Cations are minerals that carry a positive electrical charge. Anions are minerals that carry a negative charge. Your body needs both types in the right proportions to keep its fluids balanced, neither too acidic nor too alkaline, and to allow cells, nerves, and enzymes to work properly.
Cations and anions work together to stabilize pH. Some mineral salts create acidity, and others create alkalinity, depending on whether they release or absorb hydrogen ions when dissolved or metabolized.
Everything in the body, and in the world around you, is made of atoms. When atoms gain or lose an electrical charge, they become ions. If an atom loses an electron, it becomes positively charged, a cation. If it gains an electron, it becomes negatively charged, an anion. You can picture them like tiny magnets. Positive and negative ions attract each other and form salts or minerals that dissolve in body fluids.
Cations include sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, and iron. Anions include chloride, sulfate, phosphate, bicarbonate, and fluoride.
Your body uses both to stay balanced. Cations help move fluids and electrical signals across cell membranes. Anions balance those charges and carry acids or bases. The interaction between cations and anions keeps blood, tissues, and nerves electrically stable. Too much of one or the other throws off both pH and electrical balance.
The body’s main buffering systems rely on bicarbonate, phosphate, and proteins. Minerals like calcium, magnesium, potassium, and sodium support these systems by forming weak bases, while chloride, sulfate, and phosphate contribute to the acid side. Both sides are essential. The body’s goal is not to stay alkaline; it is to stay balanced.
Every acid–base reaction in the body involves an exchange between positive and negative ions. They act as electrical partners that keep the internal environment stable.
An acid is any substance that releases hydrogen ions into a solution. Hydrogen is the main acid-forming ion in the body. The more hydrogen ions present, the lower the pH, and the more acidic the environment becomes. A base, or alkali, is a substance that accepts or neutralizes hydrogen ions. Bases usually contain anions such as bicarbonate, hydroxide, or carbonate that bind hydrogen and form water or neutral salts, raising pH and making the solution more alkaline.
Cations and anions appear on both sides of this balance. Cations such as sodium, potassium, calcium, and magnesium usually come from base-forming compounds. When they are paired with carbonate or bicarbonate, they help neutralize acids. Cations like hydrogen and ammonium come from acids, and when they accumulate, acidity rises. Anions such as chloride, sulfate, and phosphate carry the acid load, while anions like bicarbonate and carbonate carry the alkaline load.
In simple terms, acids give off hydrogen ions, bases absorb them, and cations and anions balance each other so that pH stays close to neutral. The body constantly moves these ions through the blood, tissues, and kidneys to maintain a pH near 7.4. When acids rise, bases are used to neutralize them. When bases rise, the body generates or retains acid to restore balance. Cations and anions are not good or bad — they are simply the charged particles that allow digestion, nerve function, and all metabolism to stay in harmony.
Cancer and the Tumor Microenvironment
Cancer is not only a disease of uncontrolled cell growth; it also depends on the environment surrounding those cells. One of the most important parts of that environment is pH, which measures how acidic or alkaline the fluid around the cells is. In most solid tumors, the fluid outside the cancer cells is acidic, while the inside of the cells is slightly alkaline. This difference helps cancer cells survive, invade nearby tissues, and resist treatment. The acidic surroundings weaken normal cells and support the cancer’s spread, while the slightly alkaline interior allows the cancer cells to keep dividing even under stress or low oxygen.
Because of this, researchers have studied whether changing the pH around tumors, rather than throughout the whole body, might slow tumor growth or make treatments more effective. The goal is not to make the entire body alkaline, which is both unsafe and impossible, but to restore normal balance in the area where cancer thrives. This involves the same interplay between cations, anions, and pH.
Baking Soda (Sodium Bicarbonate)
Baking soda, or sodium bicarbonate, has been studied for its ability to neutralize acidity in the tissue around tumors. In animal studies, bicarbonate raised the pH in the tumor environment and made it less favorable for metastasis. However, this effect has not been proven consistently in humans. The body keeps blood pH tightly controlled, and any attempt to push it upward can cause electrolyte imbalances, low potassium, kidney strain, and metabolic alkalosis. While bicarbonate can temporarily buffer acid in tissues, it cannot safely change the body’s overall pH. Other ways of gently supporting alkalinity include optimizing minerals such as chloride, selenium, iodine, oxygen, sulfur, and nitrogen, all of which participate in natural buffering and detoxification systems.
Vitamin C Therapy
Vitamin C therapy works very differently. At normal dietary levels, vitamin C acts as an antioxidant that protects cells from damage. At very high intravenous doses, it becomes a pro-oxidant. In this state, vitamin C reacts with oxygen and trace metals in the blood to produce hydrogen peroxide around cancer cells. Normal cells can neutralize this with enzymes like catalase and glutathione peroxidase, but many cancer cells lack these defenses. As a result, they are damaged or destroyed by oxidative stress. Laboratory and animal studies have shown this effect, and some early human trials suggest that intravenous vitamin C may improve well-being and enhance the effects of chemotherapy. So far, large clinical trials have not shown a clear survival advantage, but it remains a promising supportive therapy for certain patients.
Acidification vs. Alkalinization
When researchers say some cancers respond to acidification and others to alkalinization, they are referring only to the tumor’s local environment. The goal is to disrupt the abnormal pH difference between the inside and outside of cancer cells, not to change the pH of the entire body. The body’s buffering systems control pH very precisely, and even small deviations can be dangerous.
The pH of the fluid surrounding every cell, called the interstitial or extracellular fluid, is one of the most sensitive regulators of metabolism, immunity, oxygen delivery, and tissue repair. While blood pH is steady around 7.4, the space between cells can shift between about 6.8 and 7.4 depending on activity. These local shifts affect how enzymes work, how oxygen and nutrients move, and how inflammation or repair occurs. Chronic acidity in these spaces reduces energy production, promotes inflammation and pain, and disturbs mineral balance. Staying too alkaline for too long also causes problems, such as calcium buildup in soft tissue and certain types of arthritis. True health depends on dynamic balance, not constant alkalinity.
In cancer, inflammation, and many chronic diseases, the fluid outside cells tends to be acidic while the inside remains slightly alkaline. This reversed pattern supports cancer survival and spread. Treatments such as bicarbonate and high-dose vitamin C target this imbalance, attempting to correct the environment instead of attacking the cells directly.
Who Might Benefit, and How to Decide
Whether a person might benefit from either approach depends on their overall chemistry and organ function. The first step is to check acid–base balance, bicarbonate, carbon dioxide, sodium, potassium, and chloride levels, along with urine and saliva pH trends. If bicarbonate is already high, adding more alkali is unsafe. If it’s low and kidney function is good, limited buffering support may be considered. Markers of oxidative stress, such as ferritin, CRP, or glutathione levels, can also guide therapy. High oxidative stress favors vitamin C therapy, while low oxidative stress with chronic acidity may justify gentle buffering. Both the kidney and the heart function must be healthy before considering either option.
Some tumors are especially acidic, while others produce large amounts of oxidative stress. Acidic, low-oxygen tumors may benefit more from pH correction; tumors with high oxidative stress may respond better to vitamin C. Sometimes the two approaches complement each other, but they must be used at different times. Alkalinity neutralizes vitamin C’s oxidative activity, so the two should not be given together. Usually, buffering is done first, followed by vitamin C treatment.
Bicarbonate therapy works on the environment outside the cells, lowering acidity. It can help when there is high lactic acid or metabolic acidosis, but it must be used cautiously to avoid alkalosis. Vitamin C therapy targets the inside of the cancer cell, creating a controlled oxidative stress that cancer cells cannot manage. It is generally safer but still requires careful monitoring of kidney function. In some clinics, the two therapies are used on alternate days to address both acidity and oxidative imbalance. The goal is not to force the body in one direction but to restore a balanced terrain where healthy cells thrive and diseased cells lose their advantage.
Carbonated Mineral Water vs. Alkaline Water
The comparison between carbonated mineral water and alkaline water shows why pH alone can be misleading. Carbonated mineral water is mildly acidic because it contains dissolved carbon dioxide, but it is naturally buffered with bicarbonate and minerals. When metabolized, it supports digestion and often leaves a gentle alkalinizing effect. Alkaline water, on the other hand, is artificially made by ionizers or by adding minerals to raise pH. It lacks buffering power and can reduce stomach acid, impairing digestion. The body benefits more from buffered, mineral-rich water than from artificially high-pH water. Carbonated mineral water naturally contains both acid and base components, helping stabilize pH, while alkaline water only pushes the chemistry in one direction.
In the end, pH is about balance. The body’s chemistry works best when acids and bases, cations and anions, stay in harmony. Trying to make the body more alkaline or more acidic always backfires. Supporting natural balance through healthy minerals, proper breathing, hydration, and metabolism allows the body’s own systems to regulate pH exactly as nature designed.
Summary of the Science
Extracellular and interstitial pH influence virtually every local physiological process — enzyme activity, ion transport, oxygen diffusion, immune signaling, mineral metabolism, and nerve excitation. These effects are documented across disciplines: biochemistry, histology, oncology, and neurophysiology. While systemic pH remains tightly controlled, local tissue pH varies and carries functional meaning. Chronic deviation in either direction — too acidic or too alkaline — alters energy use, immune tone, and structural integrity of tissues. This is why pH matters biologically: it defines the chemical environment in which all cell-to-cell communication and repair take place.
References
- Extracellular pH regulates enzyme activity and tissue remodeling — Kato et al., J Biol Chem 2005; Krishnamachary et al., Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol 2012.
- Cellular acid export and local buffering — Am J Physiol Cell Physiol, 2011; Parks et al., Physiol Rev, 2013.
- Oxygen diffusion and interstitial pH — Kindig & Poole, J Appl Physiol, 1999; Casey et al., Microcirculation, 2005.
- Immune cell behavior — Lardner, J Leukoc Biol, 2001; Kellum et al., Crit Care, 2004.
- Bone and connective-tissue mineralization — Arnett, J Nutr, 2008; Bushinsky & Krieger, Am J Physiol Renal Physiol, 2020.
- Cancer microenvironment — Gillies et al., Nat Rev Cancer, 2008; Parks et al., Nat Rev Cancer, 2013.
- Nervous-system sensitivity to extracellular pH — Wemmie et al., Annu Rev Neurosci, 2013; Immke & McCleskey, Nat Neurosci, 2001.
- Range and regulation of interstitial pH — Chiche et al., J Cell Mol Med, 2010; Veech, Am J Clin Nutr, 2004.
Mark Colafranceschi, D.C. • Licensed Chiropractic Physician – Arizona License #009154 • Scottsdale, Arizona