Got Lemon? Slim! Healthy! Sexy!
Got Lemon? Slim! Healthy! Sexy!
45 Uses For Lemons That Will Blow Your Socks Off
Most people are familiar with the traditional uses for lemons to soothe sore throats and add some citrus flavor to our foods. However the diversity of applications for lemons far exceeds general knowledge and once you read the following list, you’ll likely want to stock at least a few lemons in your kitchen 24-7.
1. Freshen the Fridge
Remove refrigerator odors with ease. Dab lemon juice on a cotton ball or sponge and leave it in the fridge for several hours. Make sure to toss out any malodorous items that might be causing the bad smell.
2. High Blood Pressure
Lemon contains potassium which controls high blood pressure and reduces the effect of nausea and dizziness.
3. Prevent Cauliflower From Turning Brown
Cauliflower tend to turn brown with even the slightest cooking. You can make sure the white vegetables stay white by squeezing a teaspoon of fresh lemon juice on them before heating.
4. Mental Health
Lemon water can also prep up your mood and relieve you from depression and stress. Long distance walkers and world travelers as well as explorers look upon the lemon as a Godsend. When fatigue begins, a lemon is sucked through a hole in the top. Quick acting medicine it is, giving almost unbelievable refreshments.
5. Refresh Cutting Boards
No wonder your kitchen cutting board smells! After all, you use it to chop onions, crush garlic, and prepare fish. To get rid of the smell and help sanitize the cutting board, rub it all over with the cut side of half a lemon or wash it in undiluted juice straight from the bottle.
6. Respiratory Problems
Lemon water can reduce phlegm; and can also help you breathe properly and aids a person suffering with asthma.
7. Treating Arthritis and Rheumatism
Lemon is a diuretic – assists in the production of urine which helps you to reduce inflammation by flushing out toxins and bacteria while also giving you relief from arthritis and rheumatism.
8. Prevents Kidney Stones
Regular consumption of the refreshing drink — or even lemon juice mixed with water — may increase the production of urinary citrate, a chemical in the urine that prevents the formation of crystals that may build up into kidney stones.
9. Keep Insects Out of the Kitchen
You don’t need insecticides or ant traps to ant-proof your kitchen. Just give it the lemon treatment. First squirt some lemon juice on door thresholds and windowsills. Then squeeze lemon juice into any holes or cracks where the ants are getting in. Finally, scatter small slices of lemon peel around the outdoor entrance. The ants will get the message that they aren’t welcome. Lemons are also effective against roaches and fleas: Simply mix the juice of 4 lemons (along with the rinds) with 1/2 gallon (2 liters) water and wash your floors with it; then watch the fleas and roaches flee. They hate the smell.
10. Anti-Aging
Lemon water reduces the production of free radicals which are responsible for aging skin and skin damage. Lemon water is calorie free and an antioxidant.
11. Fruit and Vegetable Wash
You never know what kind of pesticides or dirt may be lurking on the skin of your favorite fruits and vegetables. Slice your lemon and squeeze out one tablespoon of lemon juice into your spray bottle. The lemon juice is a natural disinfectant and will leave your fruits and vegetables smelling nice too.
12. Treat Infections
Lemon water can fight throat infections thanks to its antibacterial property. If salt water does not work for you, try lime and water for gargling.
13. Deodorize Your Garbage
If your garbage is beginning to smell yucky, here’s an easy way to deodorize it: Save leftover lemon and orange peels and toss them at the base under the bag. To keep it smelling fresh, repeat once every couple of weeks.
14. Keep Guacamole Green
You’ve been making guacamole all day long for the big party, and you don’t want it to turn brown on top before the guests arrive. The solution: Sprinkle a liberal amount of fresh lemon juice over it and it will stay fresh and green. The flavor of the lemon juice is a natural complement to the avocados in the guacamole. Make the fruit salad hours in advance too. Just squeeze some lemon juice onto the apple slices, and they’ll stay snowy white.
15. Purges The Blood
We consume a lot of junk food or food with a lot of preservatives and artificial flavours. This builds up a lot of toxins in the blood and body but daily consumption of lemon water helps to purify the blood.
16. Make Soggy Lettuce Crisp
Don’t toss that soggy lettuce into the garbage. With the help of a little lemon juice you can toss it in a salad instead. Add the juice of half a lemon to a bowl of cold water. Then put the soggy lettuce in it and refrigerate for 1 hour. Make sure to dry the leaves completely before putting them into salads or sandwiches.
17. Oral Health
Lemon juice also stops bleeding gums and reduces toothaches
18. Lighten Age Spots
Why buy expensive creams when you’ve got lemon juice? To lighten liver spots or freckles, try applying lemon juice directly to the area. Let it sit for 15 minutes and then rinse your skin clean. It’s a safe and effective skin-lightening agent.
19. Create Blonde Highlights
For salon-worthy highlights, add 1/4 cup lemon juice to 3/4 cup water and rinse your hair with the mixture. Then, sit in the sun until your hair dries. To maximize the effect, repeat once daily for up to a week.
20. Make a Room Scent/Humidifier
Freshen and moisturize the air in your home on dry winter days. Make your own room scent that also doubles as a humidifier. If you have a wood-burning stove, place an enameled cast-iron pot or bowl on top, fill with water, and add lemon (and/or orange) peels, cinnamon sticks, cloves, and apple skins. No wood-burning stove? Use your stove top instead and just simmer the water periodically.
21. Clean and Whiten Nails
Pamper your hands without a manicurist. Add the juice of 1/2 lemon to 1 cup warm water and soak your fingertips in the mixture for 5 minutes. After pushing back the cuticles, rub some lemon peel back and forth against the nail.
22. Cleanse Your Face
Zap zits naturally by dabbing lemon juice on blackheads to draw them out during the day. You can also wash your face with lemon juice for a natural cleanse and exfoliation. Your skin should improve after several days of treatment. Lemon water is also a cooling agent, best way to beat the heat.
23. Freshen Your Breath
Make an impromptu mouthwash by rinsing with lemon juice straight from the bottle. Swallow for longer-lasting fresh breath. The citric acid in the juice alters the pH level in your mouth, killing bacteria that causes bad breath. Rinse after a few minutes because long-term exposure to the acid in lemons can harm tooth enamel.
24. Treat Flaky Dandruff
If itchy, scaly dandruff has you scratching your head, relief may be no farther away than your refrigerator. Just massage two tablespoons lemon juice into your scalp and rinse with water. Then stir one teaspoon lemon juice into one cup water and rinse your hair with it. Repeat daily until your dandruff disappears.
25. Get Rid of Tough Stains on Marble
You probably think of marble as stone, but it is really petrified calcium (also known as old seashells). That explains why it is so porous and easily stained and damaged. Those stains can be hard to remove. If washing won’t remove a stubborn stain, try this: Cut a lemon in half, dip the exposed flesh into some table salt, and rub it vigorously on the stain. But do this only as a last resort; acid can damage marble. Rinse well. Use These Lemons To Clean – Easy and Effective
26. Remove Berry Stains
It sure was fun to pick your own berries, but now your fingers are stained with berry juice that won’t come off no matter how much you scrub with soap and water. Try washing your hands with undiluted lemon juice, then wait a few minutes and wash with warm, soapy water. Repeat until your hands are stain-free.
27. Soften Dry, Scaly Elbows
Itchy elbows are bad enough, but they look terrible too. For better looking (and feeling) elbows, mix baking soda and lemon juice to make an abrasive paste, then rub it into your elbows for a soothing, smoothing, and exfoliating treatment. Rinse your extremities in a mixture of equal parts lemon juice and water, then massage with olive oil and dab dry with a soft cloth.
28. Headaches
Lemon juice with a few teaspoons of hot tea added is the treatment of a sophisticated New York bartender, for those who suffer with hangover headaches–and from headaches due to many other causes. He converts his customers to this regime, and weans them away from drug remedies completely.
29. Chills and Fevers
Chills and fevers may be due to a variety of causes; never the less the lemon is always a helpful remedy. Spanish physicians regard it as an infallible friend.
30. Diptheria
Skip the vaccine for this disease. Lemon Juice Treatment still proves as one of the most powerful antiseptics and the strong digestive qualities of the fruit are admired around the world. With the juice every hour or two, and at the same time, 1/2 to 1 tsp. should be swallowed. This cuts loose the false membrane in the throat and permits it to come out.
31. Vaginal Hygiene
Diluted lemon juice makes a safe and sane method of vaginal hygiene. Though it is a powerful antiseptic it is nevertheless free from irritating drugs in douches and suppositories.
32. Forget The Moth Balls
A charming French custom to keep closets free from moths is to take ripe lemons and stick them with cloves all over the skin. The heavily studded lemons slowly dry with their cloves, leaving a marvelous odor throughout the closets and rooms.
33. Stomach Health
Digestive problems are the most common ailments but warm water and lime juice is the solution to most digestive problems. Lemon juice helps to purify the blood, reduces your chances of indigestion, constipation, eliminates toxins from the body, adds digestion and reduces phlegm.
34. Disinfect Cuts and Scrapes
Stop bleeding and disinfect minor cuts and scraps by pouring a few drops of lemon juice directly on the cut. You can also apply the juice with a cotton ball and hold firmly in place for one minute.
35. Soothe Poison Ivy Rash
You won’t need an ocean of calamine lotion the next time poison ivy comes a-creeping. Just apply lemon juice directly to the affected area to soothe itching and alleviate the rash.
36. Remove Warts
You’ve tried countless remedies to banish warts and nothing seems to work. Next time, apply a dab of lemon juice directly to the wart using a cotton swab. Repeat for several days until the acids in the lemon juice dissolve the wart completely.
37. Bleach Delicate Fabrics
Avoid additional bleach stains by swapping ordinary household chlorine bleach with lemon juice, which is milder but no less effective. Soak your delicates in a mixture of lemon juice and baking soda for at least half an hour before washing.
38. Clean Tarnished Brass and Polish Chrome
Say good-bye to tarnish on brass, copper, or stainless steel. Make a paste of lemon juice and salt (or substitute baking soda or cream of tartar for the salt) and coat the affected area. Let it stay on for 5 minutes. Then wash in warm water, rinse, and polish dry. Use the same mixture to clean metal kitchen sinks too. Apply the paste, scrub gently, and rinse. Get rid of mineral deposits and polish chrome faucets and other tarnished chrome. Simply rub lemon rind over the chrome and watch it shine! Rinse well and dry with a soft cloth.
39. Replace Your Dry Cleaner
Ditch the expensive dry-cleaning bills (and harsh chemicals) with this homegrown trick. Simply scrub the stained area on shirts and blouses with equal parts lemon juice and water. Your “pits” will be good as new, and smell nice too.
40. Boost Laundry Detergent
For more powerful cleaning action, pour 1 cup lemon juice into the washer during the wash cycle. The natural bleaching action of the juice will zap stains and remove rust and mineral discolorations from cotton T-shirts and briefs and will leave your clothes smelling fresh. Your clothes will turn out brighter and also come out smelling lemon-fresh.
41. Rid Clothes of Mildew
Have you ever unpacked clothes you stored all winter and discovered some are stained with mildew? To get rid of it, make a paste of lemon juice and salt and rub it on the affected area, then dry the clothes in sunlight. Repeat the process until the stain is gone.
42. Eliminate Fireplace Odor
There’s nothing cozier on a cold winter night than a warm fire burning in the fireplace — unless the fire happens to smell horrible. Next time you have a fire that sends a stench into the room, try throwing a few lemon peels into the flames. Or simply burn some lemon peels along with your firewood as a preventive measure.
43. Neutralize Cat-Box Odor
You don’t have to use an aerosol spray to neutralize foul-smelling cat-box odors or freshen the air in your bathroom. Just cut a couple of lemons in half. Then place them, cut side up, in a dish in the room, and the air will soon smell lemon-fresh.
44. Deodorize a Humidifier
When your humidifier starts to smell funky, deodorize it with ease: Just pour 3 or 4 teaspoons lemon juice into the water. It will not only remove the off odor but will replace it with a lemon-fresh fragrance. Repeat every couple of weeks to keep the odor from returning.
45. Reduce Asthma Symptoms
In addition to a general detoxifying diet, 2 tablespoons of lemon juice before each meal, and before retiring can reduce asthma symptoms.
* If you do consume lemon peel, stick to organic lemons to reduce your pesticide exposure.
John Summerly is nutritionist, herbologist, and homeopathic practitioner. He is a leader in the natural health community and consults athletes, executives and most of all parents of children on the benefits of complementary therapies for health and prevention.
Terry Ryan is a blogger, health enthusiast, and CEO at www.slimhealthysexy.com
Read more: http://www.trueactivist.com/45-uses-for-lemons-that-will-blow-your-socks-off/
Oranges…Super Food!
Oranges possess over 60 different flavonoids, making them a nutritious fruit to eat o a daily basis. Immensely rich in hesperidin and naringin, oranges are emerging as a weapon for boosting eye health, fighting heart disease, preventing kidney stones and enhancing immunity.
Orange History
While oranges are widely available and fairly inexpensive today, they were once considered a prized luxury before the 20th century. The orange originated in Asia thousands of years ago9 with the most common types bitter and sweet. The later became popular across Europe in the 15th century before Spanish explorers brought it to Florida and California, currently two of the largest US producers of the citrus fruit. Other major world producers include Brazil, Mexico, and Isreal.
Boosting Eye Health
Glaucoma is a long-term visual neuropathy defined by structural abnormalties
is the nerve fibers of eye structures as wall as the optic nerve itself. It can result in permanent vision loss if left untreated. A wealth of carotoids, including lutein and beta-cryptoxanthin, alond with vitamin C make oranges well-equipped to protect against this often symptomless disease. In one study, researchers at the University of California revealed that those consuming more than two servings of fresh oranges per week produced an 82% reduction in glaucoma rish compared to those who ingested less than one serving per week.
A recent study published in the Journal of Neuroscience suggests that vitamin C in oranges might be largely responsible for this powerful protective effect. Retinal nerve cells contain GABA receptors, which help modulate their transmission of electrical signals to the brain. Without sufficient amounts of the vitamin, GABA receptors malfunction, causing retinal nerves cells to fire signals at an excessive rate. This constant workload causes nerve cells death. Vitamin C rich 
oranges allow GABA receptors to function properly, thereby protecting against the loss of retinal nerve cells and preserving vision.
Along with glaucoma, a greater intake of oranges shows promise in defending against age-related macular degeneration, the most common cause of vision loss in individuals over the age of 50. Researchers analyze data from more than 118k adults between the ages of 30 – 55 regarding fruit and vegetable intake over an 189 year period. They found that those who ate three or more servings of oranges per week had a 39% lower risk of age-related macular degeneration than those who consume less than two servings per month.
Source: Life Extension Magazine June 2013 Issue www.let.org
Source: http://www.bubblews.com/news/1393159-why-we-should-eat-more-oranges
If you would like to join the Joy of Juicing, please check out this course.Click Here!
Do You Have a Healthy Alkaline Body?
Healthy blood has a pH level of 7.35 I’m sure you have heard there is a difference between an alkaline body and an acidic body? The theory is that an acidic body’s support inflammation and even cancer, while a alkaline body is a healthy body that fends of disease. Most people are clueless about the impact of food on our body’s pH level. The foods that we eat can have an acidic or alkalizing effect on our body’s pH level. So, how do you find out if you are supporting an alkaline (good) or an acidic body (bad).
Eat Raw
One way is with PH strips that you can easily find at your local pharmacy, The human body should have a neutral pH level of about 7.0, but most people have low, or acidic, pH levels. This condition is referred to as acidosis, and it is damaging to your cells and a serious health risk in the long run. PH Test Strips enable you to quickly and easily test your pH levels using your saliva or urine. This critical health information will enable you to adjust your diet and use specific supplements to boost your pH levels to a healthy range.
Usage Instructions for pH Test Strips
For External Use Only To test saliva: Wait 2 hours after eating. Spit into a spoon. Dip the strip. Read in 15 seconds. Results: Use the color chart to determine pH level. An optimal reading is 7.0 to 7.5. This indicates a slightly alkaline body which is normal. To test urine: Do not test with the first urine of the day. Briefly place the strip into paper cup with your urine sample for 30 to 45 seconds. Shake excess fluid. Read in 15 seconds. Results: Use color chart for to determine pH level. A reading of 7.4 is normal. A reading of 6.5 acidic. Note: Urine is slightly more acidic than saliva; a normal reading is 6.5 to 7.4.
Step 1 – Buy pH Test Strips
Buy pH Test Strips. You can buy them at the health store or pharmacy or order them here CLICK
Step 2- Test your urine. You need to pee on the pH test strip. The color will change.
Compare this color with the color of the pH on the test strip box. Read the PH number.
Step 3 – Write Down the pH number.
Write down the pH number, the date and time. (you’re going to want the average for the week)
Step 5 – Daily pH Testing
You may note that every time you go the bathroom the pH number is different. When you’re healthy the number will always be around 7.3 or even up to 8 just after eating. The first urine of the day is usually the lowest.
Step 6 – How Healthy are You?
If the pH of your urine is mostly around 7.3 you’re fine. If the pH of your urine is lower, especially if it’s below 6.5 this means you don’t have sufficient alkaline reserves to buffer acids. You are short in minerals such as sodium, potassium, magnesium and calcium.
Step 7 – Get Healthy – Get Alkaline!
Add alkaline foods into your diet and eat less acid food. Eat more raw green leafy vegetables and less food high in animal protein, sugar and grains.
Do not eat this
Eat more avocados, vegetable soup, fresh almond milk, young coconut water, wheat grass, green powder, green vegetable juices, smoothies, seaweed and super foods. Here you can view a full list of alkaline foods . Keep testing a few times a day until you always test alkaline. It’s the best motivation for eating raw food! The pH of your blood is tightly regulated by a complex system of buffers that are continuously at work to maintain a range of 7.35 to 7.45, which is slightly more alkaline than pure water. If the pH of your blood falls below 7.35, the result is a condition called acidosis, a state that leads to central nervous system depression. Severe acidosis – where blood pH falls below 7.00 – can lead to a coma and even death. (Complete list of alkaline foods here alkalifoodlist ) If the pH of your blood rises above 7.45, the result is alkalosis. Severe alkalosis can also lead to death, but through a different mechanism; alkalosis causes all of the nerves in your body to become hypersensitive and over-excitable, often resulting in muscle spasms, nervousness, and convulsions; it’s usually the convulsions that cause death in severe cases. When you ingest foods and liquids, the end products of digestion and assimilation of nutrients often results in an acid or alkaline-forming effect – the end products are sometimes called acid ash or alkaline ash. There are two main forces at work on a daily basis that can disrupt the pH of your body fluids – these forces are the acid or alkaline-forming effects of foods and liquids that you ingest, and the acids that you generate through regular metabolic activities. Fortunately, your body has three major mechanisms at work at all times to prevent these forces from shifting the pH of your blood outside of the 7.35 to 7.45 range. You can imagine these 3 major mechanisms as buffering systems to keep your pH in balance. When people encourage you to “alkalize your blood,” most of them mean that you should eat plenty of foods that have an alkaline-forming effect on your system.
The reason for making this suggestion is that the vast majority of highly processed foods – like white flour products and white sugar – have an acid-forming effect on your system, and if you spend years eating a poor diet that is mainly acid-forming, you will overwork some of the buffering systems mentioned above to a point where you could create undesirable changes in your health. For example, your phosphate buffer system uses different phosphate ions in your body to neutralize strong acids and bases. About 85% of the phosphate ions that are used in your phosphate buffer system comes from calcium phosphate salts, which are structural components of your bones and teeth. If your body fluids are regularly exposed to large quantities of acid-forming foods and liquids, your body will draw upon its calcium phosphate reserves to supply your phosphate buffer system to neutralize the acid-forming effects of your diet. Over time, this may lead to structural weakness in your bones and teeth. Have you heard of osteoporosis? Drawing on your calcium phosphate reserves at a high rate can also increase the amount of calcium that is eliminated via your genito-urinary system, which is why a predominantly acid-forming diet can increase your risk of developing calcium-rich kidney stones. This is just one example of how your buffering systems can be overtaxed to a point where you experience negative health consequences. Since your buffering systems have to work all the time anyway to neutralize the acids that are formed from everyday metabolic activities, it’s in your best interest to follow a diet that doesn’t create unnecessary work for your buffering systems. That is why it is extremely important to maintain the acid alkaline balance of your body in order to stay healthy and keep yourself free of diseases and illnesses. The easiest way to keep your body in a healthy, alkaline state is to eat raw foods and juicing is the easiest way to do that. Think raw and green. By the way, I just went to the doctor’s yesterday and my blood pressure was 110/70! (I take no blood pressure pills) I give credit to juicing. Here are some great ways to juice:
Juicing For Weight Loss
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The End of The 30 Day Juice Challenge
I have completed the 30 Day Juice Challenge and wanted to give you my personal review.
It wasn’t hard and became routine so I give it a 10 on the easy scale. Let me add that I work from home so it is easy for me to prep and prepare juicing at my leisure. It would be much harder for a person who has a 9-5 job to prepare for juicing.
As far as taste, it is something you will get used to. It only took me a couple of times to look forward to the juice. I also flavored it up with apples and ginger. After that even kale is pretty yummy. Who would of thought?
I didn’t find the cost prohibitive. I buy lots of produce every week anyway so this wasn’t a new area for me. Previously to my juicing challenge I tried to get as much organic as possible so I was already on the right track.
My disappointment was with the weight loss which was only a couple of pounds even though I was using once a day juicing as a meal replacement and gave up sugar and gluten. I did lose a few pounds but not the 20 I was hoping for. (sigh)
I felt fine but never got the “I feel like I have the energy of a 20 year-old.” Nope! It didn’t happen. I 
would say my energy level only increase a tiny bit. That for me was my biggest disappointment.
The best benefit was my skin became flawless and glowed, so I at least looked better. I no longer craved sugar or processed carbs. My taste buds now desired a higher grade of eating.
So, what I learned:
I may have to juice 100% everyday to get the full benefits that Joe Cross brags about on Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead.
I am using the wrong juicer. I am using a cheap juice extractor and that doesn’t get the most juice out of the veggies and it heats the foods up destroying enzines and nutrients. See my post on Juicing vs. Blending.
Will I continue juicing? Yes, I will but not so dedicated. To complete my experiment, I am going to try juicing 100% for 7 days to see if I get WEIGHT LOSS and FANTASTIC ENERGY, but not right now. I need a break. I was doing Holy Juicing for Lent but I think I lost my followers who were doing it with me. Yes, it’s hard.
One thing I am sticking to is giving up white sugar and process foods. Yuck. And breads with
8 oz a day.
gluten. Bread just doesn’t agree with me anymore. Of course they are now putting all kinds of disgusting and dangerous chemicals in bread. All to keep it on the shelf longer and to make more money. No problem, there are tons of breads in the freezer section at the store that are gluten free and I have a great recipe for almond bread.
There you go. My review of the 30 Day Juicing Challenge.
D5 Creation