Baking soda is commonly combined with another solution, such as vinegar or water, to create a cleaning paste. (But be careful not to combine baking soda with certain solutions such as chlorine bleach, ammonia, or alcohol because these can cause dangerous chemical reactions.)
The other thing to be careful of with baking soda is combining it with something acidic, like vinegar or lemon juice. As the chemicals combine with that satisfying fizz, they form a gas. If you combine them in a sealed container, like a soda bottle, it could potentially explode and harm you.
Keep baking soda away from any wood surface, including wood floors, wooden coffee or dining tables, and cutting boards. "Baking soda is slightly abrasive, and if used to clean wood furniture, especially with a polished finish, it can leave scratches," explains Brown.
Baking soda combines with acidic components in a recipe, such as chocolate, sour cream, or honey, to produce carbon dioxide gas, which helps fluff things up. Baking powder contains baking soda and cream of tartar, an acid that reacts when wet.
Baking soda can interfere with how the body absorbs some medications. People should not take it within 2 hours of other medicines. It lowers stomach acid levels, which means it can interfere with the body's ability to break down and absorb medications.
Too much baking soda in a recipe can give your baked goods a metallic or soapy taste, so be careful with your amounts in conversions. As a rule of thumb, 1 teaspoon of baking powder is equivalent to ¼ teaspoon of baking soda in terms of leavening power. But there's more you must do.
And the long answer goes like this: When used together, baking soda and vinegar will neutralize each other, effectively canceling out the benefits of low pH for vinegar and high pH for baking soda.
Mixing baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) and vinegar (acetic acid) causes a chemical reaction that produces a salt (sodium acetate) and water, as well as carbon dioxide gas. In this demonstration, baking soda is placed in a balloon that is attached to a flask holding vinegar.
Due to the high sodium content of baking soda, people with heart disease should use caution when drinking it. Baking soda may interact with some medications, such as antibiotics, and should be avoided by people with underlying medical conditions, such as heart disease and kidney conditions.
Do not let the baked baking soda come in contact with your skin, as it is a caustic substance. If you do make contact with the baked baking soda, flush the area thoroughly with water.
Baking soda is "not suitable for cleaning glass surfaces like mirrors or windows," says Mock, because you're likely to scratch those surfaces.
Lemons and other citrus fruits are rich sources of naturally occurring citric acid. When a person mixes lemon juice and baking soda, the citric acid reacts with the sodium bicarbonate to produce a buffer called sodium citrate. A buffer refers to a weak acid or base that prevents drastic pH changes.
The sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) and weak acetic acid in vinegar react and trap the carbon dioxide to form bubbles. The mixture of the baking soda (solid) and vinegar (liquid) creates a gas and a liquid, which in turn results in a foam (a mixture of gas and liquid, or a colloid).
Flexi Says: Vinegar reacts with baking soda to yield carbon dioxide gas and water. The carbon dioxide gas creates the bubbling effect of this reaction. If a small amount of dish soap is added, the bubbles will become trapped to form a thick foam.
The two products can be safely combined to form a paste or used separately to whiten laundry, remove odors, disinfect surfaces, and much more. Never mix and store baking soda and hydrogen peroxide in a closed container. Mix them when you are ready to do some cleaning for the best results.
Baking soda is often used as an alternative pest control solution for pests such as cockroaches, bed bugs or ants.
Adding vinegar directly to the wash with your laundry detergent may compromise its cleaning performance. Laundry detergents are formulated for specific pH levels, which may be disrupted by the acidity of vinegar, leading to less effective cleaning. It's best to avoid mixing them to ensure optimal results.
Too much baking soda may cause diarrhea, stomach disturbances, gas, headaches, nausea, swelling, or vomiting. The body will eliminate the excess sodium consumed in a tablespoon of baking soda so there is no need to worry about anything dangerous occurring.
Specific examples include quinidine and procainamide (class 1A antiarrhythmics), lidocaine, mexiletine, and phenytoin (class 1B), flecainide and propafenone (class 1C), carbamazepine and lamotrigine. Some beta receptor antagonists, such as propranolol and acebutolol, also possess sodium channel blockade properties.
No interactions were found between sodium bicarbonate and Tylenol. However, this does not necessarily mean no interactions exist. Always consult your healthcare provider.