Lemons have long been a popular ingredient in cooking, flavoring for sweets, and in drinks such as lemonade. Aside from this, regularly drinking lemon juice in the mornings can provide a whole range of health benefits.
Liver Detoxification
Drinking lemon juice regularly each morning helps to cleanse the liver. It does this by stimulating it to produce bile, which helps to break down food efficiently. By drinking it first thing in the morning, it prepares the liver for digestion throughout the day. It also helps to break down gallstones, which are made from calcified bile.
Better Digestion
In spite of its acidic content, if the juice of the lemon is diluted with hot water it helps to ease digestion and can relieve the symptoms of heartburn and indigestion. By combining with ginger, it can reduce gas and bloating. Lemon juice also can ease constipation.
Healthy Skin
Lemon is a natural antiseptic, therefore drinking it daily can help to remove blackheads and other forms of acne. Its high antioxidant level means it helps to prevent wrinkles from forming, as well. Wrinkles are caused by free radicals, which can damage otherwise healthy cells. Antioxidants destroy the free radicals responsible for this.
Weight Loss
Drinking lemon juice on an empty stomach first thing in the morning can help people who are trying to lose weight. By flushing out toxins and keeping the liver healthy and clean, it speeds up the metabolic rate of the body. This means that the liver metabolizes fat more efficiently, and the body burns fat faster causing weight loss.
Cold and Flu Prevention
Lemon juice contains vitamin C, an important antioxidant known to aid the prevention of infections, colds and flu. Vitamin C helps the body to absorb iron, which is essential to maintaining a healthy immune system, as it helps to form red blood cells and muscle protein. Another important property of vitamin C is that it destroys free radicals in the blood, which can cause inflammation and cell damage. Drinking lemon juice regularly helps to prevent these ailments.
