Mud

Benefits of Laminaria

Dr. Violeta Pârvu
Steaua Divina Naturist Centre, Bucharest

Lemon, known by its Latin name Citrus Lemon, is a thorny shrub native to India (described thousands of years ago in the Charaka Samhita - a fundamental treatise in Ayurvedic medicine - as Jambhira or Jaamphal). From here it spread throughout the Arab and Mediterranean region, and Christopher Columbus brought it to Spain in 1493. The lemon has yellow flowers with purple hues and its fruit is a yellow berry with a peel rich in aromatic oils, the well-known lemon. The fruit is used mainly for therapeutic purposes, less so the flowers and leaves.

What lemons contain:

Fruits contain a lot of water, proteins, lipids, carbohydrates, cellulose, organic acids (6-8% citric acid in juice, malic acid), organic salts (calcium citrate, potassium citrate), aldehydes, mineral elements: sodium, potassium, calcium (calcium content is 40 mg per 100 mg juice), phosphorus, iron, chlorine, sulphur, silicon, manganese, copper and vitamins (high amounts of vitamin C:50-70 mg/100 g in juice and 163 mg/100 g in peel, vitamins A, B1, B2, B3, D, E, PP in small amounts).
Lemon peel contains 2,5 % volatile oil, flavones, bitter principles, carotenoids, coumarins and furanocoumarins, simple lipids (sterides), salts of limonic acid. Lemon oil is extracted from lemon peel and has particular therapeutic properties.

Actions:

  • It is used with very good effects in coughs, colds, flu, scurvy, capillary fragility (due to the increased content of vitamin C), and the increased content of bioflavonoids has the effect of strengthening the vascular walls, being used effectively in varicose veins, phlebitis, arteriosclerosis, circulatory problems.
  • The anti-infective effect of flavonoids and coumarins makes it successful in acute hepatitis, chronic hepatitis, liver cirrhosis, aggressive liver failure.
  • Although the fruit and its juice have a very intense sour taste, paradoxically lemon juice reduces gastric hyperacidity.
  • Its high vitamin C content helps to strengthen the immune system and has a strong antioxidant effect in the body.
  • Lemon leaves are used to reduce fever as well as insomnia.
  • Fresh lemon juice is a good antiseptic and can be used on wounds or around infected areas, helping to heal them.
  • Lemon juice is a good cholesterol-lowering agent and an effective aid in the prevention and treatment of diabetes, atherosclerosis and arthrosis.
  • Lemon juice is also used in cases of obesity, febrile illnesses or anaemia.
  • Lemon oil is used with good results in headaches and migraine, as well as in respiratory illnesses, asthma, bronchitis.

How to use:

Lemon juice
- The juice of one lemon and the washed rind of an organic egg are recommended as a source of calcium. Leave to macerate for 1 week. Add natural honey to taste; take 3 teaspoons a day.
- Lemonade (lemon juice combined with water and honey)
is recommended in febrile conditions, vomiting, anemia, obesity, gastric hyperacidity.
- Against pinworms, crushed lemon pips mixed with natural honey are recommended every morning for 5-6 days.
- Consuming 200-300 g of lemon juice daily in case of epidemics gives the body resistance to illness through vitamin C.

Lemon oil

In a dose of 2 to 3 drops 3 times a day combined with honey or as inhalations, gives good results in flu, colds, rhinitis, sinusitis, migraines.