8 Amazing Health Benefits By Using Baking Soda

by Karen Foster
PreventDisease

Baking soda is likely the most inexpensive health remedy in the world. It is effective at combating everything from colds to cancer, as well as beneficial for oral health, deodorants and so much more. If it's one thing you want in your home pharmacy, it's baking soda.

Note: People still confuse baking soda with baking powder and the presence of aluminum. Baking soda has never had aluminum.

Sodium Bicarbonate (NaHCO3) commonly called baking soda is a natural substance used in the human body within the bloodstream to regulate pH as a counterbalance to acid build up, which is critical to life. It affects the pH of cells and tissues, balances cell voltage, and increases CO2 which helps with oxygenation. Sodium Bicarbonate is a powerful medical tool that everyone would benefit by knowing more about.

1) Oral Health. A plaque-busting tooth and gum paste
Baking soda is a popular ingredient in toothpastes and mouthwashes since it has been shown to enhance plaque removal. For an incredibly effective tooth and gum paste, use a mixture of six parts of baking soda to one part of sea salt. Place them in a blender and mix for 30 seconds, then place in a container to use. Wet the tip of your index finger and place a small amount of the salt and soda mixture on your gums. Starting with the upper outside gums and then the inside of the upper, followed by the lower outside of the gums then the lower inside, rub the mixture onto your teeth and gums. Spit out the excess. After 15 minutes rinse your mouth. This mixture is incredibly effective at killing bacteria. For a natural way to whiten your teeth, crush one ripe strawberry and mix it with 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda. Spread the mixture onto your teeth and leave on for five minutes. Then brush your teeth and rinse. This method should be used no more than once a week, as excessive use could potentially damage your tooth enamel.

2) Natural Deodorant.
Using baking soda as a deodorant is a simple way to combat body odor without subjecting your pits to a variety of chemicals. Mix an eighth of a teaspoon of baking soda with a little bit of water -- don't dissolve it -- and rub it under your arms. You can also create a baking soda and cornstarch mix to fight odor and help prevent wetness. Simply mix one part baking soda with six parts cornstarch and dust a little on your underarms. You can also dip finger in water, then apply baking soda to each arm pit and spread the solution with a natural deodorant crystal.

3) Kidney Disease
Bicarbonate is an alkaline substance naturally produced in the body that buffers acids and helps keep pH in check. In people who have chronic kidney disease, which is most often caused by diabetes or hypertension, poorly functioning kidneys have a hard time removing acid from the body. This often results in a condition known as metabolic acidosis.

In one study, British researchers treated patients with advanced kidney disease and metabolic acidosis with oral sodium bicarbonate in conjunction with their usual treatment for two years. The sodium bicarbonate slowed the rate of decline in kidney function by two-thirds, and just 6.5 percent of the patients treated with sodium bicarbonate required dialysis by the end of the study, compared to 33 percent in a control group. Discuss this with your physician and encourage him to look into this promising therapy, which can slow the progression of this devastating disease.

4) Cancer
Studies have shown that dietary measures to boost bicarbonate levels can increase the pH of acidic tumors without upsetting the pH of the blood and healthy tissues. Although this hasn’t yet been studied in human clinical trials, animal models of human breast cancer show that oral sodium bicarbonate does indeed make tumors more alkaline and inhibit metastasis. Based on these studies, plus the fact that baking soda is safe and well tolerated, world renowned doctors such as Dr. Julian Whitaker have adopted successful cancer treatment protocols as part of an overall nutritional and immune support program for patients who are dealing with the disease. The Whitaker protocol uses 12 g (2 rounded teaspoons) of baking soda mixed in 2 cups water, along with a low-cal sweetener of your choice. (It’s quite salty tasting.) Sip this mixture over the course of an hour or two and repeat for a total of three times a day. One man claims he has found a cure for cancer using baking soda and molasses and actually successfully treated his own disease by using baking soda.

5) Dermatological Conditions
For insect bites, make a paste out of baking soda and water, and apply as a salve onto affected skin. To ease the itch, shake some baking soda into your hand and rub it into damp skin after bath or shower.

As a Sunburn remedy, add 1/2 cup of baking soda to lukewarm bathwater, then soak in the tub for natural relief. When you get out, let your skin air dry, rather than toweling off the excess baking soda, for extra relief. You can also add a mixture of baking soda and water to a cool compress and apply it to the sunburn directly.

Skip harsh soaps and gently scrub away ground-in dirt and neutralize odors on hands with a paste of 3 parts baking soda to 1 part water, or 3 parts baking soda to gentle liquid hand soap. Then rinse clean.

A paste made from three parts of baking soda combined with 1 part water can be used as an exfoliator for your face and body. It's natural, inexpensive and gentle enough to use every day.

For splinters, add a tablespoon of baking soda to a small glass of water, then soak the affected area twice a day. Many splinters will come out on their own after a couple of days using this treatment.

If you can't afford a standard spa treatment, create a foot soak by adding baking soda to warm water. It's a well-known way to heal athlete's foot, but it's also great for easing calluses.

British researchers found that adding one-half cup of baking soda to bathwater soothed itchiness and irritation in patients with psoriasis.

6) Antacid. Use for heartburn, indigestion and even ulcers
Most over-the-counter antacids, such as Alka-Seltzer, Tums, and Rolaids, contain some form of bicarbonate. But a more cost-effective way to relieve occasional heartburn and indigestion is to stir half a teaspoon of baking soda into half a cup of water and drink it an hour or two after meals. Baking soda can neutralize pain from stomach and duodenal ulcers, GERD, hiatal hernia and other conditions causing acid relfux. One caution with ulcers is that you should not treat them chronically with baking soda. Although it helps at first, sodium bicarbonate can cause the stomach to produce more acid, which sometimes makes things worse.

7) Cold and Flu
In their booklet "Arm & Hammer Baking Soda Medical Uses," published in 1924, Dr. Volney S. Cheney recounts his clinical successes with sodium bicarbonate in treating cold and flu. He stated "treated all cases of 'cold,' influenza and LaGripe by first giving generous doses of bicarbonate of soda, and in many, many instances within 36 hours the symptoms would have entirely abated." Simply dissolve the recommended amount of baking soda in a glass of cold water and drink it. Recommended dosages from the Arm & Hammer Company for colds and influenza back in 1925 were:

• Day 1 -- Take six doses of 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda in glass of cool water, at about two-hour intervals
• Day 2 -- Take four doses of 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda in glass of cool water, at the same intervals
• Day 3 -- Take two doses of 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda in glass of cool water morning and evening, and thereafter 1/2 teaspoon in glass of cool water each morning until cold symptoms are gone

8) Energizer
Refresh with invigorating scents that wake you up. Make vibrant-smelling essential oils combined with baking soda to elevate mornings to a whole new level in the shower. Here's a great recipe.

Sources:
popsugar.com
drsircus.com
drwhitaker.com
mercola.com
hesperian.org

About the author
Karen Foster is a holistic nutritionist, avid blogger, with five kids and an active lifestyle that keeps her in pursuit of the healthiest path towards a life of balance.