Lemons – A Very Versatile Citrus Fruit!

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Apart from a myriad of uses around the house, the sometimes-underrated lemon has several beauty uses, and many nutritional health benefits.

As far back as the 1500’s, English sailors who spent months at sea, were introduced to lemons and oranges as a means to prevent scurvy.

Ship captains had noticed that when seamen had enough citrus fruits on board, they did not develop scurvy, which was characterised by anaemia weakness, gum disease, and skin problems.

Researchers now know that scurvy was, and still is, the result of a chronic lack of vitamin C, which is packed into lemons, as well as oranges.

 

RELATED: Easy Homemade Preserved Lemons Recipe Infographic

 

Some excellent household uses for lemons

Cleaning materials for the home can drain an awful lot of money from the budget. Making use of the outstanding cleaning and disinfecting properties of lemons can definitely help you to cut down on household spending.

Here are some useful tips:

  • Instead of ordinary household bleach to handle stains on delicate fabric, soak in a mixture of baking soda and lemon juice before putting into the washer. Stains will disappear and the fabrics will not be damaged by the stronger chemical bleach.
  • When doing the laundry, add 1 cup of lemon juice into each wash cycle. The natural bleaching action will get rid of stains and discolouration, and leave your clothes smelling fresh and clean.
  • To get pots which have dulled over time back to their sparkling best inside and out, rub them all over with the cut side of a lemon, and rub dry with a soft cloth.
  • If your garbage disposal is beginning to emit an offensive odour, throw some lemon peels down the drain to deodorize. You can do this as often as you like to keep a permanent fresh smell in the kitchen.
  • Sometimes rice has a tendency to lump together after cooking. For fluffy, delicious rice, add a tablespoon of lemon juice to the water when it is boiling, and when done allow to cool for a while before fluffing up with a fork prior to serving.
  • Put some lemon juice in a spray-bottle and spray on doorsteps, windowsills, and wherever you see ants have found a way into the kitchen. The lemon juice can effectively ant-proof the kitchen just as well as any pricy insecticide.
  • You can use lemon juice to freshen up cutting boards, and remove odours from the microwave and the fridge.

 

KEEP READING: 31 Surprising (But Smart) Uses For A Lemon Infographic

 

There are, of course, many other ways to use lemons around the home.  Lemon juice and water mix very well, and this means that you can add lemon to any water which you are going to use for any cleaning, including tiles, bathrooms, toilets etc.

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