When life gives you lemons … put them to good use! These seven tips will help you discover the unexpected usefulness of lemons for both health and beauty.
1. Clears up skin spots
Mix the juice of two lemons (or more, depending on the size of the area) with a little sodium bicarbonate (also known as baking soda) until you make a homogenous paste. Apply it to your underarms, knees, a spot or two on your face, and even your bikini line to fight hyper pigmentation. Be constant and patient, since the results appear only over time. Also aim to apply it at night (sun and lemon juice don’t go well together on the skin). After letting the mix work on your skin for 15 or 20 minutes, rinse well.
2. Helps weight loss
Right after you wake up and before you eat breakfast, drink a glass of warm water with lemon juice, without any sugar or sweeteners. Some people prefer lemon oil, since it is less damaging for your tooth enamel. A daily drink of warm lemon water will help you burn more fat and toxins as you start off your day.
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3. Keeps your kidneys functioning well
The vitamin C in lemon juice increases the amount of citrate in urine, preventing the crystallization of calcium salts and thus inhibiting the buildup of kidney stones. Lemon is also rich in natural “antibiotics” and potassium, and low in sodium, so it helps your kidneys work well and detoxes your body.
4. Can be used to clean kitchen utensils
It would be great if we could all afford to have a wooden cutting board for every type of food, but we usually end up using the same one for cutting garlic and for cutting fruits. You can get rid of the stinky smells that garlic and onion leave behind by cleaning your cutting board with lemon. You can do the same with your refrigerator; mix lemon juice with some baking soda and let the mixture work all night in the fridge.
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5. Repairs nails
A cheap nail polish, age, or just a bad manicure can give you unsightly nails. If you want to have strong nails without a yellowy cast, mix some lemon juice with olive oil in a container and submerge your hands in it for about 10 minutes. Then rinse well and you’ll see how the lemon will help soften your cuticles and get rid of (or diminish) any yellow traces that are usually caused by leaving your nail polish (especially deeper shades) on for too long.
6. Antioxidant for fruits and vegetables
It doesn’t take long for a cut apple to turn brown … but you can prevent the oxidation process by putting some lemon juice on the cut surface of the fruit and then covering it with a bit of plastic wrap.
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7. Fights acne
Lemon has antibacterial properties, so it can be a great remedy for blackheads and acne. Dip a cotton pad in some lemon juice and apply it just to the problematic areas during the night, then rinse with lots of water in the morning. It will act like an astringent and will dry out your pimples. Don’t use lemon on broken skin, however, since it can burn and damage your skin.
Do you have any other fantastic uses for lemons? Feel free to let us know in the comments!
This article was originally published in the Spanish edition of Aleteia and has been translated and/or adapted here for English speaking readers.
And today we celebrate...