The Bohr effect
Laboratory measurements of human red blood cells show that pH affects hemoglobin’s affinity for oxygen. That relationship is part of how oxygen unloading is understood.
Research source 1INNER ALCHEMY / THE SCIENCE
Scientific Overview.
Inner Alchemy brings established physiology into a broader interpretation of health. Here is what the research shows, what the book proposes, and where inquiry remains open.
01 / THE FOUNDATIONMECHANISMS WE CAN STUDY
Established pieces of the picture.
These studies illustrate physiological mechanisms discussed in the book. Each investigates a specific question; none, by itself, establishes the book’s wider explanation of chronic disease.
Blood flow responds to CO₂
In a small human imaging study, changes in carbon dioxide were accompanied by measurable changes in cerebral blood flow and blood volume.
Research source 2Proton gradients matter
An experiment with bovine heart mitochondrial particles demonstrated that an imposed electrochemical proton gradient can drive ATP synthesis.
Research source 3Tissue pH can change locally
Microelectrode measurements in human skin recorded local pH changes during ischemia, hypoxia, and temperature shifts. The study concerns skin under those conditions, not a general diagnosis of disease.
Research source 402 / THE BOOK’S PROPOSALAN INTERPRETATION TO EXAMINE
What Lee asks us to reconsider.
Inner Alchemy asks whether cellular respiration and hydrogen ion dynamics offer a useful lens for understanding patterns in chronic illness, beyond simple “acidic versus alkaline” explanations.
The book connects research from respiratory physiology, acid-base chemistry, and mitochondrial biology into a wider systems-level interpretation. That synthesis is the author’s proposal. The mechanisms above are real subjects of research, but they do not establish a single cause or treatment for chronic disease.
03 / THE SCOPEREAD WITH CURIOSITY AND CARE
An invitation to investigate.
The book is a conceptual exploration, not a clinical treatment manual. It does not prescribe a therapy, product, or medical protocol. Readers are invited to examine the underlying studies, question the interpretation, and notice what further evidence would be needed.
Explore the book04 / RESEARCHSELECTED BACKGROUND STUDIES
Follow the evidence.
These primary studies provide context for the mechanisms described above. They are illustrative background research, not a validation of the book’s broader thesis or a representation of its complete bibliography.
- 01Evans et al. (2021)
“Modulation of red blood cell oxygen affinity with a novel allosteric modifier of hemoglobin is additive to the Bohr effect.”
Read on PubMed - 02Ito et al. (2003)
“Changes in human cerebral blood flow and cerebral blood volume during hypercapnia and hypocapnia measured by positron emission tomography.”
Read on PubMed - 03Thayer and Hinkle (1975)
“Synthesis of adenosine triphosphate by an artificially imposed electrochemical proton gradient in bovine heart submitochondrial particles.”
Read on PubMed - 04Harrison and Walker (1979)
“Micro-electrode measurement of skin pH in humans during ischaemia, hypoxia and local hypothermia.”
Read on PubMed
LEE’S CO-AUTHORED PAPERS
Explore the publications Read the published articles behind his ongoing inquiry, with direct links to their PubMed records.