Last Updated on October 12, 2020
What Is Lemon Water?
Lemon water simply refers to the juice that you obtain by mixing lemons with water, which medical experts claim might help to boost your immunity. To enjoy the immense therapeutic benefits of lemon water, you need to incorporate it fully into your health and wellness routine. You can either drink the juice cold or hot, depending on your preference.
Also, the concentration of lemon in lemon juice comes down to your individual preference and tolerance for the fruit. But remember that drinking too much lemon water comes with its side effects too, the most common ones being heartburn and erosion of tooth enamel.
How to Make Lemon Water
The following are crucial points to keep in mind when making lemon water:
• Always use fresh lemons. Artificial lemons tend to contain unhealthy additives. Plus, these additives may interfere with your body’s ability to absorb the nutrients in lemon.
• Always use clean water, preferably distilled or filtered water.
• Experiment with smaller wedges of lemon when you’re starting out, then you can work your way up slowly.
Here’s how to go about preparing lemon water:
i. Cut fresh lemon in half and squeeze one half into 8 ounces of water.
You can refrigerate the other half for future use.
ii. Allow the mixture to sit for a few minutes so that the lemon thoroughly diffuses through the water.
iii. Sieve the lemon juice to remove seeds and other solid residues.
iv. Enjoy your drink.
PRO TIP: If you find the taste of lemon juice too strong or unsavory at first, you can consider adding healthy sweeteners. Examples of common healthy flavor-enhancers include mint leaf, honey, maple syrup, turmeric, cinnamon, and ginger. In addition to enhancing the taste of your lemon juice, these ingredients also pack extra health and nutritional benefits.
Health Benefits of Lemon Water
1. It’s An Excellent Source of Vitamin C
Lemons, like all citrus fruits, are loaded with vitamin C, which is the primary antioxidant required by the body. As an antioxidant, vitamin C prevents the cell damage that results from oxidative stress caused by free radicals. Oxidative stress refers to an imbalance in the number of antioxidants and free radicals in the body.
More free radicals in your system compared to the number of antioxidants affects your body’s ability to detoxify and defend itself from disease-causing microorganisms, which opens you up for infections. Investing in a glass of lemon water every day may make a huge difference in terms of boosting your immune system. Some of the infections that vitamin C may help to keep at bay include common cold, stroke, as well as heart and cardiovascular diseases.
2. It’s A Good Source of Potassium
Lemon water is also high in potassium, and there are numerous health benefits to enjoy from eating potassium-rich foods. First, potassium plays a significant role in regulating the amount of body fluids by mediating the levels of sodium in the body.
Potassium is also linked to a reduction in blood pressure, which happens to be the major risk factor for heart disease. People with kidney failure can also enjoy the medicinal properties of potassium, as the mineral has been associated with treating kidney stones by lowering the levels of calcium in the urine.
3. It’s A Natural Detox
Lemon water is one of the most effective natural detox remedies out there. The juice aids in flushing out toxins from your body by stimulating your liver and boosting your enzyme functions.
What makes lemon water a more desirable detox remedy is that you’re unlikely to overdose the juice. Therefore, it rarely presents side effects. And even when the side effects appear, they’re usually mild and short-lasting.
4. It Improves the Quality of Your Skin and Hair
The antioxidants in lemon water help to keep your skin free from infections and sun damage. Vitamin C, in particular, delays the onset of premature aging signs like skin wrinkling. According to a 2016 study, lemon water was shown to reduce the development of wrinkles on hairless mice.
Needless to mention, lemon water is also a perfect rehydrating agent that helps with moisture retention. In addition to drinking lemon water, you can also enjoy its hair and skincare benefits by applying a lemon-infused beauty product topically.
5. It Supports Weight Loss
Most people who struggle with weight loss are often encouraged to look in the direction of healthy natural supplements. Lemon water happens to be one of those supplements. According to research, the polyphenol antioxidants found in lemon juice were able to induce weight gain in obese mice.
These antioxidants were also shown to lower the risk of type 2 diabetes by mediating the adverse effects of blood glucose levels as well as improving insulin resistance. Also, lemon water is rich in dietary fiber that helps to create a sense of fullness for longer, thereby reducing your food cravings.
6. It Aids Digestion
We’ve already mentioned that lemon water is loaded with dietary fiber which may help with weight loss. In addition to weight loss, dietary fiber comes with numerous other advantages.
First, the fiber nourishes your gut-friendly bacteria, directly improving your digestion. Dietary fiber is also known to ease constipation and promote bowel movements by adding bulk to your stool. You can use it as a mild laxative too.
7. It Helps With Rehydration
Generally, experts recommend drinking at least eight 8-ounce glasses of water every day. But let’s face it; most of us frequently fall short of our RDI of water. In fact, many of us only remember to drink water when we feel thirsty. Well, according to experts, you’re already dehydrated by the time you’re thirsty.
Thankfully, you can invest in lemon water and meet the recommended daily intake of water. That’s because the juice is naturally sweet as opposed to water which is mostly tasteless. As you enjoy the delectable taste of lemon juice, you’ll be seamlessly working towards the eight 8-ounce of water a day target.
8. It Freshens Your Breath
Last but not least, lemon water may help to fight bad breath, especially for people with chronic bad breath conditions like halitosis. All you need to do is drink a glass of lemon water every morning, after every meal, or as often as required.
Lemon water works on bad breath by stimulating the secretion of saliva, which prevents dry mouth and bacterial growth between teeth.
How Much Lemon Water Should You Drink?
Experts generally recommend drinking the juice of two lemons every day. But as you shall find, there’s no hard and fast rule here. The amount of lemon water you drink per day will largely depend on your tolerance for the drink.
Most importantly, you should be aware of the common side effects to expect. Too much of lemon water is associated with tooth enamel decay. To prevent your tooth from getting eroded by the highly acidic lemon, always consider drinking lemon water from a straw.
The high acid content in lemon water is also associated with heartburns, though this largely depends on your body chemistry. Lastly, anecdotal reports link vitamin C to an overproduction of urine. However, the diuretic effects of lemon water have not been sufficiently proven.
Conclusion
Lemon water comes with plenty of health benefits, and you won’t go wrong by incorporating this juice into your diet. However, you’ll need to moderate your intake of lemon water to benefit from its numerous therapeutic properties.
Reference Links
1. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4525130/
2. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0308814615013023?via%3Dihub
3. https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/water/art-20044256