Starting your day with a tasty, invigorating cup of lemon juice and water offers a myriad of health benefits. Freshly-squeezed lemon juice offers more of the beneficial properties than its bottled counterpart, though both are suitable for a morning pick-me-up. Wash fresh lemons before you slice them to make sure no dirt or bacteria are transferred to the inside of the fruit.
Digestive Aid
In her book "The Lemon Juice Diet," Theresa Cheung notes that lemon juice is an "excellent digestive aid" due to its stimulating the production of saliva and gastric juices. When you drink lemon juice and water first thing in the morning, Cheung says the lemon juice stimulates the liver to produce bile, which readies it to help digest your food all day long.
Nutrients
Fresh lemon juice is a good source of folate, potassium and calcium. Potassium helps regulate your blood pressure and is good for cardiovascular health, folate helps keep your energy levels high and calcium strengthens bones and teeth. Lemon juice is also a very good source of vitamin C, which helps the body fight infections and can even lower your risk for cancer. Starting your morning with this nutrient boost energizes you for the day ahead.
Antioxidants
The vitamin C in lemon juice is also a powerful antioxidant, along with bioflavonoids found in lemons such as quercetin. Bioflavonoids are plant-based antioxidants found mostly in fruits and vegetables, and they have anti-allergenic, anticancer and antiviral properties as well. Consuming lemon juice and water in the morning lets these compounds benefit your body during all your daily activities.
Immune Booster
The bioflavonoid quercetin gives your immune system a boost as well. It works with the vitamin C in a morning lemon-juice-and-water tonic to help your body stave off colds and infections. If you are already under the weather, a drink of lemon juice and water after a good night's sleep can speed your recovery time.
Acne
Cheung also advocates sipping lemon juice with water first thing in the morning as a way to treat acne. She notes that the vitamin C in lemon juice is important for a healthy complexion and that it can kill certain types of bacteria that cause acne.
Hydration
According to the website Family Doctor, drinking six to eight 8-oz glasses of water each day is a reasonable way to keep yourself hydrated. Having water with lemon juice in the morning will start you off on the right track toward that goal, especially if you use the water and lemon juice to replace a caffeinated beverage.
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