Lemon is a popular fruit worldwide. This medium-sized ellipsoidal yellow fruit that is believed to have originated in Asia gained popularity in the market because of the thousands of ways to use it—especially its juice. Lemon is mainly known for its culinary uses; it is mostly used in many dishes, desserts, flavours in candies, juice drinks, soda, bread, and pastries. The fruit’s juice, because of its good scent and strong sour taste, is being used as an ingredient on rubs for roasted meats and marinades on seafood like fish. It acts as a natural meat tenderizer and also helps lessen that fresh meat or fish smell.
Not only that, because lemon has a high acid content, this fruit is also on the top list of ingredients for cleaning agents like dishwashing liquid, and laundry soaps. And because lemon just smells so good, it is also being used as a popular ingredient for car perfumes, air fresheners, and deodorizers.
Even better, this citrus fruit is also being used in many hair care, body care, and cosmetics products like the following: shampoo & conditioner, hot oils, face mask and scrubs, hand and foot scrubs, astringent, mouthwash, body lotion, and face moisturizers. It just smells so fresh, that’s why people just love lemon.
What are the nutritional facts about lemons?
First off, a lemon is a citrus fruit, so you can bet your bottom dollar that it’s sour and packed with Vitamin C. As a matter of fact, the fruit itself is considered Vitamin C because of its staggeringly high content of 64 per cent—which is equivalent to 53mg of every 100g of its nutritional value! But true enough, although lemon really is your go-to food when you want to boost your immune system with Vitamin C, it’s not the only good thing you’ll get from the fruit itself. Not known to many, it is loaded with many nutrients like fibre, protein, and even carbohydrates!
Let’s start with how much energy a lemon has (per 100grams of its nutritional value or 3.5 ounces). Like what was mentioned, this fruit also has a carbohydrate which is equivalent to 9.32 grams, sugars of about 2.5 grams, and dietary fibre of about 2.8 grams. Not only that, but lemon also has fat and protein in it, although at such a small amount of 0.3 grams and 1.1 grams respectively.
What are the minerals present in lemon juice?
Lemon also contains various minerals, like any other fruit. For a start, you’d be surprised to know that this yellow fruit contains Calcium of about 3% or 26mg! Now that is odd but good. How is it possible that the mineral that is most commonly found in dairy products like milk and butter and has such a reaction against high-acid foods be found in a sour fruit? It is only possible by God’s intelligence. Even better, a lemon also has Iron (about 5% or 0.6mg), Manganese (about 1% or 0.03mg), Potassium (about 3% or 138mg), Phosphorus (about 2% or 16mg), Zinc (about 1% or 0.06mg), and Magnesium (about 2% or 8mg). What’s more, lemon is also rich in phytochemicals like tannins, polyphenols, and terpenes. These phytochemicals are plant-produced essentials that aid your body in fighting or thwarting pathogens, which cause sicknesses and diseases.
A lemon extract or juice is said to be more acidic (citric) than the extracts from a lime. The citric acid found in this fruit is also twice the amount found in grapefruit and five times the amount found in orange juice. Its taste is so strong that half of a medium-sized lemon is squeezed and concocted with honey, water, and ice and makes up for a refreshing 16oz lemon juice.
Health Benefits of Lemon
Now that you’re aware of what nutrients you are getting from this yellow fruit, it’s about time to break down the juicy information into 5 easy-to-understand health benefits of lemon. To start off, keep reading.
1. It Does Wonders to the Skin
Yes, it does. Because the Vitamin C found in lemon plays an essential role in building up collagen, which is a useful component for your skin health. Once there was a study published by the American Society for Clinical Nutrition about a lemon. The study concluded that if you consume more Vitamin C, your risk of having wrinkled and dry skin drastically lessens. Are you familiar with lemon water? If not, lemon water is pretty much what it is—just water with sliced lemon in it. Some even add honey to it for a subtle sweet flavour. Hydrating your body with this simply amazing drink maintains your skin moisture, which is essential if you want to prevent skin wrinkling. What’s even more amazing is that lemon juice naturally acts as an antiseptic. The extract can be applied to skin conditions like a fresh wounds, sunburns, and even bee stings. It might hurt a bit, but the fruit’s natural antiseptic properties fight off bacteria. What’s more, lemon juice also brings good effects on your skin that’s affected by the dreaded acne or eczema. Just apply pure lemon extract onto the affected skin, like your face, massage and leave on for about a few minutes. After rinsing off the lemon juice with water, you’ll notice your skin is smoother!
Lemon is also a perfect home remedy for irritating burns. No one wants that burning sensation that seeps through. Rubbing lemon pulp around the affected area helps in relieving the irritation. And if you’re feeling a little insecure about those corns or hardened skin on the palm of your hands and soles of your feet, worry no more because lemon is also a great remedy! You can apply the pure lemon extract on those corns to gradually soften those hardened skin. Of course, the effects cannot be readily seen, but if you do this regularly, you will surely see improvements!
2. It’s Good for Digestive Health
One of the most common tummy problems that lemon treats is indigestion. Remember how it was mentioned earlier that this fruit is being used as a cleaning agent? Well, not just for other things, but to your insides as well! Although it has very low fibre content, because of its high Vitamin C content (which is acidic), a lemon functions well inside your tummy, helping it digest the food you consumed. Take note that acid is an essential component that your tummy uses to digest the food you eat.
People who are losing weight can include lemon water in their diet (like the keto diet). The lemon aids digestion, therefore, helping you improve your metabolism.
Keep in mind: Lemon extract doesn’t go well together with dairy products like milk and cheese.
3. It Improves Cardiovascular Health and Blood Pressure
Have you ever noticed, that obese people have a high-fat diet and those who are physically fit always include sour food in their diet like lemon? And if you ask a man with a heart problem and study his eating habits, you’d probably discover that he’s not into sour food and more into sweets and a salty diet. You probably are already aware of this, but lemon’s Vitamin C reduces a person’s risk of heart disease. Regular consumption of lemon increases your chances of preventing plaque from building up inside your heart arteries (clogs). When your heart is healthy, so will your other organs; because scientifically, when a heart faces problems, it steals nutrients from other organs (like kidneys) to keep itself functioning properly. That’s why those who have cardio problems have chances of also suffering from other complications like kidney and liver problems. The heart really is selfish, isn’t it?
What’s better, if you have healthy cardiovascular health, your blood pressure is also healthy. High blood pressure is one of the causes of potentially fatal stroke, especially in women. Lemon helps in lowering your blood pressure, thus, maintaining good blood circulation.
4. It boosts Immune System
Sometimes, it’s the little things that get you. And in terms of health and wellness, common sicknesses are sometimes the ones that affect your daily routine, job, and even your mood. Have you been getting sick a lot lately? Do you easily catch a cold and flu? It’s probably your immune system. Studies show that people with a strong immune system don’t get sick easily. If you want to boost your immune system, but you don’t want to resort to popping tablets and pills onto your mouth, you can go the natural way—a Vitamin C-packed diet. With this, lemon comes in handy; because of its high Vitamin C content, your immune system is strengthened against common colds, flu, viral diseases, and germs.
5. It Helps Prevent the Big C
Cancer. Nobody wants this word—not one. This disease has taken so many lives and brought tears to millions of loved ones who lost their warriors against the big C. In terms of this, prevention is really better than cure. If you want to increase your chances of preventing cancer, having a healthy diet is advisable. Avoid junk foods, minimize your consumption of fast foods, and eat more fruits and veggies.
Lemon, as always, is a good addition to your healthy diet. Whether it be lemon water or fresh lemon in your salad, this fruit will surely boost your overall health. What’s better is it has flavonoids, which are essential composites that possess cancer-fighting components. These flavonoids also serve as anti-oxidants, which are also good for preventing cancer. Always remember, if you don’t do it today, you might regret it tomorrow. No one will take care of you, but yourself.
Conclusion
Lemon is a truly amazing fruit. It smells good, tastes good, and brings great benefits to your body. Even better, it doesn’t cost much. Because it grows abundantly, lemon can only cost up to two dollars a pound. Hopefully, this article about the top 5 health benefits of lemon has helped you in improving your health plan. So, don’t think twice and make sure you have your daily dose of this citrus fruit for a healthier you!
