12 benefits of lemon and some delicious recipes

Lemon is the acidic fruit that is most used in the world. Although it has a very acidic taste, it is still tasty, and really versatile for many things, such as food, beauty products, cleaning products and many other uses.

It is a small citrus fruit, but it has more health benefits than its other fruit companions such as grapefruit or orange.

Lemon adds a delicious touch to many dishes, fights colds, is a good beauty product, brightens your hair and even helps clean the environment.

Unlike citrus fruits like orange, lemon has been known for over 1000 years, and is considered one of the most popular tropical fruits. Originally, the lemon tree only produced green colored lemons, however a variation with fist-sized yellow fruits originated in India and spread throughout the Mediterranean until reaching the Arabs.

What benefits does lemon give us?

Lemon is one of the most alkaline foods of all, helping to restore the pH balance in the body of people who are used to a hearty acidic diet. The following are just some of the health benefits of lemon in any of its uses:

1. For hair.

For hair care, mix lemon juice in a hot water bath. If you have dandruff, this will help you get rid of it. Squeeze the juice from two lemons and mix it with hot water. Use this water to cleanse the hair and in turn, the scalp. This is an excellent cleaning agent. It gives a shiny texture to the hair.

2. For the skin.

Because lemons are rich in vitamin C, if you drink lemonade on a daily basis, you could get glowing skin. Also, lemon can be used to treat skin infections, since lemons are antiseptic.  You can use it to reduce the burning sensation on your skin. To heal scars, lemon should be applied regularly. Also, it can be used to treat acne.

3. If you are on diets to lose weight.

If you are on weight loss diets, lemon is a key ingredient. Prepare warm water with lemon and honey. This is a support for your diet in the process of reducing fat and will effectively help reduce weight, if taken on an empty stomach.

4. Stomach diseases.

Hot water with lemon juice is helpful in alleviating many stomach problems. Like bloating, constipation, indigestion, stomach parasites, nausea, heartburn, etc.

5. Perfect antioxidant.

Lemon is an excellent antioxidant because it contains vitamin C. These antioxidants seek out free radicals that cause aging.

6. For dental care.

If applied to the affected area, lemon juice provides relief from a toothache. Massage the bleeding gums with lemon juice, this will help stop the bleeding. Looking for a remedy against bad breath? So, you can use lemon juice as a mouthwash. Add the juice of a lemon to a glass of water and gargle with it. This helps to eliminate bad breath.

7. Respiratory problems.

Lemonade greatly helps asthmatics as it treats the ailments associated with respiratory problems.

8. Throat infections.

The antibacterial properties of lemons are recognized; They help clear many throat infections. If you have one of these infections, you can drink warm lemon tea or gargle with lemonade. The vitamin C in lemons helps speed up the healing process.

9. High blood pressure.

For those who suffer from heart problems it is recommended that they drink lemon water.  It contains potassium and therefore helps treat nausea and hypertension.

10. Blood purification.

Lemonade acts as a blood purifier. It also helps treat some diseases, such as cholera and malaria.

11. Lower the fever.

Drinking lemon water helps in treating colds and flu, reducing body temperature and increasing perspiration.

12.- Diuretic.

This great fruit is an excellent diuretic and through this property it causes toxins and bacteria in the body to be eradicated. Consequently, it is effective in helping to treat arthritis and rheumatism.

How to use lemon to get more benefits?

You can get more benefits if you drink it with warm water. So, drink a lemon juice with water daily to improve your health. Here are the best ways to use lemon to make the most of all its benefits.

How to treat a cold with lemon?

The explanation for why lemons are so popular lies in their versatility. Especially during winter, lemon is used as a natural remedy for colds, coughs, runny nose, and hoarseness. Because it contains vital substances whose effects directly attack viruses and bacteria, fight inflammation and improve the function of mucous membranes.

Relieve a sore throat, cough and fever with some warm lemon juice.

Hot lemon juice is an especially popular remedy. Its simple way of preparation consists of mixing hot water with the juice of one or two lemons, and sweetening the drink with honey.

The hot lemon not only stimulates your metabolism, it will also stimulate the production of sweat, so the fever will go down. The healthy acid it contains also soothes a sore throat and cough. In addition, the active ingredients of the lemon favor a rapid recovery.

But also, cold lemon water (lemon juice mixed with a liter of water, and sweetened with stevia) is considered an extremely beneficial drink for health. Drinking it at least three times a day should help you lose weight, strengthen your immune system, and get your digestion going.

The components that make lemon so healthy.

100 grams of lemon, which corresponds to the weight of a large lemon, only contains 20 calories, however it is composed of:

• More than 50 mg of vitamin C, an amount with which you will be covering half of the daily requirement of vitamin C.
• Folic acid.
• Calcium.
• Potassium.
• Magnesium.
• Fiber like pectin.
• Citric acid.
• Essential oils containing citral and limonene.
• Numerous flavonoids.

Has numerous healing properties, both internally and externally.

It is above all the phytochemicals that make both the lemon pulp and its peel medically interesting. In folk medicine, lemon juice (internal) and lemon oil (external) have been used for centuries. In addition to being used for cold and fever, it is also used against a variety of complaints:

• Loss of appetite.
• Arteriosclerosis.
• Arthritis.
• Diabetes.
• Cellulitis.
• Drop.
• Migraine.
• Rheumatism.

For this reason, in recent decades, science has conducted hundreds of studies on the medical value of lemon. Its ingredients have been proven to have the following effects:

• Anticoagulant.
• Anti-inflammatory.
• Analgesic.
• Antispasmodic.
• Antidepressant.

The ingredients of the lemon are extremely interesting. On the other hand, it has been proven that the special active ingredients in lemon could even inhibit the proliferation of cancer cells and even kill a certain amount of these cells (induced cell death, apoptosis).

Other uses of lemon.

In addition to these important medical effects, lemon also works as a beauty agent. Lemon juice can act as an additive in anti-wrinkle cosmetics. And last but not least, rinsing with dilute lemon water is a method of bleaching dark hair that has been used since ancient times.

Lemon in cosmetics – Cosmetics with lemon oil.

Many skin care products and perfumes also contain lemon oil due to the fine scent of citrus. The valuable oil of this fruit is extracted directly from its skin. In this part of the lemon there are numerous oil glands. They exude their unmistakable fragrance. If the peel is pressed, the glands will burst and the lemon oil will come out.

Disinfect spaces and clean with lemon juice.

Many hygiene professionals rely on citric acid to kill harmful germs and clean up. For example, a lemon juice paste can be very useful if you want to restore the shine and luster of rusty objects.

The windows of your house can be spotless just by adding a few drops of lemon juice to the cleaning water. And if there are stains on the board after cutting the meat, the lemon juice will make them disappear quickly and even destroy any bacteria.

Lemon cooking tricks.

Lemon is truly a multipurpose fruit, it is healthy, useful and practical. And it is equally versatile in its use in the kitchen. Here are the best tips:

• Rub the meat and fish with lemon wedges before cooking. Not only will this kill the germs in the food, it will also make the meat tender, and make the iron it contains more usable by the body.
• Add lemon juice to freshly cut fruits and vegetables, such as apples, pears, avocados, and chicory. The acid contained in its juice will prevent oxidation and thus the cut surfaces will not turn an unpleasant brown color.
• If eating red beets, red cabbage or cherries, your fingers are painted red, the lemon juice will remove the color easily.
• If you only need a few drops of lemon for a plate: pierce the fruit with a fork or toothpick, so that it begins to drip a little juice and then you can keep the fruit in the fridge for a few days without drying out.
• It is best to buy organic lemons, especially if you want to use the skin. Commercially grown, harvested, and stored fruits are treated with a wide range of chemicals that are difficult to remove, even by washing and brushing.

The best recipes with lemons – from lemon cake to lemon chicken.

Lemon cake is one of the most popular lemon recipes. Not only is the classic dessert refreshing, it’s great to keep frozen. You can cut it and store it piece by piece and later defrost each portion individually.

You can also add some whipped cream, fruit and ice cream, and also soak it in orange liqueur to make this cake a delicious conclusion to your festive menu.

1. Lemon cake.

For the mass:

• 1 organic lemon.
• 4 eggs.
• 250 g icing sugar.
• 200 ml of rapeseed oil.
• 100 ml of orange juice.
• 300 g flour.
• 1 packet of baking powder.

For the frosting:

• 3 tablespoons lemon juice.
• 3 tablespoons of orange juice.
• 6 tablespoons caster sugar.

Wash the lemon with hot water, grate its peel, and squeeze the juice. Stir the eggs with the sugar until they are frothy, then add the lemon zest, lemon juice, and orange juice. Add the flour and baking powder and stir well.

Place the mixture in a bowl greased with butter and bake the contents at 180 degrees for about an hour. Let the cake cool for a while, then remove it and poke it with a wooden stick several times. Mix the ingredients for the frosting and pour them over the cake.

Lemon muffins.

For the mass:

• 1 organic lemon.
• 250 g flour.
• 1 teaspoon baking powder.
• 2 eggs.
• 150g sugar.
• 100 ml rapeseed oil.
• 250g yogurt (10 percent fat content).

For the frosting:

• 150 g caster sugar.
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice.
• 50 g white chocolate.

Butter each of the spaces in the muffin pan. Wash the lemon with hot water, grate the peel, and squeeze the juice. Mix the flour with the baking powder in a second bowl. Then mix the eggs, sugar, oil, lemon and yogurt and add everything together with the flour mixture.

Fill the molds and bake the contents at 180 degrees for about 20 minutes. Remove from the mold and cover the muffins that are still warm with a pinch of powdered sugar (icing sugar) and lemon juice. Melt the chocolate in a plastic bag in the microwave and add just the right amount to each muffin.

Lemon cream.

• 500 g of curd (20% fat).
• 2 organic lemons.
• 100 g sugar (or the equivalent in stevia).
• 1 vanilla bean.
• 200 ml cream.

Wash the lemons, grate the peel, and squeeze the juice from the fruit. Mix the curd with the sugar, the cream and the vanilla bean, add the lemon peel and add the amount of lemon juice you want. Fill the bowls that the dessert will go in and let them cool. You can decorate with fruit or candied lemon slices.

Candied lemons.

• 2 organic lemons.
• 200 grams of sugar.
• 300 ml of water.

Wash the lemons and cut them into thin slices. Put them in a pot with cold water, boil them for a short time, then strain the lemons and remove the water. Now add 300 ml of water to the pot, mix it with the sugar and heat the water slowly, stirring the mixture constantly.

When the sugar has completely dissolved, add the lemon wedges and simmer for 35 minutes. The peel should soften. Then scoop out the lemon slices with a ladle and place them individually on a drip tray, to let them dry.

Candied lemon slices can keep for several weeks, and are great for decorating cakes and desserts.

You can also use the syrup left in the pot and use it to refine alcoholic beverages, such as white rum.

Lemon chicken.

• 4 organic lemons.
• 2 onions.
• 4 cloves of garlic.
• Salt.
• Olive oil.
• Four small sweet potatoes.
• Parsley.
• White wine.

1. Wash the lemons and cut them into slices. Peel the onions and sweet potatoes. Also peel the garlic cloves. Rinse the chicken inside and out with cold water, patting it dry with kitchen paper. Brush the sides of a baking dish or casserole with oil.
2. Salt the chicken pieces, and put them in the container (skin side up), place under each piece one of the four sliced ​​lemon portions and a clove of garlic. Spread the remaining potatoes, onions and lemon wedges in the saucepan, add olive oil and lemon juice.
3. Pour in the white wine and let everything bake slowly at 200 degrees in the oven, preferably until the wine is almost evaporated, and the chicken and vegetables are well browned. Duration: about 30 – 40 minutes.