Lemon juice is rich in all sorts of nutrients ranging from vitamins A and C to Calcium, Iron, Potassium and Pectin fibers. Let’s not forget it’s medicinal properties—it helps guard against infections. The best part, it’s a delicious beverage that contains less than 25 calories per glass!
Let’s get straight into the details. Warm lemon water is great for flushing out toxins and cleansing your digestive system. It has the similar chemical composition to your body’s natural hydrochloric acid, and it even stimulates bile release from your liver. It’s incredibly helpful in smoothing out bowel movements, both diarrhea and constipation
Let’s get into some of the details of the minerals we discussed earlier. Everyone is aware of the effect of Vitamin C on keeping cold and flu at minimum. Lemon juice also contains saponins which are further antimicrobials, hence we say that it helps prevent infections. The potassium we mentioned goes a long way in helping brain and nervous tissue function, and who doesn’t want a brain boost.
Lemon juice cleanses your skin from the inside out. It clears out toxins from the inside, and the Vitamin C is an antioxidant, knocking out free radicals and thereby working towards keeping your skin free from blemishes and excessive wrinkles. Studies have shown that the scent of lemon improves moods & increases energy levels. Take that into notice as well!
Vitamin C, abundant in lemons, is valuable in staying healthy. It’s an antioxidant, so helps fight free-radicals, like we mentioned. Free radical damages pre-dispose to cancer. Vitamin C is also important for collagen formation, that means healthy gums and connective tissue and bones. It is no secret that lemon juice speeds up the process of wound healing. Lemon juice is even applied to fresh wounds in some cases, as well as skin blemishes and acne scars.
It’s worth noting that lemon juice helps with pH maintenance in the body. Despite containing ascorbic acid, lemon juice is alkaline in the body, and therefore goes a long way in getting rid of excess acids in the body, such as lactic acid and uric acid, the latter being a major source of pain and discomfort in joints. Most disease states in the body occur in acidic conditions, as a matter of fact.
We’ll close this off with a warning—be wary of the effect that lemon juice can have on the enamel of your teeth. It can erode the enamel. That’s why it’s always best to dilute the lemon juice in water and rinse your mouth thoroughly after drinking. Having said that lemon water DOES help prevent halitosis (that’s bad breath) and fights gingivitis, albeit mildly. The health benefits conferred by a warm cup of lemon juice first thing in the morning far outweigh the harms (which are only harms if you don’t take reasonable precautions).