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Health diet fads

Once again, the value of education demonstrates itself.

Once again, the value of education demonstrates itself.

Promoted by celebrities for weight loss and resistance to disease, the rationale behind the popular alkaline diet is being criticized by experts as ‘junk science.’

For those who don’t know, the reasoning behind the alkaline diet is that eating acidic foods, like red meat, can lead to weight gain and detrimental health conditions like cancer and osteoporosis.

So, it’s better to eat more alkaline foods, like vegetables, to prevent such concerns and keep the body’s blood pH balance from becoming acidic.

But experts like Joe Schwartz, chemist at McGill University, says the science behind the diet is taken out of context and doesn’t make sense.

The problem is, you can’t change the pH balance of your body. If you do, your body works on its own to bring it back into the normal range.

You don’t need to eat certain foods to restore your pH balance, your body does that no matter what you eat.

Regardless of what kind of food is taken in, the human body takes what it needs from it and removes what it doesn’t as waste.

It’s true vegetables are good for you and too much red meat is not, but vegetables aren’t good for you because they are alkaline, they are good for you because most are full of nutrients, high in fiber and low in fat. By the same token, red meat is not unhealthy because it is acidic, it is only unhealthy when consumed in large quantities without other important food groups, like vegetables.

It’s not uncommon for sound scientific explanations to be taken out of context and used to explain such health fads.

Take vitamin supplements for example.

It is no secret that vitamins are important to maintain a healthy body. Many doctors will suggest taking a daily multi-vitamin to ensure that people get all the vitamins and supplements they need to do so. However, the health benefits of such supplements are often exaggerated.

As mentioned above, the human body is constantly working to maintain a healthy balance of nutrients, vitamins and all the other substances found in the body essential for survival.

In essence, the human body wants to stay in a kind of equilibrium.

When it needs things, the body will take them out of the food we eat, air we breathe, some things are even absorbed through the skin.

Likewise, when the body doesn’t need things, it gets rid of them by expelling them as waste.

Vitamin D for example is an important ingredient in building strong bones and maintaining a healthy immune system. However, only those with Vitamin D deficiency benefit from taking Vitamin D supplements.

New research suggests that there are little to no health benefits to taking Vitamin D for those who are not deficient. In fact, according to professor Karl Michaelsson of Uppsala University in Sweden, it may even be harmful.

It is best to consult your doctor if you feel you need to take any kind of supplement. If not, your body is just going to waste it anyway.