Is Apple Cider Vinegar Acidic or Alkaline?
Apple cider vinegar (raw) is alkaline: Negative PRAL: alkalizing after digestion. Mildly alkaline, despite its sour taste: apple cider vinegar has a PRAL of −2.0 per 100 ml. One tablespoon only contributes −0.3, though, so the often-advertised "deacidifying effect" is negligible.
Classification
Apple cider vinegar tastes sour, yet it counts as an alkaline food. The acetic acid is fully broken down in the body, leaving the potassium from the apple, hence −2.0 per 100 ml. Because you use it by the tablespoon, its effect on your daily balance is minimal. So the popular idea that a glass of vinegar water makes your body alkaline does not hold up. In a dressing, though, it is a good replacement for heavier sauces.
In the Herbs, Spices & Sauces category, apple cider vinegar (raw) ranks #45 of 75, sorted from alkaline to acid-forming. More alkaline options include Sea salt (−2.0), Cress (−3.1), Nutmeg powder (−3.2). More acid-forming are Mushroom gravy (−1.8), Thousand island dressing (−1.7), Sauce Tabasco (−1.7).
Acidic or alkaline: PRAL, not pH
On this site, acidic and alkaline refer to the PRAL (potential renal acid load). It estimates what a food leaves behind once it has been digested: a positive value is acid-forming, a negative value is alkalizing. That is different from the pH of the food itself: a lemon tastes sour, yet its PRAL is −4.0, so it is alkalizing. Your diet does not change your blood pH. It does change how much acid your kidneys have to deal with.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Is apple cider vinegar acidic?
It depends on what you mean by acidic. The pH describes the food itself, for example how sour it tastes. The PRAL describes what it leaves behind after digestion: Apple cider vinegar (raw) has a PRAL of −2.0 per 100 ml, so it counts as alkaline in your daily acid-base balance.
How much apple cider vinegar do I need for a noticeable effect?
One tablespoon of apple cider vinegar (15 ml) of apple cider vinegar adds −0.3 to your daily balance. For comparison: an egg is around +5.4, a slice of cheese around +6. So one serving of apple cider vinegar roughly offsets one of them.
Why is apple cider vinegar alkaline even though it tastes sour?
The PRAL depends on the minerals left over after digestion, not on taste or pH. Apple cider vinegar provides more potassium, magnesium and calcium than phosphorus and protein, so the balance is negative (−2.0).
Apple Cider Vinegar logged, balance checked.
Basentracker adds up every meal automatically and shows whether your day is in the alkaline range. The same values as on this page, all 977 foods, photo scan, recipes.
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Compare all Herbs, Spices & Sauces: Herbs, Spices & Sauces table. Common questions are answered in Acidic or Alkaline?, and the PRAL calculator adds up a whole meal.
Source: Basentracker food database (PRAL according to Remer & Manz, calculated from protein, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium and calcium per 100 g). This information does not replace medical advice.