Lemons are pretty popular kitchen and beauty ingredients. They’re used to add zest to a dish or salad, to lighten dark spots on skin and to allegedly loose weight too leading to a whole generation of believers who down a glass of lemon juice with warm water first thing in the morning. But lemons offer much more than simply these widely-known benefits.
Boost Your Immune System with Lemons
You probably already know that lemons are high in vitamin C, and you’ve also probably heard all the hype around vitamin C and how important it is to stay healthy. And lemons have loads of it. Add more lemons to your daily fare and you’ll be giving your immune system the boost it so desperately needs in this day and age of fast food, pollution, big stress and little sleep. Improving your immune system means that your body is taken care of from the inside out, your organs repair faster and are able to do their jobs better, and you are less susceptible to both major diseases and annoying little illnesses.
Health Benefits of Lemon
What’s more, lemons also have amazing anti-bacterial properties thus protecting you from infections. In case you already have an infection, having lemons or lemon juice can prevent it from getting worse and can speed up recovery.
AND, lemons do something few other things can – which is prevent and perhaps even cure the common cold, a feat even modern medicine has yet to perform.
Lemon Juice for Weight Loss
No, it’s not a magic potion for weight loss. We wish! But rather, through the chain of other events it sets forth in the body, lemons act as an aid to your weight loss efforts.
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Lemons contain a fibre known as pectin which is known to be good for the health of your colon. A healthy colon is important not just for weight loss but also for overall general health.
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Lemons improve bile production, thus greatly aiding digestion.
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Drinking a glass of lemon juice with water first thing in the morning does indeed help with weight loss. But not because lemons magically dissolve fat. What lemons do is help get rid of toxins in the body, the very toxins which could be preventing proper digestion and leading to weight gain. Why in the morning? Because the lemons can do a better job of house-cleaning on an empty stomach than a full one.
Lemons to Reduce Pain
The anti-inflammatory properties of lemons can help with pain management. The high citric acid content in lemons helps to dilute uric acid, the latter being the cause for pain in conditions such as arthritis and rheumatism.
Lemons as Blood Purifiers
Lemon is a natural blood purifier, allowing oxygen to more effectively travel to the blood. Its high potassium content can help to control blood pressure as potassium is an important nutrient in the treatment of the disease. Lemons also balance the pH levels in the body, which is believed to be linked to maintaining blood health.
Lemons for Oral Care
Look up natural ways to take care of your teeth and mouth and you are bound to come across recipes for toothpaste and oral care with lemons as a major ingredient. Bleeding gums can be aided by rubbing lemon juice on them. Got a toothache? Drinking lemon juice can help reduce or eliminate the pain, depending on the severity. Bad breath can also be reduced by gargling with salt and lemon water. The anti-bacterial properties of lemons destroy the bacteria responsible for bad breath.
When using lemons for oral care, be careful not to go overboard. Remember that although lemons are highly beneficial for tooth and gum health, they still contain acid and your teeth and gums can be susceptible to damage if it comes into too much contact with these acids. So if you feel burning, wash your mouth out with water.
Lemons to Improve Your Mood
The smell of lemons is refreshing. That’s why lemon is such a popular aroma in, well, aromatherapy. Rubbing a little lemon essential oil (with a carrier oil, of course) on your skin can be calming and make you feel better. Improving your mood isn’t just about having a great day – it also contributes to reducing your stress and thus improving your health.
Lemons for Respiratory Relief
We’ve already seen that lemons can keep the common cold at bay. But it does other amazing things for your respiratory system too. For one, gargling with it as well as drinking lemon juice can help to treat throat infections. People suffering from asthma find relief from their attacks and breathing problems if they include more lemons in their diet. Note though that lemons should not replace any regular treatment that you are on for your respiratory disorders.
Lemons for Better Skin
A natural astringent, lemons have long been used to tighten pores, reduce oiliness, and as safeguards against acne and even the more serious eczema. In addition, lemons reduce the appearance of fine lines, wrinkles and even scars and can reduce blackheads too. Lemons also have medicinal properties which make them perfect for sun burn – both to heal it faster as well as to reduce pain. All these benefits are perhaps why lemon is used in high-end face creams and treatments.
Lemons for Better Hair
Lemon Health Benefits
Applying lemon juice on hair can give your locks a natural shine. It can also help to reduce hairfall. And those anti-bacterial properties come into play here yet again as lemon juice helps treat dandruff too. Be warned though that lemon is a natural bleaching agent and will lighten the colour of your hair if used frequently. That’s not so bad if you don’t mind the inexpensive dye job, but if you have dark locks and prefer keeping them that way, then limit the use of lemon to your scalp or blend the juice with an oil first before applying on your hair. Another way to prevent lemons from lightening your hair colour is to not step out in the sun with the juice in your hair.
The health benefits that this little green-yellow fruit are simply amazing. And all you have to do to get them is add more lemons to your diet. Which isn’t a bad proposition at all since lemons actually make your food so much tastier when used right. So the next time you’re wondering what kind of seasoning to add to your salads or dishes, ditch the high-sodium sauces and high-fat oils and try a dash of lemon juice instead.
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