By Cliff Smith
Comparing acid drinks, like coffee, sodas, and Red Bulls to alkaline drinks, brings to mind the James Taylor song, “Fire and Rain.” This can help in thinking about the way they affect the body. Acid, like fire, is a necessary component of our natural structure, but rain is even more essential since our bodies are comprised mostly of water.
In order to enjoy a properly balanced body that performs at peak levels, it is important to create the proper acid and alkaline balance (or fire and rain ratio) in your diet. When referring to alkaline and acid drinks or foods, we’re talking about what happens to the nutrients after your body metabolizes them. They leave behind either an alkaline
or acid ash in the bloodstream once they've been burned for fuel. The recommended ratios for excellent health are 20% acid to 80% alkaline for the best acid/alkaline balance in the diet.
Why Acid Drinks Are Like Fire
Coffee, soft drinks, and energy drinks are the most popular beverages that are also among the most acidic. Consuming these drinks on a regular basis puts so much excess acid in the body that additional alkaline mineral resources are required to put out the fire. When the diet is made up of more acid foods and drinks than alkaline, the body goes through processes to balance the acid/alkaline ratio in the blood, (blood pH balance). If the body’s blood pH becomes too acidic, 
death is imminent. Therefore, the body will use whatever alkaline sources are available to create that balance and extinguish the blazing inferno created by all that acid consumption. Your body must maintain an alkaline blood pH of around 7.4 (7 is neutral while anything lower is acidic). So, after the coffee, sodas, energy drinks, French fries, hamburgers, pizza and more are metabolized, the body’s fire department starts dousing the flames with available alkaline resources, such as calcium.
Why Alkaline Drinks are Like Rain
Alkaline drinks contain minerals that are alkaline by nature. Think of herbs, fruits and vegetables that are loaded with essential minerals. The main 
alkaline minerals are calcium, magnesium, sodium and potassium. When these minerals are well balanced in alkaline drinks, they contribute mightily to the alkaline/acid ratio in the diet. This gives the body more resources it can use to put out the fire from all the acid consumed. Think about it, if the body is taking in more acid than alkaline nutrients on a regular basis, it is as if the blazes continuously rage while the fire department runs out of water. Rain and water are vital for the plants that provide essential minerals to us through the foods and drinks we ingest. Consuming more alkaline minerals from alkaline drinks helps the body maintain a healthy pH balance, without neglecting the minerals needed for healthy bones, joints, and tissues.
So, fortify your fire department with alkaline drinks that can battle the blazes of all the acid in our modern diet.
- Take the free alkaline food test to learn more.
