How and When to Use pH Strips
And where to buy them...
Testing your pH with pH strips is fast, easy, and inexpensive. Knowing how and when to use these strips will help you accurately assess your health.
You can purchase pH strips at drug stores, health food stores, or online. My favorite brand is below- pHion pH Stix - pH Test Strips.
Whichever brand you buy, make sure that the range is appropriate. For both urine and saliva tests, a pH range from 4.5 to 9.0 is best.
You can also buy the pH tape that comes in rolls. I'm not a big fan of these because they can bleed and are frequently hard to read. If I may get a bit personal, they are also much more difficult to pee on!
It is important to note that one reading (or even several readings) is not enough to make any conclusions. This is because our pH can be influenced by factors like:
- what we eat
- what we drink
- stress
- physical activity
- prescription medications
- nutritional supplements
So instead of taking just one reading, testing several times a day for 3-5 days in a row will be much more accurate.
And if you want to give your body pH a faster shove in the right direction, try out these alkaline supplements. Please note that they are not needed to get back in balance - you ca do that from just diet alone.
Testing your urine pH with pH strips
While you sleep, your body is hard at work processing all the acids from the day. Because of this, your first morning urine should be acidic. This is not the best indicator of what is actually going on with your kidneys, so it is best not to put too much emphasis on it.
Instead, take the reading on your second urine of the day. Here's the easiest way:
- Pass the pH strip (or pH tape if you dare) directly through your stream of urine to thoroughly wet it.
- Flick off the excess (preferably in the toilet so you don't get in trouble with your family!).
- Wait the recommended amount of time (generally 15 seconds).
- Compare the color of the strip with the chart that comes with them.
- Record the results.
You can test whenever you like, but definitely test your urine before lunch and before dinner.
These will be more accurate readings because, as I said above, meals can temporarily change your pH by quite a bit.
If you are saying to yourself, "I don't have to go to the bathroom that much." I say, "You need to drink more water!"
Unless your urine is clear, or very pale yellow, you are dehydrated. Simple as that. Unless you are taking B vitamins, in which case your urine will be bright yellow.
Testing your saliva pH
Similar to testing your first urine of the day, your first saliva of the day is not the most accurate either. Still, healthy saliva should never go below a pH of 6.8. If it is, it means that your alkaline mineral reserves are too low and the body does not have the minerals necessary to properly process food.
To test your saliva with pH strips:
- Work up some saliva in your mouth
- Put the strip in your mouth reagent side down
- Leave in one or two seconds until moist
- Take it out and wait the recommended time (generally 15 seconds)
- Record the results
Test your saliva several times a day too. Good times are also before lunch and dinner.
Test at other times too if you like, and keep a record of all of them. Definitely wait at least 30 minutes after eating to test, because food and drink can dramatically affect the reading.
To understand your results after all your testing is done go to urine pH and/or saliva pH.
