(Care2.com) In my quest for health, the most important thing I learned, in 1996, was the principle of creating a pH balance in my own body. This helped me regain my health more than any other food regime in my entire 39 years of looking for answers.

Doing this one simple thing will solve many of your nutritional worries. What you eat and how you live affects your acid alkaline balance. Here are 10 tips to create that balance in your body.

1. Eat lots of powerfood fruits and vegetables.

This is the one thing you can do that can make all the difference by helping balance out the body.

Keep vegetables cut up in the fridge and have a big bowl of colorful fruit on your counter to snack on.

Eat salad with your lunch and dinner; keep a salad made up in advance with all of the greens in it minus salad dressing, cucumbers and tomatoes, which you can add later.

2. Eat 80 percent alkaline foods, 20 percent acid foods by volume daily.

3. Chew your food well.

Saliva is alkaline and you can produce two gallons a day!

4. Drink 2-3 liters of pure water (not tap) per day.

Water alone can make all of the difference as many people are dehydrated keeping in all of the toxins which are acidic.

5. Bodies function better with more oxygen. Breathe for more energy.

This will also help move the acids out of your body. Learn to breathe deeply into your abdomen. The best place to do this is in a yoga class. So that you can concentrate on your breathing with no distractions, lay down on your bed and breathe into your abdomen deeply and gently. Practice doing this every day till you are doing it naturally all day every day.

6. Avoid junk food as it is filled with artificial sweeteners, preservatives, artificial chemical substances and food coloring, which are all highly acid-forming.

Additionally, your body must work very hard in an effort to cleanse these toxins out.

7. Find ways to create relaxation in your body and being.

Listen to the birds or relaxing music, meditate, walk in nature...do whatever it is that creates relaxation in you.

8. Live in the light of the day.

We need sunlight. Go for walks, open your curtains and go to bed early enough to get up when the sun does.

9. Get enough sleep as insufficient sleep causes the body and mind to be overworked and unhappy.