
Many people wrinkle their nose by reflection and have a sour taste in the mouth in the face of the mention of the lemon. Despite this, many areas of human activity cannot imagine without it.
Lemon is a prominent member of the citrus genre. It is mentioned since the second century of our era. It is believed that its homeland is China, India and Burma. Originally, the lemon was so strange and valuable that in Russia, in the seventeenth century, the lemons supervisor post was created in a palace. Today the fruit is cultivated in countries with warm tropical and subtropical climates.
Chemical and vitamin composition of lemon
The fruit of lemon is a treasure of vitamins, acids, macro and micronutrients.
Its composition includes vitamins such as
- Pp. Responsible for the oxidative processes of the organism.
- Group B (B1, B2, B5, B6, B9). It helps fight stress, is responsible for digestion, helps regulate sugar levels.
- АIt influences the skin, sight and bones.
- С. Protects our body of bacteria, viruses and colds. It favors wound healing.
- Е. Guardian of the heart and the blood vessels, responsible for the prevention of aging. It also helps to regenerate the skin.
Micro and macronutrients, which are rich in citrus: potassium, calcium, boron, zinc, iron, magnesium, sulfur, and many others. Nor should we forget its pectin and citric acid content, as well as fiber. With such a rich vitamin cocktail, lemons are essential in the diet of every family.
Caloric value of a lemon
The caloric value of a single fruit is 16 kcal per 100 g. In addition, it contains
- 0 g of carbohydrates, that is, 3% of the daily ration
- 9 g of protein
- 1 g of fat, that is, 2% of the daily needs.
Limon properties
The benefits of lemon
Lemon is known for its antiseptic, antibacterial properties, helps eliminate toxins. It helps fight obesity, saturates the body with vitamins, affects vital processes.
Damage and contraindications
People who have stomach problems (gastritis, colitis, ulcers) and intestines, lemons purely, as well as lemon juice should be excluded from their diet. People who suffer from discbacteriosis should also avoid this fruit.
It is a citrus, and citrus fruits are known for being one of the most allergenic. Therefore, people prone to allergies must be careful when eating lemons, especially with honey.
Lemon juice has a detrimental effect on tooth enamel, so it is recommended to drink water with lemon with a straw or rinse the mouth with water after drinking the liquid. Its consumption is not advised to infant mothers or children under 3 years.
How to choose the right lemon
Although lemons are easily found in most groceries, they are expensive. So it would be a shame to be wrong and buy the wrong fruit. Round or oblong, yellow or green, with or without twig, the variety of fruits is huge. How to choose a good citrus?
- Pay attention to the skin. The proper fruit must have uniform skin, without abolish. The skin should not have points, spots or dry areas. If the skin has brown spots, lemon may have frozen.
- A good lemon is firm. It is an easy way to verify that it is elastic: the pressure on the skins restores them quickly and does not make skin abollades. But there are lemons with thick skin full of packages. They are normal fruits, but they will have less pulp and less nutrients than their smooth counterparts.
- The color of the fruit must be intense and uniform. It is not always green when the fruit is not completely mature and bright yellow when it is completely mature.
- You can put a piece of silk paper on the fruit when you buy it and press it slightly. If the paper leaves a trace, it indicates that the fruit has a high content of essential oils and has not been treated with chemicals.
- If possible, ask the seller if the lemon has nuggets or not. Preferably none, since they contain substances that can cause allergies.
Can it be taken on an empty stomach?
The most common is to drink fasting lemon water. The juice of no more than half a zidra is added to 1 glass of boiled warm water, it is removed and drink 20-30 minutes before the food. This water has a positive effect on digestion and weight loss processes in our body.
Peculiarities of the use of lemon
This fruit is good because applications can be found for all its components: the peel, the pulp and also the essential oil that emerges from this yellow fruit. The work for lemons will not only be in the field of health, but also in cosmetics, kitchen and in everyday life.
- Lemon is an excellent domestic cleaner and can also be used as whiter and scarvest. It can also be used as smell eliminator in the refrigerator and to remove unwanted smells of knives and cutting boards. It can also be used as an aromatic bag when saving things. And even if insects have made a no n-invited visit to their home, the delicious fruit can also help.
- And you can’t imagine culinary art without citrus. Everything is used. The lemon peel is used as an ingredient of recipes in its own right, and for some spices (lemon pepper). Lemon sugar and ice are an excellent accompaniment of desserts and alcoholic beverages. Lemon cream is used for ice cream, to aromatize cookies and for other sweets. With the lemons one of the liquors, the Limoncello can be elaborated.
In popular medicine
Lemons can also be used for unconventional medicines.
- They are used in the treatment of the respiratory system. The fruit juice with grated spicy radish helps with asthma, honey with juice is good for angina.
- Cidra dressings are excellent help in the fight against varicose veins.
- In ancient times, lemons were used to treat diseases such as typhoid fever and tuberculosis.
- If you have a strong headache, apply the fruit peel in your temples.
- Lemon oil can prevent liver cirrhosis and dressings with fruit pulp can help jaundice.
- Cidro helps stop nasal hemorrhages. You can spread a few drops of essential oil in a cotton and place it in the nasal grave.
- Citric pectins ensure the elimination of toxins from the organism.
- Lemon can also help those who suffer from hangover. Give a tea or coffee with lemon to a person who has drunk too much and will feel better.
- Lemon juice should be used for stomatitis and other dental problems.
- To eliminate bad smell and excessive sweating of the feet, you cannot do without lemon. Bathrooms with a mixture of lemon and boric acid can help.
To fight the cold
During the cold or flu season, lemon is a good friend in the battle against this plague. Not only will it help you prevent the disease, but also accelerate the healing process if you get over.
- As soon as the first symptoms of disease appear (sore throat, sneezing, headache), immediately include the fruit in your diet. During that period, it is best to drink a hot drink as prevention. The lemon can help the skirmish, ginger, currants, yellow thorn, blueberries and honey. Add one of these ingredients to citrus fruits, and the drink will be enriched with so many vitamins that no cold will be a problem.
- The yellow fruit will not benefit you especially even if you fall ill. You will get the greatest benefit if you add lemon and honey to the infusion. This will allow you to sweat and help you lower the fever.
For sore throat, mix yellow fruit juice with sea salt and water to make garments. This will help expel viruses and bacteria.
Intestinal cleaning
An obstructed intestine is synonymous with pale skin, dull hair and general weakness. Even in this case, lemons can help. It has a high content of various elements and helps eliminate toxins from the body, bile and uric acid.
Just drink up to 3 glasses of water without gas with half a lemon 30 minutes before meals to reactivate intestines and give energy for the whole day.
For the brain
Potassium and citrus magnesium help in the struggle for our brain. Mixture crushed garlic with lemon If you get tired quickly, you have bad memory and concentration problems. This mixture will help clean the walls of brain blood vessels and blood.
For the vessels.
Inadequate nutrition causes the accumulation of deposits in the walls of our blood vessels, which leads to the formation of plates. The vessels become less elastic and do not conduct oxygen and other nutrients well. A mixture of garlic and lemon, crushed in a chopper and poured on warm water, will help cure arteriosclerosis. The preparation must be taken in 100 g shots a day for 40 days.
You can also mix two oranges and one lemon each with two tablespoons of honey. Crush the citrus fruits with a meat chopper. Take 2 teaspoons a day before meals until you get the desired result.
For cancer treatment
Important: Lemon is never a substitute for traditional cancer therapies.
The antioxidants and vitamins that citrus fruits are rich in fight the spread of cancer cells. The most effective in this case is frozen citron. Rinse fruit well and freeze whole (without peeling). Use the grated citrus from the freezer at least 2-3 times a week. The body will only thank you for such powerful help.
For the hair
If you have dandruff, rinse your hair after washing with a decoction of 3-4 lemon peels boiled in 1 liter of water for 25 minutes. If you have oily scalp and greasy hair, it is useful to rub your head before washing with lemon and carrot juice (2:1 ratio).
For the view
Vitamin C, found in lemons, can help prevent certain eye diseases and prevent vision loss. Dress salads and other meals with the juice of this fruit.
cellular energy
Lemon is good for improving mood, energy production, and performance. Thanks to its vitamin C, it improves resistance to stress and reduces anxiety and fatigue.
In cosmetology it is also indispensable. Since not only the heart of the lemon can be used, but also its peel and its essential oils, the beauty industry cannot imagine without this citrus.
- It is a great ally for oily skin, as it helps to minimize pores and eliminate unwanted shine from the face.
- It can be used as a brightening agent to combat age spots and freckles. For this reason, in the market of the beauty industry there are many creams that contain lemon.
- The oil from the fruit has found its application in aromatherapy. Just add a few drops of the oil to water and it will not only leave your skin silky smooth and pleasantly scented, but it will also help fight cellulite.
- Citrus fruits help eliminate bad breath. Drink tea with two lemon wedges or crumble a piece of lemon. Afterwards, even garlic won’t bother you.
- Perfumes also benefit from lemon notes. That is why many perfumers use a lemon extract in the manufacture of perfumes and aromatic waters.
- The fruit is good for the hands and feet. With its help, brittle nails are fought. It is good for nourishing the heels, it helps to heal the cracks in the feet. If after working with berries, vegetables you have stained skin on your hands, here your support will be lemon.
How to preserve it correctly
If you need to keep the fruit for a long time, the best option and the most appropriate is the refrigerator. Each fruit is wrapped in parchment paper and placed in a vegetable container. The optimal temperature is 6-8 0 C. at a lower temperature, the lemon will begin to spoil and lose its healthy properties. The fruit will remain fresh up to 5 weeks at this temperature.
Another good help to maintain fresh fruit is wax. Molten paraffin is applied to each fruit with a brush. Create a film that prevents the passage of air, which prolongs the conservation period. For large quantities, save the fruit in sand or sawdust in a cool and dark place. It can be in a box in the winery or basement.
If the fruit is going to be used in the near future, it will be well in a vase on the table. A “fragrant and healthy decoration may not be spoiled until after 2 weeks. The lemon with sugar is used to cure colds. To do this, cut the fruit in fine rings, put it in a dry and clean jar, sprinkling each layer with sugar. The proportion is 1: 1, the first and last layer being sugar. With this method, you will receive vitamins for quite some time.
The fruit that has already been used is the most difficult to conserve because the pulp will begin to dry and get rancid. Save these lemons in the fridge sprinkling the area cut with salt or sugar and covering it with a glass or a lid.
Lemon is one of the most useful and common fruits. Yes, after consulting your doctor, you have no contraindication to eat this citrus, put it without fail in your kitchen. Your body will thank you.