Baking Soda is an ingredient that is immensely used in bakery items.
Besides this, it is also used to give your refrigerator a sweet smell, whiten your teeth, and much more but did you know that due to the properties of Baking Soda, you could easily lose weight by drinking it?
Drinking a mixture of Baking soda with Lemon Juice, apple cider vinegar, or plain water could help you lose weight and gain that desired body physique.
In this article, we will discuss whether or not the consumption of Baking soda could be beneficial in losing weight or is just a myth.
Baking Soda For Weight Loss
Consuming baking soda with apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, or plain water could affect the weight of your body and help you shed fat in your body fast.
The sad part is that there aren’t many scientific research papers or conclusions to support this theory.
Baking soda has a certain type of alkalizing effect on our bodies. The alkalization that occurs in our body might even be harmful besides helping in reducing weight.
Currently, there is no actual evidence on whether or not baking soda aids in reducing weight in our bodies.
On the other hand, an irritated stomach that is bloated could[1] be treated well with baking soda but sadly it does not affect the weight of the body.
The reaction of baking soda with hydrochloric acid releases carbon dioxide which acts as a relieving component from our mouth as a burp. Hence, it relieves the upset stomach quite well.
The most absurd hypothesis includes the usage of baking soda for bathing which has been claimed to invoke weight loss by improving metabolism and removing toxins from our body.
According to this hypothesis, increasing the levels of magnesium and sulfate in our bodies through a baking soda bath could help us to lose weight.
Even so, it isn’t right to say that baking soda does not affect weight anyhow. There have been a few indirect effects baking soda may have on the weight and fat of your body.
Choosing the right liquid is the main trick in promoting weight loss in your body through its consumption.
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Apple Cider Vinegar
Apple Cider Vinegar is one of the most popular options or drinks that is used with baking soda to promote weight loss in the body.
Apple Cider is a liquid that may have weight-loss effects on your body. It could also aid in reducing hunger.
However, according to a study this vinegar has a very limited effect on one’s weight and fat.
But the fortunate part is that the consumption of the mixture of baking soda and apple cider vinegar could[2] reduce blood sugar levels in the body.
Also, it aids in digestion which may somehow improve the weight loss procedure.
Even so, it is still recommended to consult a doctor before regularly consuming this drink for health purposes.
So that you might not catch any serious problems or face health conditions that might turn fatal.
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Water
Consumption of Baking Soda with water is yet another quite famously consumed for treating acidity and bloating in the stomach causing relief and a bloat-free stomach.
Remember that while it helps your stomach get light and bloat-free, there is minimal fat and weight reduction.
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Lemon Juice
Lemon Juice is a very popular beverage consumed in summer for freshness. Still, it is finished with baking soda as well for weight loss purposes and bloat relief purposes as well.
Still, the combination of baking soda with lemon juice has the same or similar effect as the combination of baking soda with apple cider vinegar.
Daily consumption of such beverages might not directly result in weight loss and give results quickly but in an indirect method; consuming these beverages regularly increases the water and liquid in your body.
The increased daily fluid intake improves the overall hydration levels in the body. An increased hydration level of the body enhances the working of the body and aids strength to work better.
With this, it takes away chronic fatigue and laziness in the body.
Furthermore, the better-hydrated body has been studied[3] to have controlled or reduced hunger levels, which increases the body’s metabolism, directly affecting the body’s fat and heavily promoting weight loss and maintenance.
Now, if studied closely, it is clear that possible weight loss effects have a very distant relation to the consumption of baking soda.
What it comes out to is the effect of water and liquid intake on weight and fat of our body which has been promoted through consuming baking soda regularly.
Even so, this combination has a few other benefits, including a bloat-free stomach.
Is Consumption Of Baking Soda Safe For Health?
As per the claim Baking, Soda promotes weight loss (which has been debunked again), it is harsh to see that there are several side effects of consuming baking soda regularly.
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Metabolic Acidosis
As obvious as it sounds, regular consumption of baking soda provides no to little effect on weight loss of your body and comes with a metabolic side effect that may turn out to be life-threatening.
Consuming baking soda regularly could[4] cause metabolic acidosis.
In this condition, your body fluids contain too much acid, which increases the pH levels of your blood to an extreme amount and could cause major life-threatening problems.
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High Blood Pressure And Other Health-Related Problems
Consumption of baking soda regularly could[5] be harmful to your insulin.
Also, people who usually consume alcohol should limit their consumption of baking soda since it could harm their liver as well.
Besides this, the brain may shrink due to increased sodium and other content in baking soda, causing a cruel death.
Further, the consumption of baking soda regularly could also heavily affect the kidney functions of your body, which could cause kidney failure as well by impairing the way kidneys work in our system.
An urge to urinate more is also increased with more baking soda in the body. Ingesting much more baking soda also affects the brain.
Another serious potential threat from baking soda’s regular consumption is stomach rupture which is caused due to excessive bloating or gas in the stomach.
Note that preschoolers and toddlers (kids under the age of 5) should never be given baking soda since it could cause major breathing problems. Moms-to-be should also refrain from using this chemical.
Conclusion
Besides preparing food, baking soda is used for many health benefits as well, but recently, it has started to connect with weight loss through various theories due to its properties.
Still, there are more side effects of this preparatory food item than benefits which could cause fatal results.
That is why it is strictly recommended to avoid regular consumption of baking soda for weight loss purposes but because there are a few blood sugar-related benefits baking soda provides.
It is recommended to consult a doctor before consuming some beverages that include baking soda (apple cider vinegar with baking soda and lemon juice with baking soda).
Rest, regular exercise and a good diet is the best healthy way to reduce weight and fat, which one should opt for.
References/Sources
- Suad A. Al-Abri and Kent R. Olson Baking Soda Can Settle the Stomach but Upset the Heart: Case Files of the Medical Toxicology Fellowship at the University of California, San Francisco J Med Toxicol. 2013 Sep; 9(3): 255–258.
Published online 2013 Apr 17. doi: 10.1007/s13181-013-0300-4 - Tomoo Kondo,Mikiya Kishi,Takashi Fushimi,et al. Vinegar intake reduces body weight, body fat mass, and serum triglyceride levels in obese Japanese subjects Randomized Controlled Trial Biosci Biotechnol Biochem. 2009 Aug;73(8):1837-43. doi: 10.1271/bbb.90231. Epub 2009 Aug 7.
- Naomi J McKay,Ilona V Belous,Jennifer L Temple Increasing water intake influences hunger and food preference, but does not reliably suppress energy intake in adults Physiol Behav. 2018 Oct 1;194:15-22. doi: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2018.04.024. Epub 2018 Apr 17. Available from:https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29678599/
- MacKenzie Burger; Derek J. Schaller. Metabolic Acidosis Last Update: July 19, 2022. Available from:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK482146/
- Niluk Leon Senewiratne; Allison Woodall; Ahmet S. Can. Sodium Bicarbonate Available from:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK559139/
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Louise Rodriguez is a full-time health and fitness writer. She considers herself a gym rat and takes pride in showing her biceps. She dedicates most of her time to her health. With the time left, she spreads information regarding health and fitness among the masses. Harry Potter is her first love.