Is Lemon Juice Acidic or Alkaline?
Lemon juice (raw) is alkaline: Negative PRAL: alkalizing after digestion.
Classification
Lemon juice comes in at −2.3 per 100 ml and is alkaline because the fruit acid leaves no acid load once it's metabolized, and the potassium remains. The whole fruit is at −4.0, lemon soda at 0.0. A splash in water or dressing is only a few milliliters, so the effect on your balance is small, but never acid-forming.
In the Drinks category, lemon juice (raw) ranks #11 of 80, sorted from alkaline to acid-forming. More alkaline options include Coffee, black (−2.3), Coffee, decaffeinated (−2.3), Orange juice, concentrate (−2.4). More acid-forming are Coffee, with milk (3.5%) (−2.2), Cider (−2.0), Espresso (−1.9).
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.
Goes well with
Frequently Asked Questions
Is lemon juice 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: Lemon juice (raw) has a PRAL of −2.3 per 100 ml, so it counts as alkaline in your daily acid-base balance.
How much lemon juice do I need for a noticeable effect?
A glass (200 ml) of lemon juice adds −4.5 to your daily balance. For comparison: an egg is around +5.4, a slice of cheese around +6. So one serving of lemon juice roughly offsets one of them.
Why is lemon juice alkaline even though it tastes sour?
The PRAL depends on the minerals left over after digestion, not on taste or pH. Lemon juice provides more potassium, magnesium and calcium than phosphorus and protein, so the balance is negative (−2.3).
Lemon Juice 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 Drinks: Drinks 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.