Uploaded January 2026 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
Can reducing acid-forming foods and boosting alkaline-forming foods replicate the performance-enhancing effects of sodium bicarbonate without the adverse effects?
For more on athletes, see my video Why All Athletes Should Eat Plant-Based Diets (nutritionfacts.org/video/why-all-athletes-should-eat-plant-based-diets/).
In my first series on athletes, I took us way back in history. Check out:
• The Gladiator Diet: How Vegetarian Athletes Stack Up (nutritionfacts.org/video/the-gladiator-diet-how-vegetarian-athletes-stack-up/)
• The First Studies on Vegetarian Athletes (nutritionfacts.org/video/the-first-studies-on-vegetarian-athletes/)
• Vegetarian Muscle Power, Strength, and Endurance (nutritionfacts.org/video/vegetarian-muscle-power-strength-and-endurance/)
How do you know if your diet is alkaline? Check out Testing Your Diet with Pee and Purple Cabbage (nutritionfacts.org/video/testing-your-diet-with-pee-purple-cabbage/).
New subscribers to our e-newsletter always receive a free gift. Get yours here: nutritionfacts.org/subscribe/.
Have a question about this video? Leave it in the comment section at nutritionfacts.org/video/friday-favorites-do-alkaline-diets-help-athletic-performance and someone on the NutritionFacts.org team will try to answer it.
Want to get a list of links to all the scientific sources used in this video? Click on Sources Cited at nutritionfacts.org/video/friday-favorites-do-alkaline-diets-help-athletic-performance. You’ll also find a transcript and acknowledgements for the video, my blog and speaking tour schedule, and an easy way to search (by translated language even) through our videos spanning more than 2,000 health topics.
Thanks for watching. I hope you’ll join in the evidence-based nutrition revolution!
-Michael Greger, MD FACLM
Captions for this video are available in several languages; you can find yours in the video settings. View important information about our translated resources: nutritionfacts.org/translations-info
NutritionFacts.org
• Subscribe: nutritionfacts.org/subscribe
• Donate: nutritionfacts.org/donate
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• Books: nutritionfacts.org/books
• Shop: drgreger.org
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• Twitter: twitter.com/nutrition_facts
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Can reducing acid-forming foods and boosting alkaline-forming foods replicate the performance-enhancing effects of sodium bicarbonate without the adverse effects?
For more on athletes, see my video Why All Athletes Should Eat Plant-Based Diets (nutritionfacts.org/video/why-all-athletes-should-eat-plant-based-diets/).
In my first series on athletes, I took us way back in history. Check out:
• The Gladiator Diet: How Vegetarian Athletes Stack Up (nutritionfacts.org/video/the-gladiator-diet-how-vegetarian-athletes-stack-up/)
• The First Studies on Vegetarian Athletes (nutritionfacts.org/video/the-first-studies-on-vegetarian-athletes/)
• Vegetarian Muscle Power, Strength, and Endurance (nutritionfacts.org/video/vegetarian-muscle-power-strength-and-endurance/)
How do you know if your diet is alkaline? Check out Testing Your Diet with Pee and Purple Cabbage (nutritionfacts.org/video/testing-your-diet-with-pee-purple-cabbage/).
New subscribers to our e-newsletter always receive a free gift. Get yours here: nutritionfacts.org/subscribe/.
Have a question about this video? Leave it in the comment section at nutritionfacts.org/video/friday-favorites-do-alkaline-diets-help-athletic-performance and someone on the NutritionFacts.org team will try to answer it.
Want to get a list of links to all the scientific sources used in this video? Click on Sources Cited at nutritionfacts.org/video/friday-favorites-do-alkaline-diets-help-athletic-performance. You’ll also find a transcript and acknowledgements for the video, my blog and speaking tour schedule, and an easy way to search (by translated language even) through our videos spanning more than 2,000 health topics.
Thanks for watching. I hope you’ll join in the evidence-based nutrition revolution!
-Michael Greger, MD FACLM
Captions for this video are available in several languages; you can find yours in the video settings. View important information about our translated resources: nutritionfacts.org/translations-info
NutritionFacts.org
• Subscribe: nutritionfacts.org/subscribe
• Donate: nutritionfacts.org/donate
• Podcast : nutritionfacts.org/audio
• Books: nutritionfacts.org/books
• Shop: drgreger.org
• Facebook: facebook.com/NutritionFacts.org
• Twitter: twitter.com/nutrition_facts
• Instagram: instagram.com/nutrition_facts_org
