Squeezing a lemon wedge into your
glass of water is one of the simplest ways to add beneficial nutrition and
health to your daily regimen. It contains no saturated fats or cholesterol. It
is low on the glycemic index which makes it a better choice for diabetics. The
lemon offers vitamins A and C which help with vision and eye health, support
the immune system, fight infection, help wounds heal, and prime the heart and
arteries.
Lemon’s puckering ability is due
to citric acid. Citric acid feeds the brain helping to sharpen one’s focus. Citric
acid is important to a healthy muscle metabolism and efficient energy
production. It can help ward off fatigue. As a live food, lemon’s enzymes aid
digestion.
A lemon is a powerful anti-oxidant.
Vitamins A and C, flavonoids such as carotenes, xanthins, and lutein, and
phytochemicals such as naringenin scavenge harmful inflammatory free radicals
from the blood and reduce their damaging effects to the DNA in our cells. Free
radicals can cause premature aging and degeneration.
Lemon is also a good source of
B-complex vitamins such as pantothenic acid (B5), pyridoxine (B6), and folate
(B12). B5 helps in preparing healthy brain chemistry and is essential to fend
of anxiety and depression. B5 regulates cholesterol and helps in controlling
the blood pressure. It plays a role in healthy skin and hair. B5 stimulates
adrenal hormones, assists liver in metabolizing toxic substances, and it fuels
cell division and DNA reproduction.
B6 prevents blood clots, heart attacks, and
strokes. It plays a role in the synthesis of serotonin and norepinephrine and
in the formation of the myelin sheath around nerves. Vitamin B6 reduces the
level of homocysteine in the blood. Pyridoxine is effective for treating
premenstrual syndrome and other problems related to dysmenorrhea.
Folate (B12) is essential for
proper development of a fetus’s spinal cord and brain. It is a vital component
in the production of healthy red blood cells. B12 keeps the heart healthy,
helps in depression, and has emerged as an important nutrient in preventing
colorectal and cervical cancers as exert its power over cancer by helping to
prevent damage to DNA.
Lemons have minerals like iron,
copper, potassium, and calcium in them. Iron (in the red blood cell) carries oxygen to our cells (especially the
brain which uses 20% of the oxygen in our blood) and is vital for muscle health
and contraction. Copper has anti-microbial properties, is needed for strong
bones, and proper function of the thyroid, adrenal glands, cardiovascular
system and the brain. Potassium and calcium play vital roles in muscle
contraction, healthy bone formation, electrolyte balance and proper nerve
function.
Though lemons are acidic, they digest leaving an alkaline ash thereby
helping to maintain a healthy pH in the body. With all this packed into a
lemon, why wouldn’t you squeeze a wedge into every glass of water that you
drink? It’s simplicity with incredible pay back. Drink up.You need the water anyway!
