Lemon Juice and Olive Oil: Beneficial Health Aspects

Olives

Olive oil and lemon juice are common ingredients in many cuisines, particularly those of the Mediterranean and Levant. Some claim that combining olive oil and lemon juice can treat a variety of ailments, including gallstones, joint pain, and premature aging. Furthermore, studies have been conducted to investigate the potential health benefits of nutrients found in olive oil and lemon juice separately.

How Olive Oil is Beneficial?

Olive oil is extracted by squeezing the oil from ripe olive fruits using various techniques such as pressure and centrifugation. The highest quality olive oil is extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO).

EVOO contains about 73% oleic acid, a heart-healthy monounsaturated fatty acid (MUFA). It also contains a lot of vitamins E and K.  Another appealing feature of olive oil is its high concentration of natural compounds known as polyphenols. These are potent antioxidants that cleanse your body of harmful compounds known as free radicals, thereby protecting you from oxidative stress.

Olive oil is a key component of the Mediterranean diet, which is widely regarded as one of the healthiest diets in the world. Extra virgin olive oil, in particular, is high in nutrients. According to researchers, this golden liquid lowers cholesterol levels and lowers your risk of heart disease by lowering blood pressure. When your blood pressure drops, so do your chances of having a stroke or heart attack.

Components of Olive Oil

Furthermore, olive oil contains monounsaturated oleic acid, a type of healthy fatty acid. This acid is beneficial in a variety of ways, and olive oil is high in it! It can even lower inflammation levels, reducing swelling and soreness in arthritic joints.

And scientists are currently investigating whether olive oil reduces your risk of cancer; preliminary findings indicate that it does. It also contains a lot of antioxidants, which are powerful molecules that fight free radicals.

Last but not least, olive oil is beneficial to your mental health. According to one promising study, olive oil works hard to protect your memory by reducing bad proteins that accumulate in the brain and are partly responsible for Alzheimer’s. More research is needed, but all indications point to olive oil consumption helping to prevent dementia. What could be better than a tasty oil that protects your brain as you age?

olive oil

How Lemon Juice is Beneficial?

Lemon juice is the sour liquid extracted from lemons. It is a citrus fruit native to the Mediterranean that belongs to the Rutaceae plant family.

It is high in antioxidants, particularly vitamin C. Lemons also contain flavonoids, which have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.

Vitamins are the source of nutrition in lemon. Lemons are high in vitamins C, B, and others, as well as magnesium, thiamine, flavonoids, and potassium, according to the USDA National Nutrient Database. Lemons are also high in antioxidants, which aid in the fight against free radicals, which contribute to the development of cancer cells. All of these potent nutrients work together to provide numerous health benefits, just like olive oil.

Foods with Vitamins

There’s more good news. Foods high in vitamins and antioxidants may help to boost your immune system. This part of your body fights colds and flu, so the stronger and more resilient your immune system is, the better! According to one study, vitamin C helps fight colds by reducing the amount of time they spend in your body.

For example, instead of being sick for eight days with a bad cold, if you consume vitamin C regularly, you may only be sick for four or five. That’s a significant improvement, and a lot less time out of commission, right? If you’re into fitness and do a lot of cardio daily, vitamin C may help your endurance. As previously stated, there is much to praise about lemons!

Another benefit of lemons is that they aid digestion. Your body works hard to digest and break down all of the foods you enjoy. Lemons have carbs, fiber, and soluble sugar in their nutritional profile, so they promote gut health by slowing digestion. This, in turn, frees up your digestive tract, allowing blood sugar levels to gradually stabilize.

Lemon oil

A combination use of olive and lemon can help in cleansing

A quick online search will yield a plethora of concoctions claiming to cleanse and detoxify using lemon juice, olive oil, or a combination of the two.

Cleanses and detoxes are intended to flush out waste and toxins that have accumulated in your body over time. There do not appear to be many studies on whether lemon juice and olive oil can help cleanse or detoxify the body.

The researchers discovered that people who consumed olive oil during the study period had lower levels of LDL (bad) cholesterol and higher levels of HDL (good) cholesterol in their blood when compared to people who consumed other types of fat.

In our search for high-quality research, no studies found that consuming olive oil helps with digestion. The antioxidants and polyphenols in olive oil and lemon juice, on the other hand, described as “cleansing” in the sense that they neutralize or “clean up” harmful radicals/ions. That could otherwise be cell damaging and may contribute to illness and disease.

I recommend eating a varied diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, legumes, nuts, seeds, and lean protein sources to help your body function at its best.

Weight Loss Plan

Specific components of lemon juice and olive oil, such as vitamin C in lemon juice and MUFAs in olive oil. They have shown results for weight management.

Vitamin C is abundant in lemon juice. A 3-ounce (100-gram) serving contains 38.7 mg, which accounts for 43% of the RDA for men and 52% of the RDA for women.

Vitamin C is a necessary component in the human body for the production of carnitine.

Carnitine is a substance that transports fat molecules into cells, for energy production. As a result, inadequate vitamin C intake may result in decreased fat breakdown.

Another study gave higher weight mice ascorbic acid (vitamin C) and fed them a high-fat diet for 15 weeks. The mice gained less body fat and showed other signs of improved health when compared to mice fed a high-fat diet but not given vitamin C.

Kidney and Gallstones Removal

Your dietary habits can have a significant impact on the formation of kidney stones and gallstones. These conditions are known to be exacerbated by a lack of vitamin C and a high intake of saturated fats.

Gallstones are cholesterol and digestive fluid deposits that form in the gallbladder. You may or may not experience any symptoms depending on the size and location of the gallstones.

According to some sources, some people use a combination of lemon juice and olive oil as a folk remedy to promote the gallstone movement. There is, however, no research to back up this claim.

Many healthy eating guidelines exist to help prevent gallstones, including the recommendation to consume healthy fats like olive oil. Some evidence suggests that eating healthy fats like olive oil may help prevent gallstones by regularly contracting and emptying the gallbladder.

A lack of vitamin C has also been linked to an increased risk of developing gallstones. Vitamin C may inhibit the crystallization of cholesterol by converting it to bile acids, thereby preventing the formation of gallstones.

One large but older study from 2000 discovered that every 27 micromol/L increase in ascorbic acid (vitamin C) in the blood resulted in a 13% decrease in gallstone formation in women aged 20 to 74.

Effect of the Combination of Olive Oil and Lemon Juice at Night before Bed

  • The combination of olive oil and lemon improves digestive motility. It is effective in treating constipation. As a result, it is one of the most important recipes for softening the stomach and eliminating indigestion.
  • The mixture has a high concentration of antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals. In addition, unsaturated fatty acids help to boost and strengthen the immune system.
  • Drinking them helps to prevent liver problems and, in particular, helps to treat hepatitis C. It prevents the epidemic virus from spreading to other parts of the body.
  • Helps with the treatment of infections and stomach ulcers. It also aids in the strengthening of the digestive system. To alleviate the bitter taste of the olive oil and lemon drink, drink a full glass of water afterward.
  • Aids in the reduction of harmful cholesterol in the blood. As a result, it lowers the risk of heart disease, clogged arteries, and stroke.
  • Olive oil contains a fatty acid called oleic acid. This contributes to the process of fat-burning and weight loss. It also works to satisfy the appetite and alleviate the sensation of hunger.
  • Combating the appearance of wrinkles and early signs of aging on the skin. Expressive lines, especially as one gets older. It also gives the skin a more aesthetic, lively, and youthful appearance, as well as increasing its luster.

See Also: Dietary Fiber: Essential for Healthy Life, Vitamin C Benefits

Source:

  1. Siyu Liu, Shiming Li, Chi-Tang Ho, Dietary bioactives and essential oils of lemon and lime fruits, Food Science and Human Wellness,
    Volume 11, Issue 4, 2022,Pages 753-764.
  2. Abdel-Gayoum A. A., Al-Hassan A. A., Ginawi I. A., Alshankyty I. M. (2015). The Ameliorative Effects of virgin Olive Oil and Olive Leaf Extract on Amikacin-Induced Nephrotoxicity in the Rat. Toxicol. Rep. 2, 1327–1333.
  3. Berrougui H., Ikhlef S., Khalil A. (2015). Extra virgin Olive Oil Polyphenols Promote Cholesterol Efflux and Improve HDL Functionality. Evidence-Based Complement. Altern. Med.


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