The Magic of Lemons - Using Lemons for Health and Beauty

Book excerpt: The Magic of Lemons - Using Lemons for Health and Beauty Table of Contents Introduction How to Grow a Lemon Tree How to Benefit from Lemons Traditional lemon squash (Nimbu pani- lit- lemon water) Asthma relief High Blood Pressure Cantaloupe Remedy Neem Juice Remedy Beetroot/Sugarbeet Remedy Anemia Cure Spinach Remedy Carrot Juice Remedy Pomegranate Horseradish Remedy Spicy Fried Liver Curing a Wound Infection Honey Lemon Juice Cure Sacred Basil Leaves Cure Burns Cure Burn Cure Paste Getting Rid of Burn Scars Rosewater How To Make Rose Water Where Do You Get Fullers Earth? Other Common Uses of Lemons Traditional Lemon Pickles Traditional Lemon Sherbet Traditional Bleaching Cream Lemon cleaner Easy Tips Conclusion Author's bio Introduction Lemon trees are very pretty and the lemon’s flower is sweet/but the fruit of the lemon is impossible to eat./¬ This song was very popular in the 60s and 70s, but the songwriter was wrong. Just not eating a lemon, because it is sour in taste, is going to prevent you from experiencing all the natural benefits of this versatile citrus fruit. Lemons are considered to have originated in Asia, – China and Burma – from where they managed to conquer the world. Christopher Columbus brought lemon seeds back to Europe, from his travels. It thus began to be cultivated in Europe, where before it was a rarity. It was only in the 1740s, that people in the West began to understand that there was some power in the lemons, which prevented sailors from suffering from scurvy and beriberi. They had not heard of vitamins C at that time of course, but sailing tradition spread the word through word of mouth that whenever sailors reached some islands, they had to eat of the fruit and the grasses there. That would prevent their gums from bleeding, pain in the muscles and in the bones and make them feel healthier. These fruits were citrus fruits, including lemons. This cause and effect apparent result made European Navies make it a rule that every ship sailing out of harbor should have a plentiful supply of lemons, green grasses and other citrus fruits to feed to the sailors and the officers, during the voyage. However, lemons have been known since 10 A.D. in Persia, where they were used for beautifying, culinary and medical purposes. Also, their gardens used to have lemon trees, and plenty of their traditional poetry described the lemon flower along with pomegranate flowers as a symbol of beauty and grace. The characteristic sourness of the lemon, is due to the citric acid content in it. That is why lemon juice, as well as its rind and pulp, is used in culinary preparations, all over the world. The whole of the lemon fruit can be used, with the rind ground to add a flavor to special baked dishes. Lemon juice or even the peel of the dried lemon can be used for preparing beauty products and also in natural herbal remedies.