Spring is in the air, finally! With spring comes thoughts of warm weather, outdoor exercise, and shedding our sweaters and pants for t-shirts and shorts. For some of us this could be a happy thought, but for others the idea of taking off the layers is scary. If you’re feeling a little sluggish after the long winter, it may be time for a detox. I’m not talking about doing a juice cleanse or fasting (although that can have its benefits), I’m talking about starting a daily healthy habit that only involves two ingredients: fresh lemon and water.
Drinking one glass of lemon water every morning on an empty stomach has so many health benefits: it improves digestion, detoxifies the blood and liver, eliminates waste, reduces bloating, improves the look of your skin, and can help prevent diseases such as cancer.
Improves Digestion, Detoxifies and Decreases Constipation
When we eat something, digestive juices or hydrochloric acid (HCl) are produced in our mouth and stomach to break down our food. When we drink lemon water, our body thinks it’s eating, and produces more HCI.
Not only does this aid in digestion, but, because there isn’t any food to break down, the HCI flows out into our blood and starts to clean out the “debris” (a buildup of toxins from poor digestion, an overburdened liver, poor diet, etc). This detox can reduce bloating, and lead to brighter skin with less blemishes. After all, the heath and look of your skin is always a good indication of what’s going on inside the body - healthy skin starts within!
More HCI also plays a factor in avoiding constipation, and producing better quality bowel movements (BM). Lemon water stimulates the secretion of bile from the liver, and bile is an excellent carrier of toxins. So when you have a lemon water BM, you are likely to eliminate more waste (1).
Acid vs. Alkaline
It may seem like lemon would be acidic rather than alkaline, but that’s not the case. Drinking lemon water actually makes the body more alkaline vs. acidic (this is a good thing!), which is the ideal environment for preventing diseases like cancer, and better overall health. Lemon enhances your digestive secretions so that acidic wastes are eliminated more effectively (1).
Common Questions:
What time should I drink lemon water?
Because our digestive system is at its strongest between 7am – 11am everyday; drinking lemon water in the morning is the best time for detoxing.
How much lemon juice should I use?
Squeeze one or two lemon slices (enough so that the water is cloudy) in a tall glass of room temperature water.
1) Joyous Health, Health Benefits of Lemon and Water