fullwhenempty

'Leaky gut' is another name for intestinal permeability. There are plenty of references to both on PubMed. The Lactulose-Mannitol Test check for intestinal permeability. http://www.ncbi.nlm....pubmed/10896065

Statements such as 'There have been no studies' or 'No studies have shown..' or 'there is little evidence' are often used to dismiss alternative views. These statements mislead. They don't actually disprove anything. Nor do they show that studies have been done by alternative systems, such as in India, where many studies are published in Hindi and not translated into English. What western research laboratory is going to upset its corporate paymasters by publishing results that harm its interests?

The gut is highly complex and not fully understood by medicine. There are hundreds of different bacteria in the gut, many not identified. So how can anyone claim to be an authority? I only have to look at nature to see that fungi can attack a plant or tree if it is weak. What happens to a tree when you break off a branch or cut the bark? It's defences are breached. Are we not biological organisms too? Equally susceptible to bacteria, fungi and parasites, if our defences are breached. Or do the laws of nature somehow not apply?

When I see Colloidal Silver advertised, it is often with the following sentence.. 'In 1929 over 5 million prescriptions for silver-based products were issued in the United States alone.'

and...

'..nanosilver in the form of colloidal silver has been used for more than 100 years and has been registered as a biocidal material in the United States since 1954. Fifty-three percent of the EPA-registered biocidal silver products likely contain nanosilver.' http://www.ncbi.nlm....pubmed/21218770

This study mentions success with Colloidal Silver against Candida... http://www.ncbi.nlm....pubmed/21756192 and this one.. http://www.ncbi.nlm....pubmed/19698988

Another study states 'Silver nanoparticles (SNPs) are being increasingly used in many consumer products like textile fabrics, cosmetics, washing machines, food and drug products owing to its excellent antimicrobial properties.'

I've attended a few Detox or 'cleanses' with groups. So you see a variety of results. Sometimes what is being eliminated during colon cleanses is worth mention. One lady spent virtually her whole 10 day cleanse, lying in bed, purportedly because the 'die-off' was making her tired. She felt extremely tired the whole time. She had suffered with depression and lethargy for 12 years and no Dr or pill was able to help her. It wasn't until she completed the 'sugar-free' fast, that she reported feeling "Fantastic" and went on to complete two more fasts with friends. So what caused her lethargy? I don't know, but I do know what I saw coming out of her. White stringy strands of what was said to be fungus, being eliminated during her bowel cleanses. She was taking Colloidal Silver as part of her program. I've also met another lady with similar symptoms who took CS on a 5-day fast which she did at home and she reported feeling recovered afterwards. She had tried a fast before less successfully.

Now I don't know whether these examples are due to Candida or not but its easy to understand why the connection is made. If there's a more logical explanation please provide it.

I'm another who finds the fluoridization of water sinister and take no comfort from any pronouncement from the FDA, EPA or any other regulatory or protective body, who all seem to have been captured by the corporations. Here's a recent 'alarmist' article on the dangers of fluoride... http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/new-study-fluoride-can-damage-the-brain---avoid-use-in-children-124299299.html

Fluoride seems devilishly difficult to remove from the human body and if the claims of the naysayers are correct, that the fluoride being dumped into our water supply comes from Nuclear waste plants and aluminium smelters then it might be sensible to find some way to remove it. Fluoride is not just in our water but drugs, toothpaste and other products to the extent that the total concentration we imbibe can exceed guidelines. More so for children. I tossed my 'Colgate' in the bin years ago.

Pubmed has some published studies which claim to be able to remove fluoride using Tamarind and or Moringa Oleifera. Moringa has some fascinating uses including water purification and is packed with nutrients.

Using Tamarind Seed to purify water... http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17176816

Using Tamarind pulp to remove fluoride from the body... http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20980037

the gel is probably made from high potency HP, not only 3 %, but most likely 30%

i use HP everyday in toothpaste, I make it myself. MY teeth are not yellow, but are not pearly white either, so I want pearly white, but with 3% peroxide, that is impossible

and even 3% hurts my teeth if I use it as mouthwash, what will do 30%

If the gel was 30% you could not put it in your mouth without being seriously burned. 16% is the maximum they use and personally I would not put concentration above 3% in my body. I've used 35% externally on warts and growths successfully.

If you are already using HP everyday and it isn't working , then I doubt a higher concentration would. How long have you been using it? Extended use might damage your teeth. There's an article on Wiki on 'tooth bleaching'. I would recommend you read the sections on 'criticism' and 'risks'.

If your teeth aren't yellowish then you may not benefit from whitening and if you have to get regular touch-ups, how much is that going to cost you? 'Cheap' starts to become expensive.

It's just my opinion but the 'Hollywood smile' looks unnatural.

Last time I checked the gels used HP.

Dip your toothbrush in hydrogen peroxide (3% solution) before you clean your teeth. Every day for 30 days should do the trick, depending on the discoloration. Or hold a small amount in your mouth, swish then spit out. Shop bought says not for internal use, so use a bit of common sense. It has never harmed me or friends who use it.

30 thb from any pharmacy.

It won't work if discoloration is due to nutritional deficiency. Cut the junk food and sugary drinks.

I can't find the above notice.....

See Forum Rules on the Health section front page. Pity you used your question to launch another attack.

Allow me...

'aggressive attempts to persuade other members to either adapt or abandon alternative vs. modern forms of treatment will not be permitted'

Thanks for replies. I will try your suggestions. Just ate phat krapow and so will soon see if I have recovered. I do not eat much dairy stuff but also no yogurt so I will try some and see if it helps. I think perhaps the large quantities of tea and coffee I drink could be part of problem.

I think you have misunderstood. Pad Kaprow contains Basil, Garlic , Spring Onions and Chillies! All of which have a heating effect!

Not so sure that it's caffeine causing upset stomach and diarrhea but it's a good idea to reduce it. Watch for those withdrawal headaches!

Two things come to my mind:

1. Did the acne condition improve AFTER the treatment or BECAUSE of the treatment? Without exact and comparative studies nobody knows why her condition improved. Did she change her diet, has her stress level change etc?

Because. She had 6 sessions and the improvements were obvious.

'Why Most Published Research Findings Are False'

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1182327/

'You really have a problem with critical thinking don't you?'

I do indeed but I fear the irony is lost on you.

Since you once again dodged the challenge,...

"STRIKE 3!

'They're not my opinions, they are the opinions of all the major medical institutions, publications etc in the world.'

In the world? Wow! Your reach is impressive. You've checked India? How long have you been reading Hindi? How about Germany? France? Where is your source for such a statement?

According to the NEJM France is the 'the number one ranked country in the world for health performance'. And I read... 'around 40 percent of the population uses homeopathic medicines and around 30 percent of its family physicians prescribe them'. Bugger me. That's an awful lot of 'sugar pills'. Get over there quick! Vast numbers of even orthodox doctors seem to have completely lost their critical thinking! The national insurance system reimburses for homeopathic treatments. Help! Help!

'THere is not one iota of genuine evidence to support your hocus-pocus.'

It isn't MY hocus-pocus. There's no homeopath in LOS that I know of. If I have a problem and can't resolve it myself I go and see my Doctor. If he cannot cure me and only 'treat' me, I go elsewhere. I realize this is heretical but it has a certain logic to it, don't you think?

'you have resorted to cloudy and unsubstantial even tidbits of gossip and quasi- scientific notions which are precisely what will let you down in the end. Your own health will suffer from your denial of proven help and a reliance on the "mystical and whimsical"

This is a nice delusion. I believe there is a pill for it.

OK - so what about your responsibilities? Your wife family etc all left without when you go prematurely.Using homeopathy instead of medicine is the same as driving without a crash-helmet - you are not an island others rely on you to be alive - if not to yourself you owe it to them.

My parents died painfully and early, under orthodox care. My sister is on pig hormones for life. Granny died of hospital-borne infection. Grandad died of liver failure after too many drug cocktails. My 1 year was almost prematurely aborted and nearly died of 'complications'. I read the study that said they should have been ok.

Frankly I wish I'd shirked my 'responsibility'.

I hope Arnica stocks are high in Thailand........

Nawww... Arsenicum Album.

again an example of

how Homeopaths and other quacks try to publish quasi-scientific literature as scientific.

By example you are actualy supporting the case against homeopathy

You are making this up, aren't you? Your assertions aren't even 'quasi-scientific'. They are simply expressions of bias, typical of fundamentalist deniers. They dismiss all evidence presented by the opposing team and simply bleat incessantly about the validity of 'studies' conducted by foxes who are in charge of the henhouse.

I've linked to an article presenting a defence of homeopathy, with references. Enough of the 'airy wave'. If they are bogus, explain why.

I've also asked you twice now, to back up your criticism of 'quack' treatments in Thai hospitals with evidence.

Three strikes and you are out.

This author articulates far better than I the case for homeopathy. It also highlights the flaws in the science used by the Lancet...

The Case FOR Homeopathic Medicine: The Historical and Scientific Evidence

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dana-ullman/the-case-for-homeopathic_b_451187.html

Sorry but this poster just doesn't get it.

Since you haven't determined the extent of my knowledge or experience before reaching your conclusion, I don't think much of you either.

The Indian system of homeopathy became popular because important people saw evidence that it worked, particularly with animals, who aren't likely to be baffled by BS. Likewise in the UK and likewise in Germany. In India the system became regulated to remove the quacks. I've been to India and I've observed their natural health systems and also met some of the best known homeopaths in the South. Everyone I saw had long lines seeking treatment and practitioners were highly respected.

There is little point waving studies that are conducted by the same pharmaceutical foxes who are in charge of the hen-house. The Lancet review of studies has been accused by journal 'Homeopathy' and the mainstream medical 'Journal of Clinical Epidemiology' as 'enormously flawed and downright inaccurate'. Instead of showing homeopathy doesn't work, the conclusion should have been that, at least for some ailments, it is effective.'

Study how Aspartame, GM foods and Vioxx were approved before relying on studies. An experienced colleague of mine is a trial Doctor defending legal cases who has spent decades in medical research and can tell you what a crock many trials are. You also seem unaware that many drugs have not had long term studies conducted on them. They are released into the wild very quickly and the public become the 'trial'.

Even if homeopathy only works by placebo or for some ailments, it may be considered worthwhile because it is far cheaper to use this system than to provide expensive modern medicine to the whole population. Poorer countries simply cannot afford it. How else do you think they are maintaining their health? Wishful thinking?

I don't need to conduct a scientific study to recognize that a friend had serious acne before the treatment and a clear complexion after. Likewise the other people in the clinic she attended. If such an outcome doesn't fit into your 'quack' belief system, who cares. Everyone else is enjoying a massage.

I remember seeing this over a year ago. It's funny, whatever your views of medicine are (providing you don't take yourself too seriously).......

It is funny. For a hatchet job.

The hospitals themselves are partly to blame in this as they are often quite happy to see these quacks operating there as they get extra income for themselves.Skin clinics, hair restorers, testosterone, steroids etc., chiropractics, massages, herbalists and lord knows what else - all with no proven medical merit.

Further to my last, I fail to understand to some of your complaints.

I had a Thai g/f who went to a skin clinic and they were successful in clearing up her acne. A Thai Doctor treated her.

You may be correct but can you give specific examples of which hair restorers, testosterone and steroids are bogus? Cortico-steroids are a common prescription for painful arthritis.

I recently saw a friend who was losing his hair and who arrested the loss with two 'washes' of Apple Cider Vinegar. I don't know what the Thai hospitals offer but I know what he will think of you, if you tell him it's quackery.

Chiropractic in the U.S. successfully defended themselves in court against attack by the AMA. They had significant support from the public. I don't accept that you need monthly money-spinning treatments for 'subluxation' but besides that, the chiros I have met offer more than simply whacking you in the back.

To suggest massage doesn't have any benefit is defying thousands of years of historical use. Therapeutic massage with sesame oil is a major treatment in Ayurveda and in LOS is, at a minimum, helpful for relief of physical and mental tension. It moves the lymph, dislodges obstructions and helps get blood into areas where it may be stagnant.

How can you say herbalism has no proven benefits when 25% of pharmaceuticals are derived from plants? Even Hippocrates had 400 herbs for medicinal use.

As far as the supplement industry is concerned, I agree. It is said that 90% of OTC (over the counter) Echinacea products have NO echinacea in them. You can tell the genune article, the tip of your tongue will tingle. As for the rest, they are of equally dubious value, for a variety of reasons.

It is a very worrying trend too that alternative medicines are allowed to run within scientific medical institutions.In most countries this seldom happens - however in Thailand, hospitals quite happily offer services that have no medically proven merit whatsoever.

Eminent health ministers and highly qualified policy-makers appear to disagree with you.

I agree, some of the practices of Thais, especially in the villages, seem bizarre. However, there IS a difference between 'Eye of Newt' and traditional methods of healing, which the WHO fully endorse.

Once in a hospital, it is very difficult for the layman to identify which of the services offered are genuine medical treatments or merely quackery offered by people in white coats

The same argument is levelled at modern medicine by natural practitioners and unfortunately for you, millions are voting with their feet. The profit-driven 'pill for every ill' paradigm is a failure. Disease is far more complex than symptom=drug. 90% (more or less) of disease is chronic and degenerative disorders, for which modern medicine has no answer. That is a staggering failure and the real root of people's disaffection. To blame alternatives and seek to deny access to them is arrogant and criminal.

claiming 6 years training in absolute rubbish.

Really? Ayurvedic practitioners in India train for 6 years in mainstream medicine before going on to learn Ayurveda. They are far better placed to tell which methods have any merit.

This 'rubbish' argument is a double-edged sword. Every person, in every country, over thousands of years knows 'You Are What You Eat'. The glaring omission of nutrition from Doctors training is indefensible. Being qualified in 'looking in the wrong direction' is nothing to be proud of.

By all means protect the public from charlatans but science cannot prove natural practitioners are any more charlatans than mainstream Doctors. They use misleading arguments. A herbalist for instance can prescribe a multi-herb combination that has many actions on the body and mind, which our present system of trials is unable (and unwilling) to test for. If the practitioner also recommends diet, exercise, hydrotherapy, stress management, emotional healing and bodywork, how can a lab identify which action produced the benefit? It can't. Nor can it patent it. The mechanistic medical monopolists use this to sell the misleading argument that 'It's not been proven scientifically, therefore it's bogus'.

Isn't this 'rubbish'?

So what if homeopathy is only 200 years old? It's older than modern 'scientific' medicine. The cholesterol theory is only a decade or two old. Will you disqualify it? There are many more 'discoveries' of 'diseases' such as high cholesterol which are highly profitable but which are simply 'diseases of the fork'. That's what you put in your mouth. So why isn't the system addressing that root cause instead of making billions on treating the symptom? Isn't this quackery?

When modern medicine addresses the underlying cause of disease and stops managing the symptoms, Doctors might once again be called Healers. As much as they delude themselves that they are the chosen ones, the public increasingly see them as drug peddlers. Doctors have lost the art of healing and it is an art, as much as a science.

Homeopathy may be suspect but I don't know of anyone who goes to a homeopath when their arm is hanging off. The reality is that many people try the orthodox system first and when they realize it can do nothing, they go elsewhere. 200,000 die just in America alone from taking the prescribed dose of medicines. How many people has homeopathy killed? It is a rare event when the actions of a homeopath threaten lives. If it weren't, the corporate media would be all over it.

In the end, how I spend my money is frankly none of your business. As much as you try, you don't yet own my body, so stop acting as if you do. Take the best of modern medicine and marry it to the best of natural medicine, instead of this stupid adversarial attitude which you have been brainwashed into adopting.

If it's only an isolated incident, it's likely to resolve on its own in a day or two. If your symptoms persist, according to the system of Elements (doshas)... air, earth, fire and water, used in Thai Traditional Medicine and it's root Ayurveda, you may have created an imbalance.

If you are already a 'Fire' type, you will ordinarily tend towards heat in the body. An excess of heat can manifest as anger, criticism, ulcers, skin eruptions, acidity, diarrhea, excess sweating and more. Eating chillies is like pouring fuel on a fire. Basically you need to do the opposite of what you are doing, which is really just common sense. If you are too hot, cool down. If too fat, reduce. Too thin, increase. Too dry, hydrate and lubricate. Too 'watery', dry out.

Try eating more cooling foods like cucumber, yoghurt, dark green vegetables and cut out pungent foods like chillies and hot spices until balance is restored. Then you can re-introduce them but in moderation.

THe is no such thing as a homeopathic remedy - as homeopathy has been shown to have no curative properties of it own. An equivalent to homeopathy would be to drink a glass of water whilst at the same time ripping up the money you'd have spent on homeopathic medicine and throwing into the wind. - just as effective and costs exactly the same.

Unfortunately millions of people, who like their freedom of choice, don't agree with your brilliant analysis. Several countries allow homeopathy and in India it is fully integrated into their health care system.

If you want to talk about dubious claims, walk into any pharmacy and tell me how many 'remedies' say 'CURE' on the label?

That's right.

None.

It seems the main purpose of the psychiatrist is to prescribe medication.... not dealing with any underlying issues/therapy.

Too many people IMHO are being 'chemically coshed' (walking zombies) rather than educated.

If you adopt a purely mental approach you may not get anywhere because tension can be coming from the body and not just the mind. IMO you need to tackle both.

There are many different approaches which you can investigate for yourself but I've been there, done that and this is what I've found to be most useful. Sometimes miraculous...

1. Identify and dissolve any emotional root cause, using techniques like EFT/EMDF and/or 'Family Constellations'.

2. Remove fluoride (from water and anti-depressants) and other 'toxins' from your body. Juice fasts are great for cleaning body, mind and soul. I've seen many people lifted out of depression.

3. Ensure adequate nutrition. Stress places a greater demand on your 'B' vitamins and if your gut bacteria aren't producing enough (perhaps due to imbalances caused by antibiotics) you may need to supplement with probiotics. B5 is particularly important for stress because it supports the adrenals, which get exhausted after years of 'fight or flight'. Research 'adaptogens'.

4. Exercise is a great stressbuster but not if you are already exhausted. Some people need complete rest.

5. Learn about yoga breathing. 'Sudarshan Kriya', has research supporting its effectiveness in anxiety. Breathing from the upper chest doesn't remove CO2 properly and is akin to gradual oxygen starvation.

6. Drink adequate clean water. Dehydration can cause anxiety.

7. Meditative techniques are useful but less effective if your problem is coming from the body, or if your mind is in too much turmoil. Address the physical aspects before you apply it.

8. A good night's RESTFUL sleep is vital for recovery. Sleep before 10 pm.

9. Don't be a 'grasshopper' rushing from therapist to therapist and giving up because you aren't getting an instant fix. It can take time to recover.

10. Don't be rigid in your thinking. Trees that are flexible don't fall down in storms.

11. Find someone to support you. It's easy to isolate yourself from others. Staring at a computer screen all day will fry anyone's brains! Get some fresh air and sunshine.

12. Panic attacks are debilitating and frightening. You are not 'mad'. Your body and mind are reacting exactly as designed. When your anxiety levels start to take off, keep telling yourself it's just a passing cloud and be kind to yourself.

13. Stay away from stimulants like alcohol and caffeine.

14. Running away is also a legitimate strategy.

15. Ignore those that have never tried these or are driven (or paid) to pour scorn. They don't really care about you.

It is your body. Your life and you WILL come out of this difficult period.

Hope this helps.

The best guide to what is good for you is your own body. Only you know that. However, there is more to food than just calories.

I would first ask how is your existing diet affecting you? Are you too fat? Too thin? Lacking energy? Is your mind 'cloudy'? Skin dry or oily? Do you have any digestive disorders? Food intolerances? Constipation, diarrhoea? Nails showing signs of malabsorption. Is your tongue heavily coated? Do you overeat? Eat after 6 pm? How much water do you drink?

Have you educated your palate to salivate over 'sweet', 'sour' and 'salty' and excluding 'bitter', 'hot' and astringent' tastes? Do you have any food cravings? 

You can have the best diet in the world but if you are unable to extract the nutrients due to some digestive issues, it's not going to help you much. If your food is 'dead', devoid of any enzymes, lacking nutrients because it's taken a week to get from the farm to your plate and industrialized, gassed and irradiated to the point that it's no longer recognizable as 'food', then stop eating it. The Supermarket is the last place I would buy food.

I like the Ayurvedic model of diet based on what are known as the 'doshas'. You can research this. Otherwise the principal of opposites can be helpful. i.e. If you are too fat, then adopt a reducing diet. If too thin, a nourishing diet. If you get too hot, then eat cooling foods. If too cold, then warming foods. Some types thrive on raw food, some don't.

If you want to pack nutrients into your diet then do a search for 'Superfoods'. Also consider juicing fresh veggies.

The Mediterranean Diet is said to be one of the best. Fresh, raw garlic. Cold pressed Extra Virgin Olive Oil, lemon juice and vinegar dressings. These are all great for your health. There are other good diets though and Thai food is renowned for being healthy. Just try and use organic ingredients. 

Most importantly, when you alter your diet or lifestyle, don't rush at it. You will almost certainly fail. Introduce new food items gradually. You will have a greater chance of making changes permanent. 

'Krachai Dam', Kaempferia Parviflora, Black Galingale. Found in health stores as tea, raw herb or tonic. 

Restores male vigour.

I insisted on a week's trial before buying one of these pendants, after a lot of pressure selling tactics. After 3 days wearing it 24x7, I returned it having felt nothing, except surprise at the huge mark-up, for what is basically a piece of etched glass.

A fool and his money...?

Can someone advise where I can get this test carried out?

I've heard you can order online but the labs seem to be in the U.S. and not sure if I can send to or receive back without tripping over Thai customs.

Bar-fly's elbow?

Try organic cold-pressed (therapeutic grade) Sesame Oil from black sesame seeds. This oil is used throughout India for many conditions, including bursitis. You can make a poultice and add turmeric powder (protect your sheets!) which is anti-inflammatory, or just use oil alone. Change the poultice daily. Once the inflammation goes down start to gently massage the area. Castor Oil can also be used but I don't have a source, while fresh Aloe Vera is another option. These oils are anti-fungal, anti-bacterial.

You can also include hydrotherapy. Take your shower wand and direct hot water, as hot as you can stand, onto the affected area, for 15-30 seconds. Then switch to cold. Again, for 15-30 seconds. Repeat this 7 times, twice daily. Or use hot and cold compresses. It's a great way to move the blood.

Make sure you trust your source for oil. I've found second grade being sold as premium. PM me if you need a supplier.

There are many folk remedies you can try.. http://www.natural-homeremedies.com/homere...es_bursitis.htm

Going under the knife is a last resort in my book.

Good luck!

FWE

I am sure I am making some errors because its not my profession.

Likewise yet considering the depth of your interest and knowledge you would do well if it was. Most practitioners I know have cobbled together a number of different methodologies, not necessarily taught in naturopathic universities like Bastyr. I have one Swiss ex-Dr friend who did not renew his medical licence since he found those using alternative methods were getting better results than he was. At least so he claimed. He's now passionate about them and working to spread the word.

When it comes to testing urine ph, I do this every few days when fasting. I want to check the body is shedding acid wastes, so an acidic reading AFAIK is a positive sign. The trend is supposed to be important, although I haven't tracked it enough to tell and just test out of curiosity. Perhaps next time. A golfer I know is obsessed with his 'acid in the muscles' and knows that after he juice fasts he can swing the club more freely. Most juice fasts are alkalyzing so who's to say he isn't correct? He is a regular detoxer after (he states) it cured his asthma many years ago.

ACV, I bracket into the 'fermented foods' area. Most cultures have some kind of fermented foods in their diet ranging from Saurkraut to that smelly fishy stuff the Thais eat. 'Ba-la'?

If your unsure of Sodium Bicarb then add some to a small amount of water and put it on your tongue. Just kidding as it would not be pleasant.

It's not that I'm unsure. I use it a lot. Just asking for your source.

You might want to look up some basic online chemistry instruction and learn about PH..

Dismissed, eh? You sound like my headmaster.

Since I look after a pool, I'm very familiar with PH, thanks. I'm also familiar with the various acid/alkali-forming food tables online. There is usually no mention of the actual chemistry involved. However, two sources explain: (sorry can't post the links since they are on commercial sites)

'In plants, strongly alkaline metal ions are usually combined with weak organic acids There may be a surplus of organic acids not bound to cations, and this will make the food taste acid, as in fruits. However, in the body these free organic acids, as well as those bound to metal ions, are oxidized. In the end, this leaves an alkaline residue. Therefore, we say vegetables and fruits are alkalizing or alkaline-forming.'

From another site...

"The strong acids in our bodies are those that are formed by the degradation of protein. These are sulfuric acid, phosphoric acid and nitric acid. These are strong, like the battery acid in your car. Strong acids are strong compared to weak acids such as vinegar and citrus juices. Weak acids do not ionize (break apart completely) in solution whereas strong acids do. This is why vinegar does not burn holes in your clothes, or dissolve your bones; it does not break apart completely into an acid and a base part, it remains partly a salt. A salt is formed when an acid and a base combine and neutralize one another."

"In fact, vinegar, although an acid when you ingest it, does not stay that way. Weak acids like the acetic acid in vinegar, and the acids in most fruits and especially lemons, contain lots of minerals which are basic, along with their weak acid part. The weak acid part combines with water and is converted into carbonic acid which then breaks apart into carbon dioxide and water. You breathe out the carbon dioxide and pass the water out through your kidneys. The minerals remain behind to replenish deficient minerals so in fact these weak acids in the end, alkalize your body by supplying more minerals to it."

The conclusion then is that the weak acids in fruits (such as Apple Cider Vinegar) are neutralized by water (or the oxygen) while the strong acids from meat proteins are neutralized by alkaline stores.

Which contradicts what you said: 'Consuming Apple cider vinegar is beneficial for its Acetic and Malic acid. When its consumed the body converts Malic acid to Malate. As mentioned it takes alkaline reserves to convert it in the form of higher PH sources like organs, tissues, bones etc.'

If alkaline reserves are already depleted the last thing you want is to deplete them even more.

Being an advanced chemist. You would know that.

BTW. You posted this earlier...

The trick with ACV is that its acidic and can damage tooth enamel and cause stomach irritation.

Do you have a source for the latter statement? My understanding is ACV has a PH of around 3, while stomach acid has a PH around 1. If stomach acid doesn't cause irritation, then I can't see how ACV or lemons or any other acidic fruit can either. Please correct me if I'm wrong.

If you have ever tried the little packets called Emergen-C in the US it's a preparation of Vit C, Sodium Bicarb, Potassium Bicarb and various B vitamins and minerals. It's used a lot for people who are sick or about to get sick or for rehydration.

I'm always wary of OTC (over the counter) products. This one may be okay but if you just take Vit C for instance, I'm informed most of the Vit C (ascorbic acid) in stores is derived from GM Corn. I also read ascorbic acid is NOT Vitamin C but only one element of it, so is pretty much a waste of money. When I picked up 'Vit C' tabs at Makro recently and tried them it was sweetened with artificial sweetener, which is dangerous (and also made it inedible!). So, I avoid any over the counter preparations since they tend to be either inorganic or synthetic (or both) and adulterated. For pure organic Vit C, I make my own by converting certain fruits into a powder. The Vit C is more concentrated and has other benefits deriving from the peels. You also save on throwing the skins away. Obviously clean them first. Whoever decided to start waxing oranges needs speaking to.

There is no one perfect PH value to consume. A person needs to periodically measure their tissue PH with 24 hour urine testing to ascertain their tissue PH and then adjust the PH and quantity of alkalizing supplement to their particular case. PH test strips can be purchased inexpensively from medical supply stores in Thailand.

I've never met anyone who does this or even knows about it. Might be a useful exercise to eat an alkalyzing meal and see how that affects your PH, then an acid one, and likewise. Or test it when you are angry or stressed and see if your PH is affected. The saying that someone has an 'acid tongue' may also be interesting to check out, by testing salivary PH while they are sniping at their neighbours!

Do you have a link to baking soda 'burning the tissues'? I've never heard of this.

I've read that ACV is alkalyzing but logically I find this hard to understand. How can an acid (ACV) convert to an alkali in the body? I can understand the body drawing on alkali reserves to neutral-ize acidity as a general principle but for it to then become alkaline. How does this occur?

Thanks.