Hi!

"I had understood, from various sources, that although lemons, limes, and grapefruits are chemically acid, tests show that when they are metabolized in the body they actually have an alkalizing effect."

The above is 100% correct -- they are considered alkaline foods, as well as, pineapple.

You know, I am not sure. The effect it has on me is diarrhea. So there is a chemical change in the bowel for sure. [maybe the lemon acid prompts the alkalizing effects of the bile thus stimulating homeostasis which re-balances hydrchloric acid production?] It could be enzymatic involving citric acid . It has helped tremendously with my anal itching, so I assume it is having negative affect on yeast [the cause of the itching].
To truly have a permanent effect on the acidity of the stomach would involve many endocrine-related systems and flora balance. Shroom

That sounds very odd to me zooii.

Firstly hydrochloric acid is partly composed of chlorine. A lot of this comes into out diet from salt - sodium chloride. If this is necessary for production of HCL, I dont see that part of the compound that MAKES the acid, contribute to supressing it.

Plus as we are often warned most people get WAY too much salt, around 6x more than necessary is the 'recommended maximum' promoted by nutritionists.

Anyway, thats just some ideas I had inrelation to your post, Im not really sure if they work out.

And yea, lemon juice is considered and alkaline substance.
Also, 'acidifying' the intestines would work against the bile that the liver secretes into the intestines to allow for fat digestion, bile is an alkaline substance, which is used to neutralise the stomach acid that makes its way into the small intestine from the stomach...Im not sure how anything would work to acidify, as it would be working against one of the functions of the liver.

Again, just some thoughts that might add a different perspective.

Dr. Bernard Jensen , Ph.D. recommends using foods high in natural sodium to supply this mineral needed by the stomach for digestion, prevention of ulcers & to keep calcium in suspension thus preventing arthritis, stroke, calcium deposits, cataracts, poor circulation & other problems relating to calcification.

"Sodium destruction can inhibit the ability of the stomach wall to produce a sufficient amount of hydrochloric acid resulting in a concurrent inability to digest protein." (p. 288 of Iridology the Science and Practice in the Healing Arts vol II. In his book Science and Practice
of Iridology we read the following quotes: "The stomach is an organ not only requiring a great deal of sodium in its tissues, but is considered
to be a storage depot of sodium. When the body lacks sodium, therefore, the stomach is the first organ to react. I do not know of any one chemical element more needed in the body than sodium. The stomach is one of the first organs to be involved in chemical depletion." p. 109

"Sodium, the youth element, keeps calcium in solution." p. 140; "The patient whose body is suffering from lack of a proper amount of sodium
probably will have a sour stomach." p. 21. Arthritis may also occur in a person with a very acid stomach which has burned out the sodium to such an extent that the calcium cannot be kept in solution." p. 22;

"Foods rich in organic sodium such as Celery juice and whey can break up much of a calcium fixation and neutralize an over acid body condition." p. 162 [sodium is to the stomach what calcium is to the bone.] Dr.Bernard Jensen recommends the use of whey on p. 353 in his book The Science and Practice of Iridology: "Whey products from goats' or cows' milk, either fresh or powdered are desirable in the diet because they feed the acidophilus bacteria and sweeten the bowel."
"The removal of sodium from bile causes the bile pH to drop. The more it drops the more acid it becomes. When bile drops to a certain point, Gallstones are formed. Gallstones can cause severe problems, including life-threatening afflictions.

"When the bile becomes acid, it is highly caustic and irritates the intestinal wall. Bile can become so acid that it can burn a hole right through the gut wall: In fact 90 percent of all so-called stomach or peptic ulcers are found in the duodenum near the bile duct. Bile irritation is associated with development of polyps, bowl tumors, colon cancer, irritable bowel syndrome, (IBS), leaky gut syndrome, and various other bowel diseases.

"Fortunately the body has a protective mechanism that can help to compensate for this dangerous scenario: Mucin secretion. Mucin is a glycoprotein mucus. It is secreted by intestinal glands and can line the intestines, thereby protecting it from acids and other irritants. Mucin is the primal essence of mucoid plaque." (Dr. Rich Anderson, Cleanse and Purify Thyself, Volume I)

The good thing about this scenario is that the delicate tissues are protected. The bad part: If the diet stays the same (high animal protein) the mucin continues to form, day after day, year after year, until it has formed a very heavy mucoid plaque which begins to be a home for all kinds of parasites such as harmful bacteria and viruses which were let in by the stomach because a lack of hydrochloric acid couldn't kill them. "The consequences of acid bile and mucoid plaque include the following: poor digestion, poor assimilation, toxic accumulation, poor peristalsis, mutation or destruction of friendly bacteria, bowel diseases, and the commencement of many chronic and degenerative diseases. And all this caused primarily because of organic electrolyte deficiencies" [or chiefly organic sodium deficiency, because the minerals which are not replaced in the diet become less and less thus exacerbating the problem even further.]

"The next most likely locale for the body to retrieve organic sodium is the stomach. In a healthy person, the parietal cells of the stomach manufacture hydrochloric acid, an essential element in digestion. But in order to do this, it must have large amounts of organic sodium to protect the stomach cells from the hydrochloric acid. It is at this site that we find the greatest store of organic sodium, and if it is diminished, the stomach is forced to stop hydrochloric acid production. For if the hydrochloric acid production were continued without the protection of organic sodium, the hydrochloric acid would burn a hole right through the stomach. Yes, a lack of organic sodium is associated with ulcers. Therefore, a lack of sodium in the stomach not only means a shutdown of hydrochloric acid production; it also means that pepsinogen cannot be activated, nor can proteins be efficiently digested.

"Lack of hydrochloric acid and enzymes devastates digestion. Poor digestion always means that health is diminishing. Not only has that happened, but a lack of the normal hydrochloric acid in the stomach allows potential pathogenic bacteria, parasites, and yeasts to enter the inner sanctum of the gastrointestinal tract.!" (Dr. Rich Anderson, Cleanse and Purify Thyself, Volume I)

Now that the mucoid plaque has become a home for parasites such as harmful fungi, bacteria and viruses other problems arise. One problem is the waste they continually give off, in the process of metabolism and catabolism. This waste in and of itself causes a darkness in the body not only physical and chemical but mental. The mucoid plaque prevents our foods from absorbing into the blood stream properly. Now the cells of our bodies are not only underfed and becoming weaker each day but are surrounded by a murky filth which is hard to cleanse because of the daily inundations of more unhealthy foods.

As the digestive process uses up the organic sodium in the stomach, it then begins to rob it from other parts of the body. If the muscles are robbed, then they become weak. If the joints are robbed of organic sodium, then Arthritis begins to develop. Lack of minerals and organic sodium is the beginning of old age as we know it.