
Evidence that drinking baking soda can promote an anti-inflammatory environment - pera
http://jagwire.augusta.edu/archives/52953
======
sverige
Not directly related to creating an "anti-inflammatory environment," but I've
suffered from GERD for years and have tried all of the AMA's recommended
cures. None of them worked, some even caused internal bleeding.

A few years ago I was told to try a little baking soda solution when the
reflux came on strong. It worked very well, and is now my go-to solution when
I wake up with tasty hydrochloric acid in my mouth while sleeping. (Yes, I
could go on and on about diet, exercise, chiropractic cures for hiatal
hernias, etc., but if you suffer, you'll find your own path, and if you don't,
undoubtedly I've already disgusted you with too-graphic language.)

It's simple: counter the overactive stomach acid with a weak base. It works.
Not sure I agree with the idea of making an entire diet out of it, though.

~~~
gilbetron
Be careful, from my understanding if you keep doing that, your body cranks up
the acid production in response. My wife's father died just before we started
dating from esophageal cancer and he had gerd and ate lots of tums.

Zantac is what works for me, with maybe Prilosec every now and then if it gets
bad. That and don't eat for 3-4 hours before bed.

~~~
sverige
I control my diet pretty well these days, so it only happens maybe three or
four times a year.

Both Prilosec and Nexium caused internal bleeding in my case. Zantac was
ineffective.

~~~
ianai
Have you tried “crazy” things like going low fat or easy to digest foods? I
used to have to take nexium, but stopped after having my gallbladder removed
and, more impactfully, going vegan. I used to have full on esophageal spasms.
They led me to the ER twice out of the pain. In hindsight, dairy’s fat content
(amongst other things) was really irritating my stomach.

~~~
sverige
Yes, foods with high amounts of fat are on the long list of things I avoid. I
ate a vegan diet for over a year, but have added some meats and eggs back more
recently. Dairy fat is irritating to me too.

~~~
raarts
Funny, high fat used to be on my list too, but on a keto diet my Gerd has
disappeared almost completely.

------
KevanM
[http://www.jimmunol.org/content/200/10/3568/tab-figures-
data](http://www.jimmunol.org/content/200/10/3568/tab-figures-data)

Here's the paper if anyone wants it.

~~~
pash
Here’s the Sci-Hub link: [http://doi.org.https.sci-
hub.hk/10.4049/jimmunol.1701605](http://doi.org.https.sci-
hub.hk/10.4049/jimmunol.1701605) [PDF]

Human subjects were dosed 2g (about a fifth of a teaspoon) in 250mL of water
each day.

~~~
JumpCrisscross
N=12. Merits further investigation, but not yet behavioural changes.

~~~
nur0n
Honest question: does 'N' usually exclude the control group? Total human
participants was 18, 6 for the control group.

I agree that N is too small to warrant such hubbub.

~~~
mattkrause
Normally, you just report them separately as in “six subjects were assigned to
a control arm, while twelve received treatment.” The groups are often about
the same size, though you might put more subjects in the treatment group if
you suspect some heterogeneity in the response to treatment.

A better design would test all subjects in both conditions—take a baseline
sample, treat everyone and take a second sample, and then take a final sample
after you think the treatment has washed out. An even better design would be a
cross-over experiment, where half of the subjects receive the treatment first,
then are “crossed over” to the control group, while the rather half get a
mirror-image treatment.

------
nerdponx
Back when I was rowing, I heard of a way to boost your performance in sprint
races called "soda doping". The idea was that lactic acid buildup (leading to
fatigue and pain) limits rowing performance. Therefore, consuming something
basic should help, right? Apparently, drinking a baking soda solution right
before a race could make you go a lot faster -- the caveat was that you would
have be shitting like crazy soon after.

I have no idea if this is true or even plausible, but it seems somewhat
relevant.

~~~
moz23
It can also induce diarrhoea. And taking substances for performance
enhancement is essentially doping (as in: not permitted for most sports).

~~~
yerry
Naturally occurring salts available as commodity food ingredients at every
grocery store? Eating is essentially doping? Brushing your teeth is doping?

Wearing corrective lenses improves performance. Is wearing glasses considered
doping too?

~~~
ByThyGrace
The list of things not allowed exists: it's official for every sport
association that adheres to it. There's authorities, rules and processes for
testing them.

So it's not really obscure and doping only matters under those terms. Outside
that scope whatever you use is on your conscience alone.

See also danburbridge's reply to GP.

------
scythe
>the problems were hypertension and chronic kidney disease,

It's interesting that these are both conditions usually normally associated
with excess _sodium_ in the diet. However, baking soda, as the name suggests,
contains sodium! So that it would prevent these diseases is surprising. But
sodium is normally consumed as a component of salt, which, in addition to
sodium, contains chloride.

That raises a question I'm surprised I can't answer: how do we know that any
of the problems we blame on sodium are not in fact the result of chloride? I
found this:

[http://science.sciencemag.org/content/222/4628/1139](http://science.sciencemag.org/content/222/4628/1139)

[http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/2168457](http://europepmc.org/abstract/med/2168457)

I definitely did not expect to find that much support for this idea when I
started this. I'm not convinced yet, though.

~~~
toasterlovin
My guess is that the real explanation for this conundrum is that “associated
with” is not the same thing as “caused by”. Nutrition science and especially
reporting on nutrition science makes too much of correlation because
randomized controlled trials are expensive.

------
chiefalchemist
Interesting. But it also feels like this helps to return the body to a more
natural state. The question then becomes: What in modern living is knocking
the body off its center? How could the need for this "cure" be prevented?

Any thoughts?

~~~
aviv
Acids and large protein consumption. Meat, wheat, dairy. Toxic to the human
body. It's really quite simple. You eat death, you get death.

~~~
coldtea
> _Acids and large protein consumption. Meat, wheat, dairy. Toxic to the human
> body. It 's really quite simple. You eat death, you get death._

Whereas vegans don't die?

Also "toxic to the human body" is just bad dietary advice.

~~~
aviv
Fast food vegans sure do die. And if you believe that nothing you can eat can
be toxic to your body, you already lost in life.

~~~
coldtea
> _Fast food vegans sure do die._

As opposed to proper vegans, who live forever?

> _And if you believe that nothing you can eat can be toxic to your body, you
> already lost in life._

Plenty can be toxic, including all kinds of plants (heroin is made from a
plant). But the best diets according to longevity statistics and scientific
studies still include meat, e.g. the Mediterranean diet.

Or you can ignore those, and opt for some semi-mystical, culting fad diet.

~~~
chiefalchemist
Afaik, the best diets for longevity are based on calorie reduction. For some
reason that doesn't compromise the immune system, and a stronger immune sys
leads to a layer death.

Again, afaik.

~~~
aviv
Exactly, and to that point, many many "diseases" can be cured with a prolonged
water fast (10-40 days, depending on severity, and obviously closely
monitoring vitals throughout the process). It's incredibly unfortunate that
not more people have access to this very simple guidance. Diabetes (yes, some
type 1s included), Crohn's, Colitis, arthritis, the list is as long as the
number of downvotes I get every time I share this.

------
phs318u
Ive seen various versions of this story recently but can’t seem to find any
that describe the dose or the formulation eg dissolved in water.

------
Nomentatus
Note, however, that almost anything that hampers your metabolism (such as
fasting or a ketogenic diet) or overburdens your body, will strongly tend to
be anti-inflammatory, for the simplest of reasons: your body wants to fight an
invader or toxin (that maybe it shouldn't) but you've clamped down on its
ability to do as much as it likes; you've put it on a budget. This will also
limit your ability to repair DNA and much else.

I'm not saying that's the mechanism here, but it could be, and is for very
many anti-inflammatory effects.

Granted, fasting is part of our evolutionary history, some of it does seem to
be healthy, overall.

~~~
JoshMnem
There is some interesting research on fasting and the immune system:

[https://news.usc.edu/63669/fasting-triggers-stem-cell-
regene...](https://news.usc.edu/63669/fasting-triggers-stem-cell-regeneration-
of-damaged-old-immune-system/)

------
jetsnoc
I'm 35, I've had issues with heartburn for most of my adult life. A few times,
I've used baking soda temporarily when I don't have access to another antacid.
I quit doing that, because of the last three times. The two times before last,
my right knee dislocated ("popped out") hours after and I fell to the floor.
That was startling. I didn't "correlate" that it could be related until the
second time it happened. The final time I had it, I woke up to a burning and
excruciating pain that coursed my entire back. I don't know if it was the
ligaments, the discs, or what not but it was painful. I've felt that a few
more times in the middle of the night without having had baking soda. So, very
likely not related since it was a single dose. But, I'm not experimenting with
baking soda as an antacid again with my knee having dislocated twice! There
must be no relation but it's a lot like never eating a food again after
getting terribly ill. Not gonna do that again!

------
amelius
Don't go wild on this, or I suppose you might end up with another condition,
which could be worse:

[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Achlorhydria](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Achlorhydria)

------
pkaye
I'm in kidney failure and one of the pills I take is sodium bicarbonate.

~~~
ryanmarsh
I’m sorry to hear that. Best wishes to you. I don’t know what to say that must
be terrifying. I wish you good health and healing.

~~~
pkaye
Thanks for the well wishes. It was terrifying when I was first diagnosed but
I've learned to accept and move ahead one day at a time. Thankfully dialysis
is an option to extending my life despite being inconvenient and limiting.

~~~
tzahola
What caused it?

~~~
pkaye
An autoimmune disease called IgA nephropathy. Happens to 1 in 5000 people.
Kind of pops up in your middle age without an noticeable symptoms.

------
biggio
Quitting sugar worked wonders for me

------
caio1982
I don't have any links off hand now but if you are interested in a more
"natural" (add yourself a few extra nested quotes in there please) try
googling for ACV or apple cider vinegar drinks, which promotes the same
results with far less risk. Folks into ketogenic eating habits and
intermittent fasting love this, although I couldn't get past the first glass
due to the bitter taste.

~~~
dsr_
Vinegar is an acid, so it tastes sour. Ditto citrus fruits.

Bases taste bitter and feel slippery.

Human bodies are usually capable of dealing with quite a lot of acid or base
coming in through the digestive system. I really don't know what sort of
"risk" you're talking about.

~~~
caio1982
Thanks for the vocabulary fix. As for the risk, google for the effects of too
much acidic drinking to teeth and esophagus. People remove deep rust from iron
using vinegar, I'd rather don't underestimate it myself.

------
kristo
As a professional cyclist, my little brother has been doing this for many
years

------
elchief
I wonder how it compares to curcumin. Substantially cheaper no doubt

------
natch
Wouldn't this lead to an overdose of sodium? (yes I'm ignorant about this
subject matter).

~~~
gcb0
you will get very bad diarrhea before it's dangerous. and keep in mind the
study was a gram a day.

------
Giorgi
Yeah, what about side-effects? will there be any?

~~~
marktangotango
Severe bloating, I went off long term ppi and tried baking soda daily. Went
back to ppis.

~~~
pdfernhout
Whether baking soda works or not, eating a healthy diet with lots of leafy
greens is a proven way to reduce inflammation in the body. Getting the right
amount of vitamin D is another. Eating health fats like Omega 3s helps. And
engaging in moderate exercise, getting good sleep, and having good connection
to family, friends, and nature also help reduce inflammation in various ways.
And of course avoid sugar and most refined carbohydrates -- as well as most
food additives. Example link: [https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-
healthy/foods-that-fi...](https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-
healthy/foods-that-fight-inflammation)

~~~
WalterSear
Except you can do all that (have always done that) and still be struck down
with run-away inflammation, and without being some obvious genetic outlier.

What you are describing is nowhere near the cure-all that unsymptomatic
bystanders assume it is.

~~~
maxxxxx
You may also get hit by a car or get struck by lightning. Nothing is a
guaranteed cure-all but what the GP describes is probably a good idea for a
lot of people.

------
coretx
/!\ HOAX Alert /!\ For some weird reason this story or a variation thereof
keeps going viral while both the cited article and the journalist involved
have been burned over and over again at various places. TL;DR Correlation is
not causation. Also: The human body generally regulates acidity using the
kidney ( takes some time ) or the respiratory system. ( Quick, breathing CO2)
If drinking acids or a base would directly supersede the values created by the
aforementioned system this would not be a good thing.

------
code_duck
It’s odd how the article ends with “Baking soda also interact with acidic
ingredients like buttermilk and cocoa in cakes and other baked goods to help
the batter expand and, along with heat from the oven, to rise. It can also
help raise the pH in pools, is found in antacids and can help clean your teeth
and tub.” Was this also sponsored by the baking powder trade association or
something?

~~~
jbigelow76
Careful or the agents of Big Soda (the powder not the beverage) will know we
are onto them :)

------
jensvdh
I'll stick with biologics..

