Happy Pancake Day!
We love lemon and sugar on our pancakes but did you know lemons are a valuable ingredient in Folli Oil products?
One of the most important properties of lemon is its ability to stimulate the white blood cells that defend our bodies against infection. This is of great value, both in the treatment of external wounds and also in infectious illnesses.
We use lemon essential oil in our Folli Oil products to help fight infected ingrown hairs and follicles. It also brightens dull and discoloured skin, helping to fade scars and stretch marks.
Here are a few ideas of using lemon at home:
Fading discoloured or stained nails
Lemons have a mild bleaching quality so can be useful in brightening discoloured nails. Try rubbing a slice of lemon daily on your nail for a maximum of 5 minutes or alternatively soak nails in lemon juice. Rinse well with soap and water afterwards. Make sure there are no cuts around the area before applying because the acid in the lemon juice could sting!
Treating corns, warts and verrucae
Lemon essential oil is also an alternative to chemical treatments to remove corns, warts and verrucae. Just mix 2 drops of lemon essential oil in 10 drops of cider vinegar. Apply daily to the verruca, corn or wart (take care to avoid the healthy surrounding skin). Cover with a plaster in the daytime but leave open at night. Repeat daily for as long as necessary.
Treating bronchitis, cold and flu
To reduce a temperature, add some freshly squeezed lemon juice to hot water with a little honey and drink throughout the day.
Helping the digestive system
Lemon can counteract acidity in our body so is a helpful tonic for our digestive system, including the liver and pancreas. Drinking a glass of water with a few slices of lemon throughout the day will help to hydrate your body and make the water taste more palatable. As lemons are high in Vitamin C, this also boosts your immune system and helps your body to produce collagen which gives your skin strength and elasticity.
Oral care
Lemon is haemostatic (helps to stop bleeding). A mouthwash of lemon juice (mixed with water) is a fantastic tonic for mouth ulcers or gingivitis (gum disease). After brushing, swill around your mouth for about a minute then spit out (do not swallow).
A word of caution … lemon can cause skin irritation in some people so use in moderation and if you experience any signs of irritation stop immediately! Lemons are also phototoxic so it’s really important to avoid direct sunlight after applying lemon to your skin.