What is it about lemon water?
I just did a google search for “lemon water” and got 42,000,000 results. Seems pretty important. I personally began drinking lemon water for its health benefits in 2010. Today I wanted to share with you the top health benefits that I found from drinking lemon water. I’m pretty sure after reading them you will want to go make you a glass. The benefits include:
- Antioxidants and Anticancer Properties– Antioxidants not only neutralize free radicals, but they also help reverse damage.
- Vitamin C– Lemons are an excellent source of Vitamin C. Vitamin C is an important antioxidant that is helpful in boosting immunity. It also helps to speed up wound healing and lesson allergies.
- Digestion– Lemons aid in relieving symptoms of indigestion. They also help to prevent or alleviate constipation, diarrhea, and other gastrointestinal disorders.
- Alkalizing– Lemons may taste acidic, but they are alkalizing to the body. Increasing body alkalinity can aid in fighting off bacteria and viruses that tend to thrive in an acidic environment. Its anti-bacterial property can help fight off a cold, sore throat, flu, and even helps reduce fever.
- Potassium– Lemons are also high in potassium. Potassium plays a role in heart health and depression.
- Purify Liver– Warm lemon water aids in purifying the liver by flushing out toxins and controlling excessive bile flow. By flushing out toxins from the body, lemon water aids in reducing inflammation. This is very helpful for those suffering with arthritis and many other chronic diseases.
- Good for Skin– Lemons are naturally antiseptic, which means they reduce the possibility of infections. Lemons are often applied topically for this reason. Vitamin C is anti-aging and plays a role in reducing wrinkles, blackheads, and assists in fading scars.
How to Drink Lemon Water
According to Water Benefits Health it is best to drink lemon water using pure water and fresh (organic or local) lemons if available. In regards to how often to drink, they state that:
“Drinking it once a day is beneficial, but drinking it twice a day is even better.”
The same article recommends drinking it neither hot nor cold. Drinking either warm or at room temperature preserves the enzymatic and energetic properties. In summary they say:
“However, drinking fresh lemon juice at any temperature is better than not drinking it at all.”
I could not agree more. The benefits are so worth every sip of that refreshing drink. I believe I’ll go make me a glass right now! Do any of you drink lemon water? If so, what do you enjoy about it? Are you interested in adding this to your routine?
I drink a glass of lemon water first thing when I wake up. It perks me up to get through my morning routine, and helps ease my stomach into breakfast. I wasn’t aware of all these benefits… must start having a second glass!
The benefits are amazing right! I (Mary) like my glass in the morning too. It helps put me in the right healthy mindset for the day.
I always drink lemon water, I new it was good for your but I didn’t realize until recently how good it is for you. I add lemon to pretty much everything, I always have to have a big bowl of lemons in the kitchen.
Girl, you have been one step ahead of the game. That’s so great!
I love lemon water! It’s a great way to add some excitement to my water especially since I’m staying away from all sweetened beverages. I try to keep lemons on my desk at work (especially during flu season!) for an afternoon pick-me-up and then at home I add a pinch of cayenne pepper to my glass. Sounds gross, I know but I actually love it (once I got used to it!). Cayenne helps boost your metabolism, regulates blood sugar and also boosts immunity.
What a great idea to keep at work! I (Mary) will have to steal that one, and I have used cayenne in mine too, and like you said the cayenne adds many health benefits itself. Thanks for that reminder!
Oh what a great idea! I bring a couple of slices sometimes if I remember, but it’d make way more sense to just have some lemons actually at work, lol.
After reading this I just had to go cut up one of the lemons on our kitchen counter- I’ve really been loving adding them to my water lately! Thanks for the reminder :)
We are so glad it was a healthy reminder!
How many slices of lemon do you need to put in your water to achieve these benefits?
As far as slices, that would be hard to say depending on the size of the lemon being used. It is usually recommended to juice one whole lemon a day.
Question: Same benefits from Limes?
One lemon gives you nearly ¼ of your daily value of fiber, while lime gives you 8%. In terms of vitamins, a lemon is higher in vitamin C and folate, while a lime is a better source of vitamin A and E. That would suggest that eating both, instead of one or the other might be a good idea.
Lemons however will give you much higher amounts of minerals, including calcium, copper, iron, magnesium and potassium. Both provide antioxidants and Omega-3 fatty acids.
So, do you just juice an entire lemon into room temperature water? What’s your recommended process?
This sounds great. Keep up the good work!
That is my (Mary’s) recommended process. Pretty simple right =)
Just added a couple drops of agave nectar to sweeten it up a bit. Perfect!
Enjoy :)
I love lemon water. I actually find I drink way more with lemon, than without!
The best way to dress up water (in our opinion) :)
I drink a glass every morning, but I wonder: Do you get the same benefits by using lemon juice in food? ie: my salad “dressing” is always a drizzle of EVOO and half a lemon; always use fresh squeezed lemon on fish, veggies etc. I definitely feel like my morning lemon water on an empty stomach is cleansing and gets things…uh…moving. But often wonder if the benefits transfer when you use the juice in/on food?
That is a really good question! According to our research, it really seems to work best if you drink a warm or lukewarm glass of lemon water (at least half of the juice squeezes) after you wake up but before you eat. Obviously you’ll get a lot of benefits from using it in food too but the method above seems best.