Lemon water in the morning is a common trend that people have been using for years. It has become a popular way to detox and hydrate our bodies and became one of the favourite drinks for those who apply intermittent fasting for health benefits.
Having a glass of water first thing in the morning is a healthy habit, it helps you activate the lymphatic system and tunes your body to work properly. But having just water can be quite boring and you can think of adding something into it, like lemon juice for example.
What if you are practicing intermittent fasting and questioning yourself:
"Can you drink lemon water during a fast?"
“Does lemon water break a fast?”
In this article, we explore these questions and give you the answer.
Long story short - the answer to the question “Does lemon water break a fast?” is no, lemon water does not break a fast. Lemon water contains almost no calories and zero sugars, it doesn’t raise insulin levels, which means it will not break your fast (1). So we can conclude that it is absolutely safe for fasting to drink lemon water.
Let’s talk more about why it is a good idea for you to consume lemon water.
The juice of a lemon has many benefits mostly due to its Vitamin C content.
Vitamin C is a water soluble vitamin that the human body cannot produce naturally. It's an essential part of a healthy diet and can provide many advantages to your body:
Lemon water compliments and increases the benefits of intermittent fasting, so make a habit to have a glass of water with some squeezed lemon or lime in it and enjoy the benefits.
What are the real benefits of drinking lemon water for people following a fast?
When you fast, uric acid rises in your body, it is a great antioxidant, but it can be a cause of kidney stones. Lemon juice helps alkaline pH levels in the urine, which prevents the formation of kidney stones (6, 7).
First of all, good hydration prevents you from kidney stones formation, the second citrate in lemon stops calcium from binding with oxalates which you consume with food and this protects you from a buildup of minerals that collect in the kidneys (8).
1. High temperatures destroy Vitamin C. If you want to keep the benefits of this vitamin, drink warm (lower than 30 degrees Celsius) or cold lemon water.
2. Don’t drink more than a glass of lemon water a day to prevent unhealthy PH changes in your body fluids.
3. You can add a dash of salt in your lemon water to prevent headache and muscle weakness on fasting.
4. You can use lime as well as lemon.
5. Lemon water can help you to accomplish water fasting only by having a slight change in the taste of plain water.
Lemon water is not only refreshing and pleasant drink to taste, but it also has various health benefits. Drinking lemon water can help detoxify the liver and flush out toxins from the body. It also helps with weight loss and lowers inflammation.
It is a great way to prevent kidney stones. There are many other liquids that you can consume during intermittent fasting, read our article about them “What can you Drink during Intermittent Fasting ?” (9).
