The Alkaline Vegan diet is not the savior you think it is. It’s a diet that can impair kidney health in the first place, as well as the overall health due to its deficiencies.
How Can The Alkaline Vegan Diet Affect the Body?
The alkaline vegan diet doesn’t really have scientific support or evidence to be recommended by doctors. It’s a diet that drastically alters the human body’s functions, especially kidneys.
In fact, our body has a degree of acidity and alkalinity that is calculated with “pH“. This pH is an indicator of the degree of acidity of blood and urine. The kidneys work day and night to keep our bodies neutral ( not acid nor alkaline) , but when we eat an alkaline vegan diet, this changes the nature of our body and thus causes a kind of imbalance.
Risks of an Alkaline Vegan diet ?
It seems that the disadvantages of the alkaline vegan diet are not easy, and can create serious complications.
Gastritis
The stomach and body need an environment that is neither alkaline or acidic, so when we eat alkaline foods, our stomach perceives a change in pH and secretes more acid to decrease the alkalinity.
So it’s important to understand that when we suffer from heartburn, we should not eat alkaline foods to calm the acid.
To digest food, our stomach secretes gastric juice, which is acidic. The stomach secretes this acid to digest all the food we eat. But if the food is alkaline, it secretes even more hydrochloric acid to change the environment and make it neutral which makes it even worse.
For people with gastric reflux problems or heartburn, the alkaline or vegan alkaline diet is not suitable.
Kidney diseases
With alkaline or extremely acidic diets, unfortunately the kidneys are the first organ to be severely affected.
Kidney Stones
A problem that has become very common recently is kidney stones. There are different types of kidney stones. 90% are those that cannot withstand the alkaline environment and can also increase in size if you eat an alkaline diet.
If you already have kidney stones, or if you have a family history of them, pay attention to your diet and make sure it’s balanced and not alkaline or extremely acidic (because there is also a type of kidney stone that lives in an acidic environment). All you need is a balanced diet. To understand more visit: The risks of an alkaline diet for the kidneys.
Kidney fatigue
Our body has an optimal pH level which is neutral or slightly alkaline. When our blood becomes very alkaline or acidic, the body works to bring it back to optimal.
The kidneys are the organ responsible for changing the blood’s pH. (pH is the degree of acidity or alkalinity of the blood). So when we eat an alkaline diet, such as the Vegan Alkaline Diet, the kidneys will continue to change the pH of the blood to make it neutral by eliminating excess alkalinity.
In the long run, an alkaline vegan diet will fatigue the kidneys and this will lead to kidney disease such as kidney failure and other complications.
Deficiencies
Iron
Iron deficiency is very common on the alkaline vegan diet because iron-rich foods such as meat, fish, chicken, and lentils are excluded. C
The alkaline vegan diet only allows soy and white beans, which are alkaline and rich in iron. This makes it very difficult to meet the body’s iron needs by relying solely on soy and white beans on a daily basis.
Protein
Protein is often found in the same food group as iron. Meat, eggs, fish, and legumes are the richest sources.
Unfortunately, the alkaline vegan diet is hypoproteic ( low-protein diet), and even if you get some protein from soy, it’s really not enough, because the highest biological quality proteins are animal proteins. Low protein intake leads to serious problems such as hormonal imbalances, muscle loss, anemia, and permanent weakness.
Magnesium
Magnesium is also called “stress and mood nutrient” because it helps regulate sleeping disorders and reduce stress. It is much more abundant in whole grains, which are prohibited in the alkaline vegan diet, and only corn and soy, which are the grains allowed in this diet. Magnesium can also be found in meat and fish.
Vitamin D
Vitamin D is essential for the regulation of many hormones, including cortisol (the hormone responsible for stress, metabolism, weight loss, and weight gain). It’s also very important for bone health. This vitamin is almost impossible to find in the alkaline vegan diet, as it is found in sufficient amounts in animal products such as meat and fish, but these are also banned from the diet.
Muscle Loss
apart from soy, no protein-rich foods are allowed on the alkaline vegan diet. The alkaline vegan diet is extremely low in protein, which will lead to a drop in physical performance, and will result in muscle loss instead of fat loss. This diet should therefore be strictly avoided by athletes, children and seniors.
Is a Short Term Alkaline Vegan Diet also Dangerous?
It is recommended not to follow the alkaline vegan diet for more than 2 weeks. After that, the diet can begin to affect kidney health and even cause other problems. I also don’t see the point of following this diet for 2 weeks. So basically it’s not recommended.
Can we Lose Weight with an Alkaline Vegan diet?
Of course, you’ll absolutely lose weight by following the alkaline vegan diet , in a very short time you can see clear results. Because it’s an extremely restrictive diet.
But weight loss can only happen if you pay attention to the food quality you eat, as I always say, french fries is also vegan and alkaline vegan, and eating them all the time with another plate can bring too many calories.
So you just need to eat good quality food and you will see results on your weight in only 1 week. But you may lose muscle instead of fat and you may affect your health while losing weight!
Bottom Line
The alkaline vegan diet has sometimes shown good results in improving immunity and fighting certain inflammatory diseases, but this diet is not supported by science and has no strong scientific evidence because it is a diet that carries many disadvantages and health risks. You have to be careful about what you eat and always try to get closer to a natural, balanced and varied diet.
