Understanding Beverage pH Levels: Acidity & Health Impacts

The pH values express the acidity of water solutions using a logarithmic scale. A neutral medium has pH 7. pH values below 7 correspond to acidic solutions, while basic solutions have pH higher than 7. Many common beverages, especially citrus juices and soft drinks, are acidic. Such drinks may aggravate certain medical conditions such as heartburn, or cause dental problems such as tooth decay.

Things You'll Need

• Computer with the Internet connection

Show More

Instructions

• 1

  Open your preferred web browser, such as Internet Explorer, on your computer.

• 2

  Navigate to websites such as 21st Century Dental and Engineering Tooolbox, and use tables that list pH information about common beverages and foods.

• 3

  Find a beverage on the list and read the pH value for that drink. For example, you can find out that the pH of the Dr Pepper soda is 2.92, which is quite acidic.

• 4

  Compare the beverage pH value with 5.5; if it is lower, then people with digestive or dental problems may need to limit their intake of this beverage.