Photo by Anna Petrow

When life gives you lemons, celebrate! This gorgeous citrus might make you pucker, but the many great qualities of lemons make them fruit’s answer to turmeric. Lemon’s skill set reads as the ultimate cleaning crew. Little too much mucus? Lemon can help! Feeling a little bloated? Lemon is here! Working on digesting a heavy and oily meal? Lemon, lemon, lemon!

Lemons can be categorized as a carminative, or an herb that is good at relieving gas, but they do much more than that for your digestion. Their sour taste makes them a great digestive aid, yet unlike other sour or acidic foods, they are alkalizing in the body. Lemon also aids in breaking down fats, acting as bile’s partner in crime. It helps to thin bile, which is responsible for the absorption of fat in the small intestine, making it easier to eliminate toxins. This is why hot water with lemon makes a great morning tonic. Starting your day with something that supports your digestive system will earn you major Ayurvedic points, especially if it is also fosters the best pH for your body.

So, yeah. Basically what I’m saying is that you need to raise the prices at your lemonade stand. And in the meantime, here are some super simple ways to use lemon:

• Hot water with lemon in the morning as a digestive aid
• Hot ginger tea with lemon and honey to help clear congestion
• Squeeze of lemon juice with the tiniest pinch of salt as a pre-meal digestive, 30 minutes before you eat
• Lemon and salt to help clean your sink and your copper cups (you are drinking from copper, right?)