If the kidneys can't keep up with our appetite, the bones step in and absorb the excess acid. That's good in the short term, but in the process the bones surrender calcium, phosphorus, sodium and everything they should be keeping to stay strong. The process is called metabolic acidosis and it can become a problem for a middle aged or older person whose kidneys are not working as efficiently as those of a younger person's. As much as 30 percent of post-menopausal white women, the group at greatest risk, have osteoporosis. Protein generates more acid than other foods, and the proteins in red meat generate more acid than those in fish or poultry.
Vegetable proteins give rise to the least amount of acid.
See related articles in the AgeVenture archives. Words like Yin-Yang, acupuncture, shanghaied. Soon these foreign-sounding words are so commonly used that we scarcely believe those words have ever been anything but American. Well, get ready to increase your vocabulary by at least one new word, Qian Ceng Ta. It's a Chinese herb that you'll be hearing a lot more about because it appears to be of significant value as a treatment for Alzheimer's Disease.