Apple Cider Vinegar: Uses, Health Benefits and FAQ - Ted's Q&A

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Why Do I Get Sore Throat and Side Effects?

Posted by Hina (Lahore, Pakistan) on 08/14/2007

Last month I asked the same question but I could not find the answer, that's why I am again sending it to you. Because the answer is very important to me. Actually I have got side effects from using acid cider vinegar, I was very excited after reading the benefits and i wanted to tell my aunt about it to cure her arthritis and my mom for diabetics, but before telling them I started using it as prescribed for getting general benefits out of it, I take two table spoons in a cup of water with honey, twice a day and I got sore throat and two much cattarah and bruise in throat. Normally I never get flu or sore throat but after using it severe side effects , I discontinued then I was ok then again I started again I got the same conditions . now even I am not using but still my throat is not hundred percent. And I am hundred percent confirmed that my condition is really by using acid cider vinegar. I am amazed why I got these side effects as it is also the remedy for sore throat. May be I use it in cold water. Pl tell me whats the reason as I am very sad at my results , because I could not tell my aunt and mother to use it after seeing its discouraging results. Pl answer me as soon as possible hina

Replied by Ted
Bangkok, Thailand
391 posts

Dear Hina:
One of the most important unrecognized electrolytes is that we do not recognize the importance of a dietary buffers or keeping the body within a healthy pH range, which is slightly alkaline. Certain people who have insufficient bicarbonates or alkalinity needed to neutralize the acidic vinegar may have problem and may make the conditions worse, by making people more acid if and when the body does not have sufficient bicarbonates to neutralize the effects of apple cider vinegar.

A great majority of my remedy is always the use of either baking soda alone or apple cider vinegar with baking soda. The baking soda is needed to neutralize the acidity of the apple cider vinegar to a near neutral pH of 7, or a pH of alkalinity within normal biological parameter of 7.35, which is the blood pH. The bicarbonates play an essential role in the buffering of the body so that the body doesn't burn itself up or eat itself up in presence of excess acidity. A pH that is acid, can be a prooxidant, while a pH that is alkaline can be an antioxidant, just the same. An acid can eat you whenever it is prooxidant, but yet protective of healthy cells in a slightly alkaline solution. Why this is so is simply that healthy cells LIVE in a slightly alkaline solution of 7.4

Many people assume our body to be all perfect to be able to "oxidize" the apple cider vinegar magically into an alkaline component. Science in fact have not really resolved those and be able to predict how alkaline your body can be after consuming apple cider vinegar. This assumption is often held wrong, if people really bother to get a pH meter and measure the urinary pH after consuming the apple cider vinegar, which in most cases tend to cause urine pH to be more acid, since most people won't have sufficient amount of bicarbonates in his or her diet anyway, to neutralize them sufficiently to be "alkaline".

Hence consuming apple cider vinegar ALONE are at least helpful for a short term, but over the long run either the baking soda or a remedy that I used so often I repeat over again, is the 2 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar plus 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda in 1/2 glass of water taken twice a day on an empty stomach as is the one that very few problems.

Even a Thai friend here was so into apple cider vinegar, he ended up with an acid tongue, so acid that his tongue began to tear. While I did warn him about excess use, he also skipped adding baking soda for a couple of days. So the remedy for his problem was simply to take at least 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda in 1/2 glass of water for about a week before his condition disappeared. As a result, thereafter, he did follow the remedy of 2 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar plus 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda in 1/2 glass of water, and his strange sickness (burning tongue) and frequent colds disappeared.

Therefore the remedy of apple cider vinegar plus baking soda is used INSTEAD of apple cider vinegar plus honey.

The other reason for this is that many bacteria, viruses and fungus grows in a slightly acid medium which is anywhere between 4-6. Most of these do get killed whenever the pH reaches 7- 10. Apple cider vinegar is a pro-oxidant whenever its pH solution is below 6, and it becomes an antioxidant whenever its pH of the solution is between 7 to 8. This can easily be proven whenever an ORP meter (oxidation reduction potential meter is used) which measures around -150 millivolts to -200 millivolts, being an antioxidant, whenever the solution are alkalinity.

Most bacteria, viruses and fungus are decaying organisms that thrive whever the environment is acid and the solution is somewhat near oxidant where the solution is likely to be in the plus range of the millivolts.

So the sugar component of the honey plus the acid forming part of the apple cider vinegar in my experience don't really help. In a fairly dilute solution of honey, they can also be food for the bacteria and the viruses from the sugar component. It is and always has been the apple cider vinegar plus the baking soda alkaline solution WITHOUT the honey is used. Honey is sugar, and the reason for its benefit is not really just the honey. Most of the nutrients actually comes from the bee pollen and the royal jelly where a queen bee as full access to this and allows it to survive many times longer than her worker bees. Part of the reason why honey was historically used, at least during the times of the Egyptians whenever people have flesh wounds, a honey undiluted is used because the a highly concentrated syrup the osmotic pressure are somewhat hyperosmolarity and causes the cells or bacteria to die by dehydration.

The same is also true for salted fish whenever a salted solution is used to keep the bacteria free from decaying the fishes. However, Egyptians do not use salt solution because it is too painful, but the honey were more soothing.

So in practice, a sugar by any other name, at least for me is still sugar, whether I speak of fructose (corn syrup), glucose, or sucrose (common sugar), and the sweets, at least for the fructose, glucose and sucrose are acid forming and provides food for the bacteria to grow. Therefore I would stick to the 2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar plus 1/4 teaspoon of baking soda in 1/2 glass of water as a genenral remedy. Again this is NOT taken everyday and the body does need a rest period. Usually its taken for 4 or 5 days out of a week.


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