Whether it is lemon water with honey or lemon water with other spices, people are lining up at health bars and supermarkets to try lemon water for health and weight loss.
If you want to know how much lemon water should drink a day, the benefits of lemon water for skin, or the side effects of lemon water on bones, you are in for a treat – because today is Lemon Day on our blog.
Why Drink Lemon Water?: The Benefits
What is the ideal amount of lemon water to drink every 24 hours? Is lemon water good for weight loss?
Lemon water is one of the simplest beverages you can think of. It is created with simply water and lemons, and its extracts. Lemon water can be consumed either cold or dry, depending on the drinker’s preference. It can be combined with tea as well.
Due to lemon’s properties, the acidity of lemon water lends well to different beverage concoctions. Lemon water, as well as its variations, is hailed as excellent detoxification beverages for health-conscious individuals.
If we look at the composition of lemon water from a macronutrient perspective, it appears that it doesn’t offer a lot.
The average serving for an adult is one glass of lemon water. One glass will contain on the average nine calories (unless you add sugar or honey), less than one gram of natural fruit sugars, 25% of the adult RDA for vitamin C, 1% of the adult RDA for folate, and 1% of the adult RDA for the mineral potassium. It doesn’t seem like a lot, does it?
Now comes the fun part: let’s take a look at the chemical compounds that naturally occur in the juice and fruit extracts of lemon. Lemons are naturally rich in flavonoids. Flavonoids occur naturally in many other foods and beverages, including chocolate. Flavonoids are a potent form of antioxidants. Antioxidants are hugely popular because they can fight different kinds of diseases, from cardiac anomalies to bad skin. Flavonoids are particularly useful in reducing cellular oxidation and stress, which has a positive correlation with staying physically younger. What we mean by this is that if your cells are not constantly bombarded by free radicals, which as the natural byproducts of cellular activity, then your skin will look younger and suppler. Our physical appearance in adulthood correlates with the care that we give our cells and tissues by eating the right foods. Drinking lemon water is a step in the right direction because it is packed with antioxidants that are in high demand by the body when the body is fatigued or stressed.
Lemon water is also rich in the chemical compound nitrate. Citrate has been shown to reduce the incidence of kidney stones in humans. What happens is that citrate prevents the formation of kidney stones by changing the chemistry of urine. So the more citrate you have regularly, the more detoxified your various organ systems are, and the safer you are from diseases like kidney stones, which can be painful and can last for years if left untreated.
When you drink lemon water, you automatically also get the primary benefits of drinking pure water. Pure water may not sound all that luxurious, but there is a reason that water is still a billion-dollar industry globally. Drinking water can directly aid in your weight loss efforts by hydrating all the organ systems and rendering more efficient all the metabolic processes in the body. Sufficient hydration also reduces the chances of stroke and high blood pressure by improving the viscosity of the blood. Thickened blood due to dehydration can be problematic over time.
Water, surprisingly, also helps people maintain mental clarity. If you are suffering from constant mood swings and similar problems, this may be due to dehydration. A dehydrated person can suffer from a plethora of health problems that can affect the lungs, heart, skin, liver, etc.
If drinking plain water is hard for you, then it makes complete sense to prepare lemon water regularly so you can rehydrate whenever you need to. A pitcher of lemon water in the refrigerator can last for up to a week. And as the submerged lemon slices age in the water, you get more nutrients out, too.
Experts agree that starting your day with some hot lemon water can help optimize your organs by getting them to start at a reasonable level in the morning. Lemon water also helps people feel fuller because of the water, and this alone can help people lose weight by improving their satiety. Instead of reaching for something laden with calories, we recommend that you reach for lemon water instead – and if you need to add calories, use honey instead of refined sugar.
Possible Side Effects of Lemon
All things should be taken in moderation to maintain health, and drinking lemon water also poses risks if you overdo it. One of the more overt problems with drinking too much lemon water (or any acidic substance for that matter) is damage to the teeth’s enamel. The enamel is the white outer layer that’s tough and should be able to withstand damage from the food that we eat.
However, when it is up against something that is as naturally acidic as lemons, well, you get the picture. The other possible side effect is gastric unrest. Since the gut is already acidic due to hydrochloric acid, the presence of several different fruit acids may cause you to become hyper acidic.
Hyperacidity may lead to bloating and even diarrhea. The third possible issue is the presence of bacteria in the skin of lemons. Since lemon water is made with each part of the lemon intact, you need to make sure that your lemons are washed thoroughly, so they don’t inadvertently introduce microbes to your lemon water.
