Is drinking water with baking soda good for you? See the risks and benefits

You might think that the baking soda That stuff that’s hiding in the back of your cupboard is only useful for absorbing unpleasant fridge smells, cleaning produce or making baked goods. But some people are adding it to their water and sharing online that it can improve exercise performance, reduce acid reflux and boost energy levels, among other things.

However, experts explain that the possible beneficial effect of the practice is still a complex issue due to limited and varied research, risks and personal health.

“Baking soda is a really interesting natural ingredient that can do a lot,” says Frances Largeman-Roth, registered dietitian and author of “Everyday Snack Tray.”

“It can also neutralize odors and help remove stains from your clothes,” the expert adds via email.

However, just because baking soda is made from natural ingredients doesn’t mean it’s safe to consume without regulation, Largeman-Roth adds. The need for caution comes down to the chemistry of baking soda and the chemistry of your body. The delicate interaction between the two is exactly what can bring benefits or harm.

Baking soda is an alkaline substance made up of sodium, hydrogen, carbon, and oxygen, explains Grace Derocha, a registered dietitian and spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. The main way baking soda can be helpful for issues like acid reflux is neutralizing the acid .

On the pH scale of acidity and alkalinity, anything with a pH less than 7 is acidic while from 7 to 8 is neutral and anything from 8 to 14 is alkaline or basic . The normal pH range for the human body, as measured by blood, is 7.35 to 7.45, according to Derocha, but specific parts of the body and substances have their own pH — such as the highly acidic pH of the stomach, which is 1.

Consuming too much baking soda, which has an alkaline pH of about 8.3, can be harmful. With that in mind, here’s what research and experts say about its health effects, important risk factors, and other things you need to know.

What the research shows (and doesn’t show)

When it comes to the benefits of consuming baking soda, exercise endurance is one of the purposes most supported by research, dating back to the 1980s —although some studies are small or have varying conclusions.

During exercise—especially the intense, anaerobic kind, like sprinting or jumping rope—muscle metabolism produces hydrogen ions, exercise physiologist Tamara Hew-Butler, an associate professor of exercise and sports science at Wayne State University in Detroit, explains in an email. So the breakdown of muscle glycogen that produces energy also results in the production of lactate, another hydrogen ion.

The buildup of ions “increases acidity in the blood/muscle environment, which limits exercise performance (i.e., the ‘burn’ of exercise),” Hew-Butler adds. “Thus, the [benefício] The advantage of taking sodium bicarbonate before exercise is to reduce acidity in and around working muscles, which can improve performance in short-duration, high-intensity exercise.”

Some studies have shown that taking baking soda one to two hours before exercise can improve performance during up to 12 minutes of high-intensity activities such as cycling, running, rowing, boxing, and karate. according to a large 2021 research review from the International Society of Sports Nutrition. But the effects on pH can last up to three hours, explains Hew-Butler.

Participants who consumed sodium bicarbonate in a study involving strength training were able to do more repetitions with less muscle fatigue than the placebo group.

Baking soda can also reduce stomach acid and ease acid reflux or indigestion — which isn’t surprising, since the ingredient is a component of antacids, a common treatment for these conditions, explains Derocha.

There was also some evidence suggesting that sodium bicarbonate may slow the progression of kidney disease.

In people with chronic kidney disease, the organs don’t work well enough to eliminate enough acid each day, resulting in more acidic blood, says Paul O’Connor, a professor of physiology at the Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University in Georgia.

“Clinically, what we’ve been doing is giving these people bicarbonate supplementation to basically offset the acid load and help the kidneys eliminate less acid,” O’Connor says. “Being too much[acidic]can cause bone and mineral loss, muscle wasting, and some other problematic things.”

One randomized controlled trial A study of 153 people with high blood pressure and a high risk of worsening chronic kidney disease is the latest evidence to support this. Taking two doses of sodium bicarbonate daily — in the form of four or five 650-milligram tablets — was associated with slower progression of kidney disease over five years, according to the study published August 5 in The American Journal of Medicine.

This result was in comparison to the group that received only standard medical care. However, sodium bicarbonate supplementation was not associated with improvements in blood pressure or cardiovascular disease risk.

These findings confirmed about 15 other studies on the topic. Some also suggested benefits for kidney stones. But some recent multicenter clinical trials have suggested otherwise, O’Connor said, and it’s not yet known why.

One 2018 study A study in mice and humans found that baking soda reduced inflammation, says Largeman-Roth, which is a risk factor for several health problems, including heart disease, depression, Alzheimer’s disease, and more. “However, the study only lasted[two]weeks, so we can’t assume that this treatment is safe over time,” she says.

But the findings are why the study authors suggested that inflammatory diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis, could potentially benefit from baking soda, according to Largeman-Roth.

Managing risk

Regardless of your situation, always consult your doctor to make sure a new health practice is right for you, since everyone’s body is different, says Derocha. Reduced stomach acid can make some medications take longer to work or affect how they work, says Largeman-Roth.

There are people for whom this instruction is critical and sodium bicarbonate supplementation is absolutely not recommended, including children; those who have cardiovascular problems, acidosis or alkalosis; and people who are pregnant, according to experts.

This caution is partly due to the high sodium content, as 1 teaspoon contains more than 1,200 milligrams. The American Heart Association’s ideal daily sodium limit is 1,500 milligrams per day for most adults, especially those with high blood pressure, and a maximum of 2,300 milligrams per day.

There’s no universal dosage recommendation, according to experts. But for indigestion, you might try ¼ teaspoon mixed with a glass of water, says Largeman-Roth.

Some people use a teaspoon, Derocha says, but starting with less may be better, since some people experience diarrhea, gas, nausea, or vomiting when taking too much. Taking it after eating is best, since you need your stomach acid to digest the food first, she adds.

Fitness studies have typically dosed in the range of 0.2 to 0.5 grams of baking soda per kilogram of body weight — meaning that a person weighing about 59 kilograms, or 130 pounds, could use about a tablespoon of baking soda, at a minimum. But in real life, many athletes can’t tolerate that amount, says Largeman-Roth.

For kidney disease, the dosage of pills is adjusted by doctors based on a patient’s blood tests, O’Connor says.

Overdoing it or drinking baking soda water long term “can have disastrous results,” warns Largeman-Roth. She adds that some people have ended up in the hospital because they’ve pushed their bodies into metabolic alkalosis, meaning the body’s pH is higher than 7.45. Alkalosis can harm the heart, decrease blood flow to the brain, cause mental confusion and reduce oxygen flow to body tissues, she adds.

Your stomach may also start to secrete excess acid in anticipation of the baking soda it assumes you’re going to ingest, O’Connor warns.

“That’s why people with acid reflux are often given other medications—proton pump inhibitors and things like that,” he adds. “Having an acidic stomach (also) is good for keeping bacteria from getting into the digestive system.”

Some people limit their consumption to the morning because it interferes with their sleep. This is likely because sodium makes the heart work harder to move blood throughout the body, temporarily increasing blood pressure, explains Derocha. This effect explains why some people who take blood pressure medication use it at night, which means less work for the heart and therefore better sleep.

Supplementing with baking soda isn’t the only way to alleviate acid-induced health issues. In a recent study on baking soda, kidney disease, and high blood pressure, adding more of the produce to your diet was more effective — reinforcing the fact that for overall health, the basics are always the most important, experts say.

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