic
Something with a pH above seven is basic or alkaline