Acidosis (acidosis) • Recognize symptoms & act!

Author: Monika Preuk, medical writer
Last update:
December 10, 2020

If the acid-base balance is disturbed and the pH value drops too much, the body becomes over-acidic. This condition, called acidosis, weakens the heart, muscles, and bones. What helps with hyperacidity and what you can do yourself.

Signs of acidosis are often fatigue and susceptibility to infections.
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Chronic acidosis is said to affect 90 percent of Germans. While the subject concerns so many people, most of them don't know exactly what it means. So it is not just about acidification of the stomach, as is often assumed. For example, if you constantly have heartburn and acid regurgitation, you are not automatically over-acidic.

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What is acidosis?

Acidosis (acidosis) means exactly: The acid-base balance of the body is disturbed to such an extent that the pH value in the blood has dropped below 7.35. The abbreviation pH stands for "potentia Hydrogenii", which is Latin and means concentration of hydrogen in a solution.

The lower this value, the more acidic the solution, the higher the value, the more basic. The normal blood pH of a healthy person is 7.4. If it is too high, i.e. if the opposite of acidosis occurs, the doctor speaks of an alkalosis – the blood is then too basic.

Acidification can be chronic or acute

Usually these terms are not used quite correctly in everyday language. Many speak of acidosis and actually mean chronic or latent acidosis, which is very common.

The medically correct acidosis, on the other hand, is rarer, occurs suddenly, is life-threatening and requires intensive care in hospital. It is triggered by serious illnesses and acute conditions such as diabetic coma, cardiac arrest or shock.

Acute acidosis: metabolic and respiratory acidosis

Acute acidosis is primarily triggered by two different causes and is classified according to this:

  • Cause decreased breathing (respiratory acidosis): With respiratory acidosis, the body fails to breathe out enough carbon dioxide. Carbon dioxide is acidic. If it remains in too high a concentration in the body, this leads to acidification.

  • Metabolic acidosis (metabolic acidosis): Too high a concentration of acidic metabolic products and acids have overwhelmed the body's buffer systems.

Causes of chronic acidosis

On the other hand, it usually takes a long time for latent acidosis to develop. Because the correct pH is so important to health, the body tries by itself to maintain it anyway. For this purpose, it has various buffer systems that are intended to prevent both acidosis and alkalosis. They balance the acid-base balance again.

In the case of acid, this happens through breathing, sweat and through the kidneys with urine. If these regulatory systems are no longer sufficient or if their function is disrupted, chronic over-acidification occurs in the long term.

The epidemic of chronic acidosis is undoubtedly to blame for the modern lifestyle, i.e. factors such as:

  • Sedentary lifestyle
  • Stress and anxiety
  • Smoke
  • alcohol
  • lack of sleep

These factors bring the acid-base balance out of balance. What they have in common: The body receives a little too little oxygen under their influence. This slows down its energy production, lactic acid is formed and the body becomes acidic.

In addition, dehydration is a risk factor for chronic acidosis. Those who drink too little produce too little urine and the body can hardly excrete any acid. In addition, diet also plays a role in the pH value.

Acidification through diet?

There are a number of acidifying foods and drinks available. The body metabolizes them acidic. Especially protein-rich foods of animal and vegetable origin form acid in the body. Strong acid suppliers are:

However, because most people also eat base-donating foods, it usually balances out. Most fruits and vegetables, including potatoes, are alkaline foods. Chronic or latent hyperacidity is only threatened when too many acid-forming foods and too little alkaline are eaten.

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Acidification: Typical Symptoms

Chronic acidosis has no clear signs, nor does it lead to typical pain. However, the following general signs can indicate acidosis:

Consequences of chronic acidosis

Chronic acidosis is not life-threatening like acute acidosis, but in the long run it can have serious consequences:

There is also evidence that chronic acidification also plays a role in the development of the following diseases:

Alternative medicine in particular is convinced that acidification is the cause of most diseases of civilization. Conventional medicine is a little more cautious here because relevant studies on the topic are still lacking.

Diagnosis: determine chronic acidosis

Simple tests should show whether the body is over-acidic. These are test strips (pharmacy) that are held in the urine. The discoloration then indicates the pH value. However, the pH value in the urine fluctuates throughout the day and from day to day.

The safest way to find out whether the blood is actually acidic is to do a blood test with your doctor. The acid content of the blood plasma and the acid buffer capacity can be determined in the laboratory.

What to do in case of hyperacidity

There are various ways to bring the acid-base balance back into balance. For example, certain food supplements can be useful in the short term – such as base tablets or base powder.

The following measures are important in the long term:

  • It is best to exercise daily in the fresh air. This supports the breakdown of acids in the body.

  • Drink a lot to flush the acids out of your body. Corresponding mineral waters are best suited here.

  • Put a limit to stress with short relaxation breaks.

  • Quit smoking and reduce your alcohol consumption.

  • Go to the sauna.

  • Alternating showers and brush massages also activate the acid excretion.

In addition to these general measures, diet also plays a role. Reduce the acid generators listed above as much as possible. To do this, eat more alkaline foods. Special types of fruit and vegetables are particularly suitable in this context:

  • fennel
  • Kohlrabi
  • cauliflower
  • Carrots
  • Bananas
  • Apricots
  • dried figs
  • kiwi

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