Acid and base balance of body is normally strongly controlled, keeping the arterial blood pH between 7.38 and 7.42. Acid and base is also important in human homeostasis regarding the appropriate balance between acids and bases; this is also called pH. The body is very sensitive to its pH level, so strong mechanisms exist to maintain it. When pH is imbalanced the protein become denatured and digested, enzymes lose their ability to function, and can cause death.
Metabolic Acidosis and Alkalosis: Metabolic Acidosis and Alkalosis are caused by an imbalance of acids or bases and their excretion by the kidneys. Metabolic acidosis produces when the amount of acid in the body is increased through absorption of a substance that can be broken down to an acid. Metabolic acidosis can also occur as a result of abnormal metabolism. The production of normal amounts of acid may cause acidosis when the kidneys are not functioning normally, so are not able to excrete sufficient amounts of acid in the urine.
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The kidneys also alter the expelled amount of acid or base, but kidneys make these changes more slowly than the lungs do. The kidneys also play an important role in maintaining homeostasis of acid and base by regulating the pH of the blood plasma. The kidneys reabsorb bicarbonate from urine, and excrete hydrogen ions into urine. The kidneys work slower than the lungs, but renal physiology has some powerful mechanisms to control pH by the excretion of excess acid or base. In response to alkalosis, the kidneys may expel more bicarbonate by decreasing hydrogen ion excretion from the tubular epithelial cells, and lowering rates of glutamine metabolism and ammonium