More Citrus Please!

Happy Summer!

June and July are busy times for many of us ending school years and getting ready for summer programs and vacations. We need to fuel our bodies the best we can to stay feeling well and maybe even looking our best. That is why this is a great time of the year for CITRUS! Citrus fruits are produced by trees and shrubs which include fruits like oranges, grapefruits, lemons, and lime. They have a high citric acid content and are typically round with a juicy delicious pulp surrounding their seeds. The peel  is rubbery and the outmost layer, the zest, is used in many recipes for its intense flavors.

I did some reading and found out there are soooooo many more reasons why I want to up my citrus consumption because not only are they yummy but they are packed with nutrients which have wonderful benefits to the body, inside and out!

Reasons to Increase Citrus Fruits:

General Health

Fiber    

Citrus fruits are great sources of not just dietary fiber but soluble dietary fiber. The soluble reduces fat levels and blood pressure, helps with weight loss, enhances blood sugar levels, reduces inflammation, and improves immune function. Did you know kidney stones form when the citrate levels in your urine drop? So, have some fresh lemonade during the day to increase urinary citrate levels and reduce the risk of kidney stones!

The dietary fiber found in citrus fruits contains pectin, a type of starch that binds with cholesterol and helps flush it out of the body.

Folic Acid

Citrus fruits are packed with folic acid, a type of vitamin B that can aid in preventing kidney disease and birth defects among pregnant women. Good kidney health helps the body filter blood, remove waste and regulate the balance of electrolytes. Maintaining balanced levels of electrolytes helps prevent dehydration.

Protecting the Heart 

Oranges, grapefruit, lemons and limes are rich sources of flavonoids. These are attributed with boosting “good” HDL cholesterol and lowering “bad” LDL cholesterol.

Potassium and Calcium

The intake of potassium through citrus has been found to lower blood pressure and the risk of stroke and coronary heart disease. This intake also reduces the effects of age-related bone loss, renal disease, and can be yet another way to decrease kidney stones. We need potassium to break down carbohydrates, build muscle, and maintain the regular electrical activity of the heart. It also stimulates brain and nerve functions!  These fruits are also packed with bone building calcium!

Vitamin C

Vitamin C does a ton of good stuff but I will only point out a few. Lemons in particular are high in vitamin C which is an excellent fighter against colds. The vitamin C (ascorbic acid) in a medium orange for example, manages to give you 130% of the daily requirement of this amazing nutrient.

Vitamin C helps maintain the health of the blood vessels in your eyes and also is essential to reduce the risk of developing cataracts and age-related macular degeneration

To Purify

Citrus essential oils provide  cleansing benefits to the skin and some anti-inflammatory ones which make them extremely beneficial for healing blemishes or minor cuts. Oils, like lime and lemon are often found in deodorants as they also help inhibit odor-producing bacteria and do a great job deodorizing armpits, feet and hands.

Uplifting

As an individual that practises mindfulness everyday of my life, I add citrus as a mood enhancer with aromatherapy. Citrus oils such as bergamot, orange, mandarin and grapefruit are incredibly aromatic and uplifting when used in steams, diffusers, and natural candles and can help balance minds relieving signs of anxiety and exhaustion while promoting relaxation and happier dispositions. So, buy a diffuser and try it or simply put a few drops on cotton balls and leave them out!

Weight Control and Loss

These fruits contain a phytonutrient that helps burn additional calories making them an ideal addition to your fitness however, at the same time, citrus fruits can naturally raise your metabolic rate by burning additional calories while resting; the high level of enzymes burns fat. They also help with feeling full and quite satisfied as they have a high water and fiber content that fills you up and prevents you from feeling hungry. On top of that, they are low in calories; a medium-sized orange contains about 60 to 80 kcal while a grapefruit contains about 90 kcal. Lemons also aid in digestion and clean toxins from the blood, which keeps the skin clean.

Clementine’s in particular are another great digestion aid because they also contain essential alkaline minerals that are key to helping balance the body after digestion

Breast cancer

This morning as I was preparing this blog I even read the following which was truly fascinating: the fiber in some of these fruits may also aid in reducing the amount of circulating estrogen, which in turn may also help prevent breast cancer!!!!

General Beauty

Skin

The skin benefits bigtime from the consumption of citrus fruits. Having high levels of vitamin C, they help abolish free radicals in your body while providing a radiant glow to your skin and rejuvenating skin from the inside. Vitamin C, or ascorbic acid is essential for the regeneration of collagen which maintains the elasticity of your skin. The coarse peel of oranges, in particular, is filled with vitamin C. This is a great exfoliating and cleansing method, cleaning old, dead skin cells and diminishes pores giving you a vibrant and younger finish.

If you have sun spots or uneven skin tone, grapefruit can help with those. The retinol antioxidant in grapefruit helps treat these by renewing damaged skin. As well, the potassium in grapefruit helps to smooth wrinkles and age spots and provides a protective shield against UV rays.  Amino acids also found in citrus makes the skin firm and soft.

Lime has incredible antibiotic properties which can be used to fight acne.

Hair

Did you know citrus fruit can help fight dandruff? When applied to your hair, the acidic nature of lemon juice helps deep clean your scalp and eliminate dandruff. Lemon juice reduces the dullness in your hair and makes it look thicker and shinier. Collagen, mentioned in the previous paragraph, is also a factor in providing strength and structure to your hair which avoids it from breaking.

It is a lot to take in but how amazing is nature!? To help you pick which fruit you may need here is a chart to summarize:

What Nutrients Do Citrus Fruits Contain?  

How to Cut Citrus Easily

If we are going to increase the amount of these amazing fruits we need to be able to cut them conveniently and with ease! I like to cut the ends off for a stable balance while I peel the sides.

BBQ that Citrus

Slice a grapefruit into meaty circles. Sprinkle with a pinch of sugar and some cinnamon and grill until golden brown, about 2 minutes on each side. You can also serve these fruits seared as a dessert topper or add them to your salad.

Drink that Citrus!

Let me know your findings after you give these a try for a few months. Oh and one last tip! If you are trying to reduce salt or just want tastier dishes, spray some citrus on your salad, fish or dessert and enjoy!