I'm Here To Straighten Out Your Acids

After perusing this list it should be apparent that both the typical modern diet as well as the typical athletic diet is suspect. After all, even a high protein diet rich in clean, whole grain carbs will produce a net acid load. Since a neutralization of the Western diet without a change in energy intake or macronutrient composition has been shown to improve bone health, to shift nitrogen balance from negative to positive, to reduce blood cortisol concentrations, to increase thyroid hormone production, and to reverse the GH resistance discussed above, it's important that athletes take the appropriate steps to shift their diets away from that low grade chronic metabolic acidosis we discussed earlier. Here are some steps for accomplishing this goal:

       Use the chart above to calculate a PRAL score for each meal. To do this, you simply record the amount (in grams) of each food you eat in a meal. Then, multiply the PRAL score listed by your food amount. For example, if you've eaten 250g of lean meat (8 oz or about 1/2 lb), your PRAL score for the meat will be 7.8 (score for 100g) multiplied by 2.5 (for the 250g serving), or 19.5. If you've also eaten 250g of potato (8 oz or 1/2lb), your PRAL score for the potato is -4 (score for 100g) multiplied by 2.5 (for the 250g serving) or -10. In addition, if you've eaten 100g of spinach, the PRAL score for the spinach is -14. If you tally up the total score of this meal, the net PRAL is 19.5 (meat), -10 (potato), -14 (spinach), or -4.5. This means a meal containing 8 oz of lean meat, 8 oz of potato, and 3.5 oz of spinach produces a PRAL of -4.5. In other words, the meal produces a net alkalinity. That's what we're looking for.

       After calculating the base or acid potential of the meal, add more vegetables regardless of the final tally. Everyone can always benefit from more vegetables in the diet. Many bone specialists are now recognizing that the most effective way to improve bone health is to eat lots of fruits and vegetables.(3)

       If you're eating a big meal that's going to be a net acid producer and don't want to add more basic foods, consider adding a small amount of glutamine to this meal. Exogenous glutamine supplementation has been shown to neutralize acidosis.(7)

       A cheaper alternative to glutamine supplementation is either sodium or potassium bicarbonate supplementation. You can add sodium bicarbonate (in the form of baking soda) to your beverages including your protein shakes, which probably are a bit on the acidic side (see milk above). A small 2-5g dose of baking soda would be sufficient to neutralize the shake. An alternative to baking soda is alka-seltzer.

       Adding sodium to foods can increase the base potential and reduce the acidity of the meal.