vinager acidosis

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Specializes in ob/gyn med /surg.

i have a pt who drank vinegar a couple times a day warm w/ honey . she took it to boost her immune system, she went into acidosis.. could it have been caused by drinking all the vinegar? she drank 6 oz twice a day( yuck) .. doc thinks it could have been the vinegar?? i didn't think so... any thoughts? thank you ahead of time

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probably could cause metabolic acidisis over time. Vinager is very hard on the digestive system if your intake is high enough. Might have been enough to upset her balance.

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Specializes in icu, er, transplant, case management, ps.
i have a pt who drank vinegar a couple times a day warm w/ honey . she took it to boost her immune system, she went into acidosis.. could it have been caused by drinking all the vinegar? she drank 6 oz twice a day( yuck) .. doc thinks it could have been the vinegar?? i didn't think so... any thoughts? thank you ahead of time

Believe it or not drinking a small amount of vinegar, honey and water has been demonstrated to have a somewhat positive effect on our body. However, drinking six ounces of vinegar twice a day, can alter your metabolism, taking you into metabolic acidosis. The impact of the chemicals alters the chemical structure within your cells, within your body. If your patient insist on continue drinking the vinegar, advise her to take only two tablespoons, in eight ounces of water and a teaspoon of honey, once a day. That is what is recommended on the several websites I visited.

Woody:balloons:

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Specializes in ICU,ER,OR.

Metabolic, respiratory, correcting, corrected, uncorrected, and besides daily acetic acid intake (how many decades had that been going on) what was her sig PMH? All acidosis' aren't the same...in my book anyway...but again...i'm just a nurse.

No matter her history, household vinegar (~5%) is a very weak acetic acid (pH ~ 2.9), whereas the gastric juices typically consist of a strong acid (hydrochloric - pH ~ 1ish..fluctuates naturally...but i think 2 to 3 is pretty standard normal gastric lumen pH).

Can you hurt yourself by chronically ingesting weak acidic fluids...of course, but i imagine it would more than likely present as oral/esophageal/pharyngeal - and then probably as an erosion.

Bulimics will present with erosions (remember, they are puking up pH ~1 through the oropharynx) to dental enamel and may be in alkalosis from always dumping their gastric contents. Does chronic ingestion of a weak acid (less that normal gastric lumen pH) cause the secretory mechanism to lower gastric pH?

If vomiting can lead to alkolosis, then wouldn't supplementation of gastric juice lead to a low production of HCL? Again, chronic versus acute versus underlying disease processes plays a part in the decision making process.

In the end, I think ABGs on room air, Chem 21, and urine combined with good Hx would help determine why she is acidotic. Who knows...maybe it's from too much vinegar drinking:)

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Specializes in ob/gyn med /surg.

your replies are great !! you are so knowledgable.. wow thank you all... so interesting... thank you all so much..

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Specializes in icu, er, transplant, case management, ps.

Can you hurt yourself by chronically ingesting weak acidic fluids...of course, but i imagine it would more than likely present as oral/esophageal/pharyngeal - and then probably as an erosion.

Actually the Ph of vinegar varies, some is stronger then others. And ingesting it on a daily bases can affect your stomach mucosa, or so I learned in my advanced parapsychology course. And it is absorbed in the stomach and small intestine.

Woody

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