Is Your Body Overwhelmed by Meats, Wheats, Treats and Sweets?

BLOOMINGTON, MINN. — Food offers more than just nutrition; it also fuels the body, giving it the energy needed to function. However, few people consider the chemistry behind food, according to Joseph Sweere, DC, DABCO, DACBOH, a professor at Northwestern Health Sciences University for 20 years and the author of “Golden Rules for a Vibrant Life in Mind, Body and Spirit.”

“The food nature provides is a product of the soil, the air, sunshine, and water. Those factors combine to yield the energy needed to drive the human body,” says Dr. Sweere. “Food is the conversion of the chemistry of the food to the chemistry of the body. The brain and the nervous system convert food into electrical energy. The greatest single challenge that Americans face is we consume foods that are predominately acid forming rather than alkaline forming. “Alkalinity and acidity refer to the pH of the fluids in and around all the cells in your body. A solution with a pH of 7.0 is neutral, one with a pH of more than 7.0 is alkaline, and one with a pH lower than 7.0 is acidic. Under the best conditions, your salivary pH, which mirrors the pH of the fluid bathing all your tissue cells, should be in the alkaline range of 7.0-7.5 with an ideal of 7.4.”

Dr. Sweere challenges his patients to eat a ratio of 80 percent alkaline-forming foods and

20 percent acid-forming foods. Alkaline-forming foods include most fruits and vegetables. Acidic foods include most beans, dairy products, wheat products, meats, nuts, and sugars.

“Americans are overwhelmed by what I call the meats, wheats, treats, and sweets, as well as by dairy, soft drinks, and alcohol,” he says. “I think most Americans have their diets lopsided in the ratio. The ratio is almost 20/80 in reverse, and the concern then is inflammation. Inflammation sets the stage for the number-one killer of humans in America: cardiovascular disease.”

Acidic foods also cause a predisposition to atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries, and disorders related to arthritis; and create an environment in which cancer thrives, says Dr. Swere. He says if people eat differently, most of those diseases can be prevented.

In addition to selecting less acidic foods, Dr. Sweere urges patients to drink enough water. “Most people don’t think of water as a food,” says Dr. Sweere. “But it’s profoundly important.”

He suggests dividing body weight in half, and drinking that number in ounces each day. For example, a person who weighs 160 pounds should drink 80 ounces of water each day.

“The human body is 70 percent water; therefore, every tissue cell requires water as an internal cleansing mechanism,” he says. “We dissipate our waste through our urinary tract. And water facilities the transfer of energy throughout the body through the electrolytes so that the minerals that are in the water are dispersed.”

The quality of water also matters, says Dr. Sweere. He suggests people have water purifier or filtration systems in their homes, rather than using faucets or drinking distilled water.

Not only is the quality of water important, the quality of food is also very important, according to Dr. Sweere. For example, people should not eat artificial sweeteners or MSG, and when cooking, people should use olive oil, rather than Crisco. But more importantly, people should eat organic.

“People say that it costs more, but I say there’s no co-pay,” says Dr. Sweere. “Would you rather go to the doctor or the grocery store? Food is your best medicine; therefore, the best food is the best medicine.”

For additional resources on nutrition, go to http://www.nwhealth.edu/nns, a Web site focusing on natural approaches to health and wellness hosted by Northwestern Health Sciences University.