Acid or alkaline?

[Blimpie]

This is probably an obvious question but just in case, I am going to ask:
Is kava acid-forming or alkalizing? I am assuming it's more acid-forming than alkalizing. And where would it be on a chart that lists foods/beverages from Very Acid to Neutral to Very Alkaline? I am trying to make myself feel better about not being able to have kava right now.

 

[Prince Philip]

Going in? No clue. Going out, non-acidic urine (pH > 6.5), dilute urine (specific gravity < 1.010), increased average red blood cell hemoglobin content and volume, diminished plasma urea and bilirubin, and increased plasma levels of gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT).

 

[Prince Philip]

Also, if you look at humans like chemical processing machines, you're not seeing the whole picture. The sympathetic becomes very active under the influence of the adrenal glands when we are scared or upset. The sympathetic nervous system drives an acid reaction in the body that increases both tension and activity. In contrast, the parasympathetic nervous system drives a more alkaline nervous system reaction, which relaxes us. Hence, one's pH can be overacid from stress alone. Kava is alkalizing because it suppresses the sympathetic nervous system and activates the parasympathetic.

 

[violet]

I asked Chris at GHK once and he checked the pH of some kava for me, it was 6.5. The human does a pretty good job at homeostasis of pH in the stomach anyway.

 

[Gourmet Hawaiian Kava]

Violet was right, I did measure the PH a while back, I did it again today and I even tested Noble and pure Isa (tudei) and they both have the same PH and you can see the PH in the picture below, it is right at 6.5 or maybe a bit toward 7.
Aloha.

Chris

 

[Jana]

I think that was a really good question @Blimpie.

Being that Kava is pretty balanced when it comes to pH (or so it appears), I wonder if it could help with over-acidity of the stomach or GERD. I've noticed that since I've started drinking Kava, my craving for junk food and sugar has gone down considerably, and I no longer have the burning-and-churning like sensation I normally experience every day.

 

[boxcar beatnik]

I can second that

 

[verticity]

Yup, I just tested the pH of some of my Mo'i (prepared traditionally) and it is just about exactly 7. This is also the pH of plain water, so I'm guessing the pH is just dominated by the water. In other words, kava does not change the pH of water very much. This could be because the concentration of kavalactones and other things is pretty low compared to the volume of water.

 

[verticity]

The left strip shows the pH of water. The right strip is Mo'i, traditionally prepared with 2 tbsp of medium grind per cup of water. White balance is applied. In the picture, the color appears close to 8, but looking at it in real life it appears closer to 7. The sample swatches on the test paper dispenser are not quite accurate in the photo. Fluorescent lighting with camera flash.

 

[Zac Imiola (Herbalist)]

Hmm. This is obviously impossible for us but I wonder what the metabolized pH is

 

[verticity]

Hmm. This is obviously impossible for us but I wonder what the metabolized pH is

Well, ketoacidosis is a thing in diabetics. It is a severe condition, but the changes in pH are very slight from normal. The normal pH of blood is 7.35-7.45. In severe diabetic ketoacidosis, the pH goes down to 7.00 or below. This change would be too small to detect with pH paper, but could be seen with a digital pH meter. You would need to take a blood sample, centrifuge it to separate the serum from the blood cells, and measure the pH of the serum. Do this before and after consuming kava. So, not impossible if you have the right equipment.

 

[verticity]

I am not trying to imply that kava would cause acidosis--my guess is that it would not have any effect on pH. I just wanted to show that any change in pH--higher or lower--would be very small, due to the body's desire to maintain homeostasis.

 

[verticity]

You can test urine for pH also, but in that case the "normal" range for urine is between 4.6 and 8.0. So you actually could use pH paper to test if your urine is abnormally acidic or basic, but this would be less accurate than testing blood.