Food Combining and Acid/Base

Food Combining  

Food combining is a great way to increase your nutrient absorption and digestion

My god-mother reminded me about food combining when I was trying to cut weight - when you are following the food combing rules you naturally eat less calories and the calories you do eat are all super nutrient packed and isolated to their main macro-nutrients.  I followed these rules in high school and then again in college.  It is a great way to transition into a new way of eating - like going from conventional eating to vegan or paleo.  It is also a great way to eat if you are a light-weight rower or trying to cut weight in a healthy way for sport.

Fundamentals:

http://www.alderbrooke.com/images/food-combining-chart-back.jpg

These charts are the best - I could not format the images right but you can click on them to get better copies

Acid/Base

Acid/base eating is based on creating an alkaline system, which means once you have digested the foods your blood chemistry is neutral or basic (ph of 7 or higher).  Alkaline foods are great because they minimize inflammation and benefit your digestion.  An alkaline diet is also a great way to healthfully cut weight or maintain a low weight for sports or a healthy life-style - this is because you are maximizing your nutrition and digestion and minimizing if not eliminating empty calories. The Alkaline Diet compliments food combining and being Vegan.  It is hard to combine with being Paleo but if you are really committed you can do it.  The goal is to balance out everything you eat that is acidic with foods that are basic and ideally eat solely basic foods.

Alkaline Foods		Acid Foods
Alkaline Vegetables Asparagus Artichokes Cabbage Lettuce Onion Cauliflower Radish Swede Lambs Lettuce Peas Courgette Red Cabbage Leeks Watercress Spinach Turnip Chives Carrot Green Beans Beetroot Garlic Celery Grasses (wheat, straw, barley, dog, kamut etc.) Cucumber Broccoli Kale Brussels Sprouts	Fruits Lemon Lime Avocado Tomato Grapefruit Watermelon (is neutral) Rhubarb	Meats Pork Lamb Beef Chicken Turkey Crustaceans Other Seafood (apart from occasional oily fish such as salmon)	Dairy Products Milk Eggs Cheese Cream Yogurt Ice Cream
	Drinks 'Green Drinks' Fresh vegetable juice Pure water (distilled or ionised) Lemon water (pure water + fresh lemon or lime). Herbal Tea Vegetable broth Non-sweetened Soy Milk Almond Milk	Others Vinegar White Pasta White Bread Wholemeal Bread Biscuits Soy Sauce Tamari Condiments (Tomato Sauce, Mayonnaise etc.) Artificial Sweeteners Honey	Drinks Fizzy Drinks Coffee Tea Beers Spirits Fruit Juice Dairy Smoothies Milk Traditional Tea
	Seeds, Nuts & Grains Almonds Pumpkin Sunflower Sesame Flax Buckwheat Groats Spelt Lentils Cumin Seeds Any sprouted seed	Convenience Foods Sweets Chocolate Microwave Meals Tinned Foods Powdered Soups Instant Meals Fast Food	Fats & Oils Saturated Fats Hydrogenated Oils Margarine (worse than Butter) Corn Oil Vegetable Oil Sunflower Oil
Fats & Oils Flax Hemp Avocado Olive Evening Primrose Borage Coconut Oil Oil Blends (such as Udo's Choice)	Others Sprouts (soy, alfalfa, mung bean, wheat, little radish , chickpea, broccoli etc) Bragg Liquid Aminos (Soy Sauce Alternative) Hummus Tahini	Fruits All fruits aside from those listed in the alkaline column.	Seeds & Nuts Peanuts Cashew Nuts Pistachio Nuts
General Guidance: Stick to salads, fresh, alkaline vegetables and healthy nuts and oils.  Try to consume plenty of raw foods and at least 2-3 litres of clean, pure water daily (ideally enhanced with pH drops).		General Guidance: Steer clear of fatty meats, dairy, cheese, sweets, chocolates, alcohol and tobacco.  Packaged foods are often full of hidden offenders and microwave meals are full of sugars and salts.  Over cooking also removes all of the nutrition from a meal!

http://www.energiseforlife.com/list_of_alkaline_foods.php