apple cider vinegar

[JamieL]

Does anyone know why apple cider vinegar has an alkalizing effect when all other vinegars are acidic? 

[Cathy Crystal]

It is not unusual to be confused about the acid and alkaline pH of our foods. A food's acid or alkaline-FORMING tendency in the body is different thatn the actual pH of the food itself. For instance, lemons, limes and vinegar are acidic, however the end-products they produce after digestion and assimilation are alkaline, thus termed ALKALINE FORMING foods.

Meats  are alkaline before digestion but it leaves an acid ash in the body so, like nearly all animal products, they are ACID FORMING

 It is important to know that stomach acid or the pH of the stomach is an entirely different matter from the pH of the body's fluids and tissues. The body has an acid-alkaline (or acid-base) ratio called the pH which is a balance between positively charges ions (acid-forming) and negatively charged ions (alkaline-forming). When this balance is compromised many problems can occur. The body is forced to borrow minerals—including calcium, sodium, potassium and magnesium from vital organs and bones to neutralize the acid and safely remove it from the body. Many conditions may be due to an over acidic state. The alkalinity of raw apple cider vinegar can correct excess acidity in our system. 

Commercial distilled vinegars do not contain the same health values of organic, raw apple cider vinegar. The powerful enzymes and minerals like potassium, phosphorus, sodium, magnesium, sulphur, iron copper, fluorine, silicon, pectin and natural malic and tartaric acids, which are important in fighting body toxins and inhibiting bacteria growth, are all destroyed during the distilling process.

[Ed Bauman]

In uncooked cider vinegar, the acid is broken down by digestion,
liberating the potassium that creates an alkaline forming effect.
Distilled or cooked vinegars have an acid bond that is more difficult
to mebabolize, thereby creating an acid forming effect.

[Laura Knoff]

Apple cider vinegar has considerable amounts of potassium and the other minerals present in apples. Potassium is alkalinizing. Wine vinegars have some potassium, but also may include sulfur which may be used on the grapes to prevent fungus- even when grow organically. Sulfur is acidic and reduces the alkalinity of the potassium in the grapes. White vinegars are made from corn syrup to produce cheap white vinegar- essentially acetic acid diluted to 5%. White vinegar makes a good cleaner for windows and enamel surfaces instead of 409 or other harsh chemicals.  I would never consume it.

[Marlina E]

and for more about Apple Cider Vinegar:
http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_4028.cfm

[Eva]

Since Laura Knoff answered this question, there is no need to read further.  For the sake of homework, there is a difference between what is acidic and what is acid-forming in the body.  So things like lemons and apple cider vinegar are ripped apart during digestion, leaving the minerals behind as the "ash", and the minerals have the alkaline-forming effect in the body.  I have not committed all the foods' effects to memory yet, but remembering the difference between before and after digestion makes it easier to imagine.  Our digestive systems perform some magical transformations.  Gotta love them lemons!

[blujay]

ACV is the one health panacea!

Use it for cooking, cleaning (clothes, house, food, body inside and out), etc. There have been volumes of books written on this one product.

One word of advice on using ACV. It works best as a health aid if the 'mother' is 'alive'.

You can tell if the mother is alive by floating strands of proteins in the ACV.

Even the best quality ACV (Bragg's) has been sitting for months. This isn't such a bad thing, unless you want a living culture. The process of culturing starts with raw apple juice then yeasts and lactic cultures convert the sugars to alcohol, once all the sugar is converted to alcohol the yeasts and lactic cultures die off from lack of food and the strong alcohol environment. Then a special culture begins to feed on the alcohol, taking many months to sometimes years to fully be converted to the healthy form of ACV as we know it.

So what I'm getting at is that the long shelf time has allowed the 'mother' to use up all her food (the alcohol) and begin to die off. This is evident by no strands of proteins floating and only a thick layer of sediment on the bottom of the jar (like unfiltered beer). This layer is the dead or dieing culture. Again there is nothing wrong with buying and using this ACV, it has all the healthy acids intact. But living is always better for ingesting. To revive the ailing culture, I recommend 2 tablespoons of a good quality mead (pure honey wine) to your 32oz bottle of ACV, then put in a warm place for about a week. If there is any viable culture left, this will revive the 'mother', and produce lots of 'baby mothers' and a even healthier ACV. If after a week or two,you don't notice any strands in the ACV this means all viable culture has died and gone to Bacteria Heaven. A moment of silence please......

No worries, don't consume your failed ACV (contains alcohol, use for cleaning), just go to a different store to find the most recent shipment of ACV (most likely still active), repeat the above culturing process till you have a viable culture then add your living ACV to the failed batches and viola! you have a family of living 'mothers'! To continue this 'living legacy', just add some Mead and some living ACV to your next bottle.

One more note, it is best to buy your ACV in glass jars not the plastic jugs. Would anyone like to explain why?

Healthy Trails
Jay

[Marlina E]

Of course we want to avoid plastic in contact with our foods (especially acidic or fatty foods) as they may leach toxic substances into the food.

Thanks for the post Blujay!  I just started brewing Kombucha and this sounds like the next logical step.

[JennyR]

and how can we make/get mead?

[blujay]

You can make mead at home with a simple mead recipe. Do a search on-line for mead, and you will find tons of recipes, some even include healthy herbs, roots, and fruit. But I wouldn't necessary spend the time it takes to make a well made mead, it usually takes months and some special equipment. Also, because of the high alcohol content of traditional mead, it really is taxing on your liver and other organs.

I'm sure you can order some plain mead on-line, or find it at a local specialty store such as Whole foods, or a wine supplier.

In my latest batch I just made a high alcohol starter with sucanat (sugar cane natural) and Kefir whey (The whey has cultures of yeast and lactic bacteria, which I used to control the over growth of yeast and other bad pathogens). Then did a secondary fermentation with pomegranate/sugar juice. And finished it off with a starter of Raw ACV. All this to produce a healthy batch of Raw Pomegranate Vinegar.

Maybe I should start marketing this stuff?

All the background and recipes can be found on-line or in books like "Wild Fermentation" and "Nourishing Traditions"

Happy culturing
blujay

[codio]

Another question: If apple cider vinegar has a diuretic effect-- Is it potentially dehydrating?

[NicoleP]

All this talk about Vinegar is really interesting. 

I know that Apple Cider Vinegar is good, but what I wonder is... are other common vinegars necessarily bad? 

I understand from the posts that other vinegars (Balsamic, Champagne, Red Wine) are more acid forming than ACV, but are they something to avoid entirely?  Do they chip away at our mineral stores if we consume them a few times a week as a dressing on a salad? (IE if we consume them in small amounts?)  Also, would using them on an alkaline forming salad of veggies, cancel out the acidity of the vinegar?