These bicarbonates are alkaline and neutralize excess acid in the blood, dissolving acidic solid waste. This process takes place with the release of carbon dioxide that is eliminated through the lungs in the breathing process.
As we age, this mechanism of blood alkalinization becomes more inefficient, generating the phenomenon of acidosis. It is a consequence of the accumulation of acidic waste in the body. There is, therefore, a clear connection between the aging process and the accumulation of acids.
Considering the pH value in the stomach, it would appear that the alkaline water never reaches the body. But when we look at the body as a whole, there is a net gain of alkalinity after we drink alkaline water. Let’s not forget that the cells of the body are slightly alkaline. For them to produce acid, they must also produce alkalinity and vice versa.
When we take alkaline Alka-Seltzer to relieve stomach acidic aches, hydrochloric acid is no longer produced by the stomach walls, and therefore the bloodstream is no longer receiving the addition of alkalinity (bicarbonate) to meet its slightly alkaline condition.
Let’s take the example of another organ that works on the same principle (producing acid to produce alkalinity). Once stomach foods are digested, they are going into the small intestine. At this stage, the food bowl is so acidic that it will destroy the walls of the intestine. To avoid this, the pancreas is designed to help with the secretion of alkaline juices. This sodium bicarbonate secretion is thus combined with the acidic food bowl coming from the stomach. And to produce bicarbonates, according to the formula above, the pancreas must also produce hydrochloric acid, which is released into the bloodstream.
After a copious meal, a drowsiness occurs when the digested food leaves the stomach (and not during the meal or during digestion in the stomach). This is the moment when hydrochloric acid enters the bloodstream. Hydrochloric acid is the main component of anithistamines, which explains the state of somnolence/drowsiness.
Therefore, the alkalinity or acidity produced by the body must be counterbalanced by acidity or alkalinity, also produced by the body.
But alkalinity generated from external sources of the body, such as alkaline water, results in a net gain in alkalinity in the body. And this is what we want to achieve, because most foods consumed produce acidity (meat, white bread, fat, dairy, eggs, alcohol, coffee, etc.). And health is created and maintained in a slightly alkaline environment.