Top 17 Surprising Benefits Of Hot Lemon Water On Health, Skin, And Hair

Updated: 11/19/2019

Lemon is not unusual fruit because of its appearance in every kitchen. They have a sour taste, so we do not usually eat lemon directly. We often cut lemon to decorate the meals, add more flavor to meals or make the lemonade. We all know that lemon water is good for your health, hair, and skin. However, not all of us know all the benefits of lemon water. Therefore, on the True Remedies today, we will help you know more about the benefits of hot lemon water. 

Top 17 Health And Beauty Benefits Of Hot Lemon Water You Should Know

• Top 13 beauty and health benefits of papaya fruit
• Top 13 health and beauty of turmeric
• Top 5 surprising health benefits of passionflower

I. What Is Lemon Water?

Lemon (as called Citrus limon) belongs to the flowering plant family Rutaceae. Its origin is still unknown, but according to many researchers, it comes from South Asia. Its cultivation has existed in Asia for more than 2500 years. It is widely used around the world. The main producing countries are tropical and tempered, especially Mexico, India, and Spain. 

Lemon water can be a mixture of lemon juice and water. If you like, you can add other ingredients into lemon water such as ginger, cucumber, strawberries, honey, or mint.

II. Nutritional Value

Lemon is commonly used all over the world. Like orange, it has a large amount of vitamin C. World’s Healthiest Foods reports that just a quarter cup of lemon juice has 31 percent of the recommended daily intake of vitamin C^[1]. Besides, fat and protein represent a small part in lemon. We can find in 100g raw lemon with peel: 89% water, 29g calories, 1.1g protein, 9.3g carbs, 2.5g sugar, 2.8g fiber, 0.3g fat, 0.01G monounsaturated, 0.09g polyunsaturated, 0.03g omega 3, 0.06g omega 6^[2]. In conclusion, you can see that lemon has a high amount of nutrition, which plays an important role to make us healthy.

III. Benefits And Uses 

With the nutritional value we have mentioned above, which benefits does hot lemon water bring to us? Let’s take a detailed look at the advantages of this superfood on health, skin and hair.

A. On Health

1. Lose Weight

The pectin fiber in lemon can fight against hunger cravings so that you will lose weight faster. Moreover, as stated by a study published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association, drinking 17 ounces of water before breakfast reduces 13 percent of calories consumed 13 percent. Other studies show that plant compounds present in lemon extracts may reduce or prevent weight gain effectively^[3] [4]. 

2. Aid Digestion

By removing the unwanted materials and toxins from the body, lemon water encourages healthy digestion. 

Lemons contain about 10% of carbohydrates, mostly in the form of simple sugars and soluble fiber. The main fiber present in lemons is pectin, which is a form of soluble fiber associated with many health benefits. Soluble fiber is effective at improving gut health and slowing the digestion of starches and sugars^[5] [6]. It further promotes bile production – an acid that is required for digestion and the liver. Moreover, the digestive qualities found in lemon juice are beneficial for relieving the symptoms of indigestion, such as heartburn, belching, and bloating. 

3. Aid Detoxification

According to animal studies, the citric acid present in lemon water helps protect our body from oxidative damage and maintain the liver’s natural ability to detoxify^[7]. Not only the liver but also the body will be kept the ability of detoxification when you drink lemon water regularly. 

4. Prevent Kidney Stones

Kidney stones are a common issue nowadays. It appears when there are small, hard deposits in the kidneys. This problem is annoying because it causes back and abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and blood in the urine. According to a study of Duke University Medical Center, for the patients use lemonade therapy for four years, the kidney stone formation reduces remarkably from nearly one kidney stone down to just 0.13 per year^[8]. The reason is that lemons contain citric acid, which helps increase urine volume^[9] [10].

5. Improve Immunity

Lemon is enriched with vitamin C, which is necessary for immunity protection by fighting against the damage of free radicals. A review out of Switzerland showed that having enough vitamin C may help reduce the severity and duration of the problems related to respiratory such as common cold^[11]. Furthermore, vitamin C can decrease the risk of cardiovascular disease and stroke and lower blood pressure. According to a study published in Stroke, having low vitamin C levels, especially obese men, will have high blood pressure and a higher risk of stroke. Therefore, consume lemon regularly to feel healthy and prevent diseases before they come. 

6. Improve Cardiovascular Health

Lemon contains antioxidants, which may reduce the bad effects coming from toxins and harmful free radicals on your heart and blood vessels^[12] [13]. Plus, the potassium housed in lemon can decrease the mental stress and help the heart muscles relax.

7. Prevent Urinary Tract Infections 

Lemon water is an amazing way to help prevent UTIs and treat some of the symptoms. The natural antibacterial properties in lemon water are beneficial to treat the bacteria inside the bladder^[14].

8. Reduce Uric Acid Levels

Too much uric acid in your body does harm your health because it might make you suffer from swelling, gout attacks, infections, and kidney and bladder stones. Thanks to the potassium and citrate, lemon may help prevent too much uric acid in the body^[15]. Lemon water can be a diuretic, so it removes the unwanted fluid out of the body.

9. Prevent Scurvy 

Scurvy is a disease, which can appear when your body does not have enough vitamin C. As we know, lemon water has high vitamin C content, so consuming lemon water regularly may prevent this problem^[16]. 

10. Prevent Cancer

In lemon, there are a lot of compounds such as D-limonene may help our body to prevent many types of cancer^[17] [18]. That is the reason why you should drink lemon water to ensure the prevention of cancerous cells.

11. Decrease High Blood Pressure 

Vitamin C in lemon can help the blood pressure decrease because it relaxes the blood vessels. According to studies, the patients who consumed 500 percent of the daily requirement of Vitamin C had a 5-millimeter reduction in pressure^[19].

12. Improve Bones

Vitamin C is good for cartilage^[20]. To have strong bones, you should not only focus on the consumption of calcium but also the intake of vitamin C. Therefore, do not forget to take lemon water daily. 

B. On Skin

13. Improve Skin Health

Lemon is rich in natural antioxidants that is helpful to treat the damaging free radicals and remove them out of your body. Lemon also has a lot of vitamin C, which is necessary for healthy skin. Thanks to vitamin C, lemon can repair the damaged skin and reduce fine lines, blemishes, wrinkles, and deep furrows^[21]. A recent study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition indicates that regularly consuming vitamin C helped you have younger-looking skin and reduce wrinkles. Apart from that, drinking lemon water regularly can prevent your skin from the aging process.

14. Clean Skin

Lemon makes your skin become clear and radiant because it can remove the toxic materials from your blood. Therefore, you can avoid the aging process of the skin and age spots.

15. Lighten Acne Scars

Acne, blackheads, and skin infections can go away easily when you consume lemon water daily. In lemon water, there are astringent properties that fade out the facial scars.

C. On Hair

16. Treat Dry Scalp and Dandruff

Thanks to the antioxidants, lemon can be an effective solution to treat dry scalp and dandruff^[22].

17. Promote New Hair

Consuming lemon water usually is an effective way to make the roots and follicles healthy. Lemon water also helps stimulate the hair to grow and help you have strong hair^[23].

IV. Myths And Facts

We use lemon daily, but not almost us know exactly the information around this fruit. These facts that we give you below may surprise you.

– Lemon trees can live over 50 years, up to 100 years if they grow with suitable care and disease prevention

– Lemon trees can give us up to 600 pounds of lemons just in a year 

– Lemon trees can grow up to a height of 20 feet 

– Sprinkling lemon juice on other fruits can avoid the brown color of these fruits

– During the Renaissance, instead of using lipsticks, women used lemon juice as lipstick because it made lips turn red

– There is an annual Lemon Festival celebrated in February and March in Menton on the French Riviera 

– In Morocco, they preserve lemons in jars or barrels of salt. This way can keep the lemon last almost indefinitely

– In the United Kingdom, they add lemon juice on the pancakes, especially on Shrove Tuesday

V. Warning

1. Side Effects

Lemon water is good, but it also has some side effects when being used too much. Therefore, be careful when using hot lemon water and any fruit. 

– Tooth erosion: A study published by the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research shows that consuming too much of lemon juice can lead to tooth erosion because it contains a large amount of acid^[24]. Like the soda, lemon water is rich in acid, so it does harm on your teeth.

However, do not worry if you consume lemon water every morning. Remember to brush your teeth and use floss more regularly. You can also protect your teeth by drinking through a straw.

– Canker sores: If you have the scores in your mouth, lemon water may make them more painful because of the citric acid. Therefore, do not use lemon when you are suffering from the sores. You should consume lemon again after healing the sores completely.

– Nausea and vomiting: Lemon is a great source of vitamin C. Our body needs vitamin C, but too much of this vitamin can lead to nausea and vomiting. 

– Migraine: In a particular migraine diet designed by the Delaware Biotechnology Institute, the experts advise patients to avoid lemon water.

– Frequent urination: Lemon water, especially when it is warm, can work as a diuretic. It helps us flush out excess amounts of electrolytes and sodium through urine, but if this process happens too much, you can become dehydrated. 

– Too much iron in blood: Vitamin C stimulates iron absorption in the body. Having too much iron in the blood can cause serious problems for your body.

– Heartburn and ulcers: Lemon activates an enzyme in the stomach called pepsin that breaks down proteins. The inactive pepsin molecules are activated in the esophagus and throat, which cause heartburn.

Moreover, excessively acidic digestive juices make peptic ulcers worsen. Therefore, if you have peptic ulcers, ask a doctor before using lemon water.

2. Dosage

According to many studies, you should drink hot lemon water every day because of its benefits on health, skin, and hair. However, for each person, the dosage will be different based on the different age, condition, and purpose. 

3. When

Many experts suggest consuming hot lemon water in the morning. According to Autumn Bates, a certified clinical nutritionist and personal trainer, we should take a warm glass of lemon water after we wake up to help to hydrate our body because while we sleep, our body is dehydrated.

4. Combination

It is easy to combine lemon with other ingredients such as honey, ginger, or turmeric. The most common way is the combination of lemon and honey. This mixture can help improve your skin health, aid digestion, improve the immune system, and especially, relieve the throat infections.

5. For Who/ Not For Who

Lemon is natural, so it is safe for most people, including pregnant women. However, people who are allergic to lemon must think twice before using it. Moreover, you should avoid hot lemon water when you have very damaged teeth or a stomach ulcer, otherwise ask the doctor if you still want to consume hot lemon water. For people who have high levels of iron in their blood should ask the doctor for the usage of hot lemon water because this juice can increase your absorption of iron. 

We hope that this post gives you some helpful information about the benefits of hot lemon water. In general, you should consume hot lemon water regularly to improve your health, skin, and hair. Hot lemon water is natural, so it may take a long time for you to see the improvement. All content provided is for educational and informational purposes. We recommend you consult a healthcare professional to determine that you can use hot lemon water or not.

You can leave your comments or questions in the comment box. We are very happy to hear your opinions. 

Read more: Top 11 Proven Treatments For Low Blood Pressure Symptoms. This article was medically reviewed/fact checked by Myle Akshay Kiran.

• Nutrition