ACV & Baking Soda Tonic: Boost Health Naturally

I took it for Gas In The stomach, for years I was using doctors medicine for stomach gas aches, but a lady told me about this recipes 1/4 tsp baking soda 1/2 glass water and 2 tsp Apple Cider Vinegar and this works.

I am off doctors medication for 9 yrs now. Also I used it for alkalizing and weight loss purposes.... I am having an excellent result.

I've been using ACV with baking soda to alkalize my body (started out at 5.5, now usually 8), but recently I've become aware of the impact the sodium has on my electrolyte balance. Reading around I found that potassium bicarbonate is also a leavening agent like baking soda, and another good reference said that the ideal ratio is K/Na 3:1. I found a reseller for it and ordered a pound. I then mixed up a batch of the powders 3:1 and used that in place of baking soda in a cup of water (plus a dash of sea salt for flavor) in my ACV.

Now the ACV mixture has the same alkalizing, and bicarb effects, keeps my potassium / sodium balance, is neutral going down, and is a vehicle for taking my Lugol's iodine in the morning.

Meanwhile, I've had a persistent cough since January that finally bloomed into pneumonia-like symptoms (heavy congestion, racking, unstoppable cough 24/7, fever, night sweats, delirium.)

Out of desperation (I had a photo shoot in Florida I had to go on) I took ACV twice in bed, about 2 hours apart.

Whereas I hadn't been able to hardly even stand up, I was so weak and delirious, within two hours, I was sitting up, eating (I'd not eaten much for a couple days), and that night at 7 I was on a jet for Florida. Pretty amazing.

Working for 10 days in Florida, shooting out the window or door of airplanes at other airplanes, I wasn't able to fight it off. I took ACV with me but only took it once or twice, not being fully convinced that was the cure for me at the time.

Plus I was forced to eat less than healthy veggie food while there, as Florida, at least where I was, does not believe in food that does not have sugar, salt and other toxins in copious supply.

I finally finished my work, but pushed hard the last couple days and ended up coming home sick again, especially the coughing, and went back to bed for 3 or 4 days, ending with a trip to the doctor, a prescription for zithromax or whatever it's called (antibiotic), then finally getting better.

However...the cough never quite went away. I began to despair I would ever get better, and as there are many things I want and need to do this coming summer, I decided to pore over earthclinic.com again and started taking 2 TBS ACV with 1/2 tsp baking soda on Monday of this week.

It's now Thursday. I woke up this morning with the distinct body instinct that something was different. I took a deep breath, which lately has led to a little catching cough, and a feeling of tenderness in the bronchia (center of the chest) as if I'd breathed too much smog like when I was a kid.

This morning though, I felt the breath "bottom out", i.e. it still had a bit of the tenderness but it didn't catch, and it felt as if I could take a deep breath that felt solid instead of leading to a little cough or too.

Also, as I went to bed last night, I'd had a bit of a coughing spell, maybe five minutes, clearing out some congestion, and I despaired that I was getting worse, not better.

In fact, I think it was a bit of the well-documented healing crisis that goes with detoxifying, as I felt better this morning.

My question is this: I had a strong, watery diarrhea this morning right after breakfast (cooked buckwheat, tomatoes, cucumber, avocado, celery and olive oil/tahini/aminos/lemon juice/sesame oil dressing, like we have every morning), and I had another bowel-emptying episode about 90 minutes later.

Unlike with previous diarrhea, this felt more like a colon cleanse. I don't feel weak or nauseous, just cleaned out.

I have been taking the ACV with baking soda, 1/2 teaspoon each time, three times a day, fourth day now. I will take it one more day, then stop.

The baking soda keeps it from giving me mild heartburn, and it tastes really good, like diluted apple juice.

Since I have been fighting candidiasis for a couple decades, and alkaline diet and colon cleansing help a lot (I'd been not eating as well this last year, which is why I think I got sick, that and lots of plane travel), I'm familiar with healing crises, but I'd like to know if you think the diarrhea is caused by the baking soda, and would reducing it just a bit help, or should I not worry about it unless it continues?

I feel myself losing weight too.

Also, I'd recommend people don't use honey, as honey is perhaps a healthier version of sugar, but the body sees it as sugar nonetheless. I use Stevia extract to sweeten things. Stevia would be in everything instead of sugar if the sugar lobby hadn't successfully blocked its taking over the sweetener market.

It's a totally non-calorie, natural south american root sweetener. No harmful effect on the body at all, and 150 to 300 times sweeter than sugar, so you don't need much. There are several brands on the market, some have a bit of a bitter aftertaste but there are several that don't.

I'd tell you which ones I use (no commercial interest, I'm a photographer not a food seller) but I know it's against forum policy so anyone who wants to email me, I'll be happy to suggest a couple brands that I've been using with great satisfaction and relief for years..as I love sweets!

Well, I am not one for writing reviews on products. Normally just try it and either I enjoy or dislike and move on. But I can honestly say I felt the difference immediately. I am not sure if it's mental or true, but either way I am loving it!! As I was drinking the baking soda/ACV tonic I felt some sort of clarity that was taking place. Once finished my nose was a little runny, basically it was becoming un-stuffy. I blew my nose and boom....I was all clear!! I am currently feeling a tingly sensation, a sense of calm and again Clarity. I will continue to take daily and begin my journey towards an alkaline body. Thank you.

The list grew daily. A nurse friend gave me neck exercises to do that helped the same day. Yesterday, I suddenly had heartburn after breakfast. One testimonial for snoring was by a woman who used 1/4 cup of ACV. Another snoring testimonial included ALL of my symptoms. I had tried remedies for all the separate (I thought) issues with limited success. I even started a two-week cleanse. Yesterday afternoon, I got the store brand ACV ASAP and took 1/4 cup with 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda. I repeated it before bed last night. Success! I barely snored! I woke up the person I was before I ran out of ACV and magnesium. Thank God for Earth Clinic!

As to the issue of ionization and mineral availability, I give you a simple example. Salt, or sodium chloride. A sodium and chloride will dissociate completely in a water solution.

If the person takes acetic acid, ascorbic acid, or apple cider vinegar, it will cause the body's urine pH to be acid. Ancient Tibetan medicine, Ayurvedic medicine and even Traditional medicine frequently mentions people to avoid sour and sweet foods when they are sick.

The biological degradation naturally occurs whenever the body is acid. This is how the bacteria, fungus, for example decomposes and organism. However, if a living organism is in acid state, then it causes the organism to be sick.

I have found that foods ideally should have a negative ORP, since they are antioxidant where it is measured in negative millivolts. Therefore, for this to occur, if you do have a Oxidation Reduction Potential meters, the values should be -100 millivolts to -200 millivolts. Antioxidation occur when it becomes an electron donor. However apple cider vinegar is acid, and hence, ORP is about +300 millivolts which causes the body to loose electrons, becoming oxidative.

As to the issue of raising saliva pH, this can only occur with adequate potassium levels such as potassium citrate or potassium bicarbonate. In which case if baking soda is 1/2 teaspoon than 1/8 teaspoon is potassium citrate in 1/2 glass of water. Urinary pH checks extracellular fluids which is the sodium element, while saliva pH checks intracellular fluids, which is the potassium and magnesium element.

As to the bioavailability of minerals in a acid or alkaline medium. The solution is really simple: If a person is already in an acid state and continues to take mineral, the mineral taken becomes a free radical, since the ORP is positive. If it is a free radical, it becomes a pro-oxidant instead of an antioxidant. The body's physiology in bicarbonate chemistry is pronounce in a human body. So whether you take it or not, with the baking soda, helps if the body has inadequate bicarbonate to begin with.

Finally, I make really no real dividing line whether to take apple cider vinegar or baking soda and apple cider vinegar, for one good reason: if you can take apple cider vinegar without baking soda for years without problem then it is fine. However, in practice, people do have problems taking apple cider vinegar in the long run if the body cannot neutralize the acid.

As to ancient medicine, most herbal preparations are of alkaline in nature, which is why they taste to bitter. I have had a chance to measure many of these pH and found them to be alkaline in nature, while on the other hand the food we eat 90% are of acid in nature and ORP are often positive in nature of +300, instead of a negative ORP, which is more healthful as it doesn't steal electrons from healthy cells causing accelerated aging.

Ted

As to the sodium and potassium are extracellular and intracellular in which electrical charge differences between that is kept at a constant to help electrical potential differences are the key. The key is the role of bicarbonates in regulating pH buffer to be within an extremely narrow range of pH is the most critical mechanism there is. Calcium are generally toxic intracellularly, as are lactic acid and other organic acid.

The human physiology requires that potassium can't be exceed in a certain percentage in extracellular fluids, which is very small so that it doesn't disturb the electrical potential differences of cellular system.

This is why death row inmates are killed by injection of potassium intravenously, and it doesn't require a large amounts to kill people. In an ordinary saline I.V. where sodium is used (so why don't the use potassium chloride? ) most of these are sodium chloride, so a fast drip can kill you within an hour because these doesn't have the require buffer at a pH of 7.35. Therefore you can kill people just by either altering pH or giving excess potassium even just 50/50 sodium and potassium saline solution.

Therefore, either excessive potassium or an altering of pH of to only 7.1 or 7.2 can kill you. Much of the issues in human health is the issue of lack of bicarbonates in regulating a very narrow range of pH which is why people get sick.

Therefore the correlation between Sodium and CO2 is a narrow description that doesn't explain how bicarbonates regulates the pH. The explanation is that much of human physiology is always the rule of sodium bicarbonate in regulating carbonic acid, or the bicarbonates rather than the issue of sodium.

Sodium is needed by extracellular fluids and potassium is needed by extracellular fluids to maintain electrical potential differences. In dying people the electrical potential differences are small and that's why extracellular fluids had to be slightly more alkaline then intracellular fluids to keep electrical potential differences.

If too much potassium in in extracellular fluids, the cell dies. In fact there are many reported deaths from taking too much potassium. Therefore much of the role is the bicarbonates, not the sodium that is what we are after in buffering systems whether we talk about sodium or potassium or even magnesium, whether they are extracellular fluids or intracellular fluids in this general equation. Basically if Carbon dioxide are produced by the cells, it become H2CO3 to prevent the solutions from becoming acid. This is why distilled water is very acid if you leave it out in the air, and the pH immediately goes from 7 to 6 within a couple of hours. A distilled water simply don't have the bicarbonates to buffer the carbonic acid.

Since you are more concerned about textbook explanation, a more detailed explanation should be explained elsewhere in the internet not a home remedy website because of my limited time in answering the emails (I am a month's behind answering emails and many emails are much more desperate than a theoretical explanation where other biochemistry website can treat this situation much better), so I will cut and paste a small excerpt here:

http://www.similima.com/phy18.html

Buffering of hydrogen ions in the body fluids

A buffer is any substance that can reversibly bind H+. the general form of the buffering reaction is

Buffer + H+ H Buffer

In this example, a free H+ combines with the buffer to form a weak acid (HBuffer) that either remain as an unassociated molecule or dissociate back to buffer and H+. When the H+ ion concentration increases, the reaction is forced to right and more H+ bind to the buffer, as long as available buffer is present. Conversely when the H+ concentration decreases, the reaction shifts towards the left and H+ are released from the buffer. In this way changes H+ concentration are minimized.

I. THE BICARBONATE BUFFER
SYSTEM

A typical bicarbonate buffer system consists of a mixture of carbonic acid (H2C03) and sodium bicarbonate (NaHC03) in the same solution.

H2C03 is formed in the body by the reaction of CO2 with H2O

CO2+H2O H2CO3

Carbonic anhydrase

This reaction is slow unless enzyme carbonic anhydrase is present. This enzyme is especially abundant in the wall of lung alveoli; where CO2 is released; also epithelial cells of renal tubules where CO2 reacts with H2O to form HC03- .

H2C03 ionises weakly to form small amount of H+ and HC03-

H2CO3 H+ + HCO3-

The second component bicarbonate salt occurs predominantly as sodium bicarbonate NaHC03 in the extracellular fluid. NaHC03 ionises almost completely to form bicarbonate ions and sodium ions.

NaHC03 Na+ + HC03-

Now putting the entire system together,

CO2+H2O H2CO3 H+ + HCO3-

{ +Na+

Because of the weak dissociation of H2C03 the H+ concentration is extremely
small.

When a strong acid such as HCl is added to bicarbonate buffer solution, the
increased H+ released from acid.

HCl H+ + Cl- are buffered by HC03-

%u2191 H++ HC03- H2CO3 CO2+H2O

As a result, more H2C03 is formed, causing increased CO2 and H2O production. From this reaction, the hydrogen ions from the strong acid, HCl, react with HC03- to form CO2 and H2O. The excess CO2 greatly stimulates respiration, which eliminates the CO2 from the extracellular fluid.

The opposite reactions take place when a strong base, such as sodium hydroxide (Na OH), is added to the bicarbonate buffer solution.

Na OH + H2CO3 NaHCO3+H2O

In this case, the hydroxyl ion (OH-) from the NaOH combines with H2CO3 to form additional. Thus the weak base NaHCO3 replaces the strong base NaOH. At the same time, the concentration of H2CO3 decreases (because it reacts with NaOH), causing more CO2 to combines with H2O to replace the H2CO3.

CO2+H2O H2CO3 %u2191 HCO3- + H+

+ +

NaOH Na

The net result is a tendency for the CO2 levels in the blood to decrease; but the decreased CO2 in the blood inhibits respiration and decreases the rate of CO2 expiration. The rise in blood HCO3- that occurs is compensated for by increased renal excretion of HCO3-.

Quantitative dynamics of the bicarbonate buffer system

All acids, including H2CO3 are ionized to some extent. From mass balance considerations, the concentrations of hydrogen ions and bicarbonate ions are proportional to the concentration of H2CO3.

H2CO3 H++ HCO3-

For any acid, the concentration of the acid relative to its dissociated ions is defined by the dissociation constant K'.

K' = (1)

This equation indicates that in an H2CO3 solution, the amount of free hydrogen ions is equal to

H+= (2)

The concentration of undissociated H2CO3 cannot be measured in solution because it rapidly dissociates into CO2 and H2O or to H+ and HCO3-. However, the CO2 dissolved in the blood is directly proportional to the amount of undissociated
H2CO3. There fore, equation (2) can be written as

H+= (3)

The dissociation constant (K) for Equation (3) is only about 1/400 of the dissociation constant (K%uFFFD) of equation (2) because the proportionality ratio between H2CO3 and CO2 is 1to 400.

Equation (3) is written in terms of the total amount of CO2 dissolved in solution. However, most clinical laboratories measure the blood CO2 tension (Pco2) rather than the actual amount of CO2. Fortunately, the amount of CO2 in the blood is a linear function of times the solubilitycoefficient for CO2; under physiologic conditions the solubility coefficient for CO2 is 0.03 mmol/mmHg at body temperature .this means that 0.03mmmol of H2CO3 is present in the blood for each millimeter of mercury Pco2 measured. There fore equation (3) can be
rewritten as

H+= (4)

Henderson-Hasselbalch Equation.

As discussed earlier, it is customary to express hydrogen ion concentration in pH units rather than in actual concentrations. Recall that pH is defined as

pH = -log H

The dissociation constant can be expressed in a similar manner pK = -log K

Therefore, we can express the hydrogen ion concentration in equation (4) in pH
units by taking the negative logarithm of that equation, which yields

-log H+ = -log pK %uFFFD log (5)

pH = pK -- (6)

Rather than work with a negative logarithm, we can change the sign of the logarithm and invert the numerator and denominator in the last term, using the law of logarithms to yield

pH = pK + (7)

For the bicarbonate buffer system,the pK is 6.1, and equation 7 can be written
as

pH = (8)

Equation 8 is the Henderson-Hasselbalch equation, and with it one can calculate the pH of a solution if the molar concentration of bicarbonate ion and the Pco2 are known.From the Henderson-Hasselbalch, equation, it is apparent that an increase in bicarbonate ion concentration
causes the pH to rise, shifting the acid-base balance toward alkalosis. And an increase in Pco2 causes the pH to decrease, shifting the acid base balance toward acidosis.The Henderson-Hasselbalch equation, in addition to defining the determinants of normal pH regulation and
acid-base balance in the extracellular fluid, provides insight into the physiologic control of acid and base composition of the extracellular fluid. The bicarbonate concentration is regulated mainly by the kidneys, whereas the Pco2 in extra cellular fluid is controlled by the rate ofrespiration. By increasing the rate of respiration, the lungs remove CO2 from the plasma, and by decreasing respiration, the lungs elevate Pco2. Normal physiologic acid-base homeostasis results from the coordinated efforts of both of these organs, the lungs and the kidneys, and acid-base disorders occur when one or both of these control mechanisms are impaired, thus altering either the bicarbonate concentration or the Pco2 of extracellular fluid.

When disturbances of acid-base balance result from a primary change in extracellular fluid bicarbonate concentration, they are referred to as metabolic acid-base disorders. Therefore, acidosis caused by a primary decrease in bicarbonate concentration is termed metabolic acidosis, whereas alkalosis caused by a primary increase in bicarbonate concentration is called metabolic alkalosis. Acidosis caused by an increase in Pco2 is called respiratory acidosis, whereas alkalosis caused by a decrease in Pco2 is termed respiratory alkalosis.

Bicarbonate Buffer System Titration Curve.

When the concentrations of HCO3- and CO2 are equal, the right-hand portion of equation 8 becomes the log of 1, which is equal to 0. Therefore, when the two components of the buffer system are equal, the pH of the solution is the same as the pK (6.1) of the bicarbonate buffer system. When base is added to the system, part of the dissolved CO2 is converted into HCO3- causing an increase in the ratio of HCO to CO, and increasing the pH, as is evident from the 1-lendersonHasselbalch equation. When acid is added, it is buffered by HCO,-, which is then converted into dissolved CO2 decreasing the ratio of HCO3- to CO2 and decreasing the pH of the extracellular fluid.

As to the issue of baking soda destroys vitamin C, this is much an urban legend. If I want to make sodium ascorbate vitamin C, I merely react vitamin C ascorbic acid with baking soda to get sodium ascorbate. The form of vitamin C used by the body is a more physiological pH vitamin C of sodium ascorbate as it meets the extracellular fluids rich in bicarbonates. In fact ascorbic acid are pro-oxidant while sodium ascorbate are an antioxidant. The urine pH becomes acid when taking ascorbic acid, and it becomes alkaline with sodium ascorbate. An antioxidant sodium ascorbate will register negative ORP millivolts between -200 to about -300, indicating surplus electrons, while on the other hand ascorbic acid has a positive millivolts of about +200 to +400 depending on the concentration of the vitamin C. A vitamin C therefore is a two edge sword that can be an oxidant or an antioxidant depending on the amount of baking soda or bicarbonates that is added, and
therefore, baking soda doesn't destroy vitamin C, it causes the vitamin C to be more antioxidant, and interestingly enough, sodium ascorbate is more stable than ascorbic acid because it is more more physiologically compatible with the body, being slightly alkaline in nature as opposed to acidic ascorbic acid.

Ted

Use baking soda!

Dose #1 - 2 tbsp ACV honey warm water aggravated my AR a lot.

Dose #2 - 2 tbsp ACV 1/4 tsp baking soda water aggravated AR a little & left me nauseous.

Dose #3 - 1 tbsp ACV 1/2 tsp baking soda 7 oz. water, sipping slowly before & after meals (3x/day); 1/4 tsp baking soda in 8 oz. water before bed... This has helped tremendously. If this gives you stomach pain, then try just baking soda (1/4-1/2 tsp in water) with no ACV. Take before meals and bedtime for a few days or so. Gradually add in a little ACV, testing to see if pain results. If no pain, gradually increase ACV. Lastly, decrease baking soda to 1/4 tsp. Note: I'm taking probiotics now because several readers said they got yeast infections from baking soda (& the only yogurt I like is full of artificial sweeteners and sugar).

My husband, who had digestive problems and intermittent IBS, said 1 tbsp ACV 1/2 tsp baking soda gave him a stomach ache, so he's now taking just baking soda first & doing fine (already less gas, indigestion) after 1 day. Also started probiotic.

In retrospect, I'd start with just baking soda for a few days, & then gradually add ACV. Start slowly & don't give up - it's worth it!! What a blessing from God.