Re: IC and lemons

I don't know. Good question. I have been using apple cider vinegar, which I think may have the same alkalinizing properties as lemon juice. I was never diagnosed IC, but I got tired of consulting MDs a long time ago. I have had a lot of frequent urination, even having to get up to pee in the middle of the night one or more times every night. I had been trying to do the Dr. Batmanghelidj Water Cure thing and put the Celtic Sea Salt in my drinking water and had been doing that for some period of time off and on - years. When I started adding the ACV to my water and quit using salt in my water, it seemed like I did not have to use the bathroom quite as much. The only thing I can figure out is that I must have been retaining a lot of water when I used the salt water mixture. This water retention got so built up in my system over a period of time and my kidneys were constantly trying to filter it out. The potassium in the ACV offset this and made me pee out some of the fluids that I had been retaining, so now I do not go to the bathroom quite as often. I just hope this continues for a while.

One instance where I can really tell a difference is before my menstrual cycle starts. Prior to starting the ACV I had so much breast tenderness. I know estrogen and salt sort of team up together around that time of the month and cause a lot of water retention. It has only been about a month or so since I started the ACV, but I noticed at my last cycle I did not have near the amount of breast tenderness as usual. I am having some this month, although not nearly as intense as usual, but it is because I have been eating a lot of fresh garden produce, cucumbers, tomatoes, etc. I do not enjoy them without salt.

One other thing I have noticed with the ACV, is that even though I still like salt on the blander foods, my taste buds have gotten more sensitive to a lot of foods.

If you have to get up in the middle of the night to pee a lot, you might be interested in this part of my story. I just started sleeping through the night several nights ago after starting Dr. Barry Sears Omega RX fish oil capsules. I just hope it lasts. The fish oil is supposed to be anti-inflammatory, so I don't know if it is calming something down in my bladder or helping me with my serotonin/melatonin levels or both. It is something I have been praying about for a long, long time.

So between the ACV and the fish oil capules, I am experiencing some improvements. Like I said, I just hope it lasts.

B