Different Ways To Use Lemon That You May Have Never Heard Of
Lemon is a pretty solid staple in the kitchen. On top of being a great aid in cooking, the fresh smell of lemon has made it a popular scent for cleaning products. But did you know that you could just skip the cleaning products altogether and use lemon instead? Lemons have a variety of uses for your home and self. Beyond being a great ingredient, the zesty fruit can provide a natural and inexpensive alternative to products you may not even need. Here's a list of examples.
Household Cleaner
The acidity in lemon makes it a reliable way to kill bacteria. For homes with little ones running around, finding a cleaning product that gets the job does without potentially causing harm is imperative. Babies put their mouths on everything, so having a clean but nontoxic substance to use on lower surfaces is helpful.
One idea to make a full-proof cleaning aid is to squeeze a lemon over a cloth. Add a little white vinegar and you have the perfect dusting tool.
Give Yourself Lighter Locks
Many woman fancy that their hair attains natural highlights from being in the sun. This actually occurs because the sun has opened up and damaged the strands of hair. Lemon juice contains citric acid, which chemically reacts with the sun and speeds up this hair damage.
The effect is lighter, bleached hair. The damage done is similar to what highlights at a salon do. You might as well save the hundreds of dollars and achieve highlights the natural way.
Clean Your Hands Without The Chemical Smell
The acidity in lemon makes them great cleaners, and also works on your hands. Hand sanitizers can be harsh on the skin and dry out your hands easily. Lemons are natural, and can thus spare you the chemically smell and taste that can ruin a good meal you just cleaned your hands for.
While you'll still want to avoid cuts or cracked skin when applying lemon juice to your hands, the alternative will leave you feeling even fresher.
Guests Will Prefer This Option
Lemon can be used in a wide variety of sweets and adds a touch of zing to any sweet recipe. For those who are easily turned off my rich sweets, lemons can balance out sweet treats with a citrusy effect that sugar despisers won't be able to resist.
Lemon pastries also offer a great snack when guests are over that isn't too messy or overwhelming. Opposed to dark pastries like blueberry scones, which can stain your mouth, lemons are a light and refreshing option for any occasion.
Slim Down Without Sacrificing Taste
It can be hard to go from eating greesy, high caloric foods to eating salad and vegetables when you first start a diet. You're body still craves the rich flavors it's used to enjoying. To help ease the transition, it's a smart idea to keep some lemons around.
Lemons can be added to water to help keep your taste buds happy without reaching for a sugary drink. They are also great to put on various foods, such as fruit and vegetables, which otherwise might seem bland.
Save On The Salad Dressing
While lemon juice is obviously a less caloric food than most salad dressing, it also can be a much healthier choice and far less expensive. Many salad dressings contain a plethora of ingredients that aren't the best for you.
Additionally, salad dressing can be full of preservatives, sugar, and unhealthy fats. Lemons are high in vitamins, and low in just about everything else. Their moisture and taste will give the feel of a salad dressing, without the sacrifice of health and money.
Brighten Up The House
Yellow is a happy color, but not everyone wants to lather their walls in yellow paint. Keeping a bowl of lemons on the dining room table or the kitchen counter can really bring some color into any space. The subtle hue will add a touch of light without commanding the room.
Lemons, like most fruits, will fit in with any decor. The extra plus with lemons, though, is that they don't just appeal to the eyes, but their pleasant fragrance appeals to the nose, as well.
Freshen Up Your Garbage Can
Sometimes the trash starts to smell up the house before it's even near full. In order to save on garbage liners, you could try peeling a lemon and throwing the peels in there to see if it covers up whatever is causing a stink.
If the smell does persist, odds are it's going to linger even after you take out the trash. To quicken the process of getting the can back to a neutral smell, you can put lemon peels in after the trash has been taken out, or simply make a habit of throwing in a few with every new liner.
Embellish Your Spices And Kick The Condiments
Certain chefs become offended when a diner asks for condiments because the idea is that the preparation should be perfectly satisfying as it is. Particularly when it comes to preparing raw meat, it can be a challenge to get the taste just right without smothering it in bbq or tartar sauce.
Lemon juice not only adds its own citrusy taste, but it also embellished the spices and moisturizes the meat. When you have more flavor, without the cost of added sugar, you're more likely to savor the food, giving your body time to process what it's eaten and signal to your brain when it's full.
Save The Guac!
Guacamole can be a delicious addition at parties, or just to your dinner plate. What's not so delicious about it is how quickly is goes brown when leftout. The simple solution is to squeeze lemon juice over the top, which is a natural preservative that will prevent it from browning.
Likewise, you can apply lemon juice to sliced apples that are being saved for later, or any other food item that may discolor before being eaten.
Ease A Sore Throat
Lemon juice, like salt and honey, help break down mucus which can aid in calming a sore throat. The three are also effective as prohibiting bacteria growth. The best thing to do for a sore throat is to drink some warm herbal tea or water.
Stir in honey and lemon juice, and you have a perfect beverage to aid a cold. Every so often gargle some salt water to give your throat an extra defense, then return to the honey and lemon to get the salty taste out of your mouth.
Don't Be Afraid To Open Your Fridge
Particularly after something has spoiled, or clashing leftovers have mixed their aromas, the refrigerator can become a haven for strong smells. Typically when you open the fridge it's to find something to eat, but your appetite can quickly spoil if a bad smell comes rushing out.
Similar to baking soda, keeping a sliced lemon wedge in the fridge can help maintain a fresh atmosphere when the door is closed. Additionally, lemon juice is a perfect alternative to clean the interior of the fridge without putting chemicals in the place you store your food.
Lemon Cubes
Another fun way to spice things up is to fill up an ice tray with lemon juice. Many people enjoy putting lemon wedges in their ice water, but making the cubes out of lemon juice does two jobs at once. This way you won't need to add more wedges in.
Your drink will maintain a subtle lemon flavor as you sip and refill your glass. Plus, the acid in lemon can help you digest food better, so accompanying a meal with a lemony drink is a great idea.
Spoof Up Your Garbage Disposal
The garbage disposal is a lifesaver and all, but sometimes it can result in some strange smells. Though the water should, in theory, wash everything down, food particles can remain and get blended up into a smelly disaster.
The cure is simple. Just freeze some white vinegar and lemon chucks in an ice cube tray. Remove the cubes when frozen and dump them into the disposal to grind up. The ice will sharpen the disposal's blade, white the lemon and vinegar will give it all a good clean, and leave a pleasant smell behind.
Make Your Summer Even More Refreshing
Lounging by the pool in the summertime, few things sound better than an ice-cold lemonade. One of those things is a spiked ice-cold lemonade. In fact, lemons add zest to just about any cocktail.
If you want to really get crazy with it, you could add lemon ice cubes to whatever alcoholic beverage you're drinking. The cubes will add taste to the drink as they melt, rather than simply diluting the drink altogether.
Rule Over The Ants In Your Home
Ants can be extremely aggravating, especially in hotter months when bugs typically aim to find solace in air conditioned homes, or smell food that's become pungent due to the heat. In order to get rid of the pesky guys, it becomes necessary to put out something that will show them whose boss.
Many people resolve to using bug spray. However, the smell isn't very preferable and screams to guests that you have a bug problem. It also isn't the healthiest choice. Instead, lemon juice is acidic enough to take those ants down.
Use Your Cutting Board With Confidence
As much as we might know that the cutting board is clean because we literally just washed it, there can be something daunting about chopping up food over a stained cutting board. While you may have thought no tactic could beat the dishwasher, there is one.
Simply cut a lemon in half and squeeze the juice over the cutting board. Then used the half lemon to scrub the juice into the board. Take it outside and let it soak in the sun all day. Bring the board back in and wash it with soap. The results should be a renewed, clean cutting board.
Say Goodbye To Inflammation
Three common kitchen ingredients, lemon, salt, and pepper, are a mixture people didn't know they needed in their life.
In fact, when these three things are combined, they are known to relieve a person of both pain and inflammation. Not to mention, lemons also supply antiviral and immune-building properties. All a person has to do is take a lemon, add a pinch of both slat and pepper, and consume. Or, feel free to mix the lemon juice in with water and add the salt and pepper that way!
Get A Better Night's Sleep!
It might sound weird, but there are many benefits to placing a cut lemon next to your bed at night. First, the fruit opens up airways, allowing a person to breathe better and fall asleep easier.
On top of that, the scent of lemons lowers blood pressure and improves mood stability, all of which will help a person get a better night's rest. In fact, people who have trouble sleeping through the night should try this hack out for size!
Get Rid Of Pesky Microwave Grease Stains
Lemon is a great way to get rid of pesky and hard-to-scrub grease stains in a microwave. Just place a lemon in the microwave to make it soft, squeeze out some of the juice, dip a towel in the liquid, and scrub away!
Also, microwaving lemons is a great way to get the most out of the juice!
Keep The Insects Away With Lemon!
Insect repellent can smell nasty, be full of strange chemicals, and just can be intrusive overall. Lemons provide a great alternative to burning insect repellent candles.
Simply cut a lemon in half and stick cloves in both sides. Place it in the area where you're sitting for optimal results.
Restore Your Gut Health
If you're looking for a healthy drink that isn't loaded with a bunch of chemicals that wreak havoc on your gut, then reach for your lemons.
Every morning have a cup of hot water, honey, and lemon. It's a great and healthy way to start your day and keep your gut balanced.
Don't Stress Over The Tough Grime
Most dish detergents swear to be tough on oil and grime. However, sometimes it just takes some elbow grease to really get something out. The citric acid in lemon juice is a great choice when it comes to caked-on food.
Rather than spend all night scrubbing, just put your dishes to soak with some lemon water and vinegar. The agents in the acid will not only help the food particles dissolve, but they'll also help in getting tough stains out. And if you still aren't satisfying, you can always use the cutting board trick on other dishes.
Restore Your Youthful-Looking Skin
These days, there is so much gunk people are trying to sell to cure different skin ailments that it's hard to know what products to trust, and what products are bound to just drain your wallet. For those who are worried about dark sun spots, the solution may be simpler than you thought.
Simply apply lemon juice to your face with a cotton ball for ten minutes twice a day. If your skin is sensitive, consider diluting the juice with water. Like your hair, the lemon juice will bleach out the skin, lightening dark spots.
Freshen Up Your Produce
More and more people are becoming concerned about the cleanliness of their produce, especially with organic foods on the rise. Regardless of your preference, there's always the threat that several hands in the market touched your produce before you did.
One of the best ways to thoroughly wash off produce is by using lemon juice. The acidity will kill bacteria, but the juice itself is harmless to ingest. Now you can clean off your produce without having to worry about what you cleaned it with.
A Home Remedy For Ear Infections
Nothing is more irritating and distracting than an ear infection. If you're not quite ready to see a doctor for it, I couldn't hurt to potentially try a home remedy.
Mix a bit of lemon juice with warm, not hot, water and add a few drops to your ear. The antibacterial properties of lemon should help clear up the infection.
Brighten Up Those Whites
Using bleach to whiten clothes can be harmful and dangerous. If you're looking for a safer option then look no farther than a lemon!
Mix a solution of baking soda, hot water, and lemon and pour that on your clothes in the washing machine. Let that sit for 30 minutes and then run the machine.
Get Your Nails Looking Fresh And Clean
Even our nails sometimes need a little love beyond washing our hands. If your nails are looking a little grimy and unkept, turn to the mighty lemon.
Grab a bowl you can comfortably submerge your nails into, and then pour a bit of warm water mixed with lemon juice over top. Let those puppies soak for a few minutes for a quick and easy natural refresh.
Scrub Those Stainless Steel Pans
Our pots and pans take a beating every day. But if you're tired at looking at those ruddy and half-burnt brown edges on your stainless steel cookery, then all you need is a lemon and a bit of baking soda.
Start by making a paste out of the lemon and baking soda, then apply a little elbow grease to scrub the pots. After a little work, they'll look brand new again!
Brighten Up Armpit Spots
We're all self-conscious about something. If that something is the hue of the skin on your armpits, then you're certainly not alone. It's completely normal to have different color patches of skin all over your body. But if you want to address it in a safe and natural way that's non-drastic and non-permanent, then lemon could be the answer.
Everyday if you rub the raw edge of a cut-up lemon on your armpit, you should see a difference in about a week.
Clean Produce
Lemon is anti-bacterial, so if you want a great way to help wash fruits and veggies after bringing them home, then lemon juice is the answer.
After washing the fruits and vegetables with warm water and rinsing them, put lemon juice in a spray bottle and spritz the produce. This'll help get rid of any errant bacteria you missed and help keep the produce fresh.
Stop Soggy Lettuce!
Lettuce is one of those things that we always get so much of when we go to the store, but we never seem to eat it all before it starts to go soggy.
Perk up those soggy leaves by grabbing a bowl of cold water, squeezing lemon into it, and then letting the lettuce leaves soak in there for about an hour. This will safely and surely save those wilted leaves.
Stinky Shoes Meet Lemon!
We've all heard of sticking dryer sheets in stinky shoes to stop the odor, but what if you don't have a dryer sheet?
Simply peel a lemon and stick the peels in the shoes. Those odor goblins will be gone by the morning.
