Key Takeaways
- Green tea and the lemon in lemon water both support liver health, which may enable the liver to be more effective in removing harmful substances from the body.
- Green tea and lemon water are both hydrating beverages, despite the small amount of caffeine in green tea.
- Both beverages have other unique benefits that may influence which one you may prefer to drink more often.
Liver health and hydration are vital for overall health and well-being. If you’re looking to encourage better hydration and a healthier natural detox in the body, drinking either green tea or lemon water can do you good.
How They Help With Detoxification
Your liver is responsible for breaking down toxins and filtering them out of the body, essentially detoxifying you from harmful substances and chemicals. While “detox” products lack clinical evidence that they do any good, maintaining your liver health can help ensure that your body naturally detoxes on its own.
When it comes to green tea, research shows that drinking it can support liver function and help your body detox more effectively. That’s because of its high content of catechins, which are polyphenol antioxidants. The antioxidant works to improve liver health by reducing:
Lemon water can also reduce inflammation and oxidative stress damage due to its high levels of vitamin C, which acts as an antioxidant in the body, and a plant compound called naringenin. Lemon may also improve the function of liver enzymes that help increase the liver’s ability to filter waste, according to animal research.
Antioxidants and Your Liver
Antioxidants help neutralize free radicals, which are unstable molecules that can cause cellular damage if left unchecked. For liver health, antioxidants can reduce chronic damage that could lead to liver dysfunction, improving the liver’s overall ability to remove toxins. They may also benefit people with existing liver disease.
Hydration Benefits
Hydration is vital for overall health, and both lemon water and green tea provide hydration benefits.
Some may be concerned that the caffeine in green tea would have a diuretic effect, but that’s not necessarily true. The caffeine content is low enough not to cause dehydration, given the water content in a serving, leading to better overall hydration.
Lemon water also provides adequate hydration because it’s water, first and foremost, and drinking enough water is essential to hydration. Since water has little taste, many people who prefer juice or other beverages may drink more water if it’s flavoured with lemon.
Lemons also offer modest amounts of minerals that help maintain the body’s water balance, including potassium and magnesium, which are electrolytes that support adequate hydration.
Water Is the Best Hydrator
Because green tea and lemon water are essentially water with added ingredients, they both provide the body with what it needs to maintain adequate hydration.
Other Benefits of Green Tea and Lemon Water
Both lemon water and green tea have other health benefits as well.
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Possibly reducing the risk of cancer, diabetes, high cholesterol, and high blood pressure
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Modestly helping to maintain a healthy weight through boosted metabolism and enhanced fat burning
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Protecting brain health
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Protecting cardiovascular health
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Improving digestion and reducing constipation when enjoyed warm
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Helping to prevent the development of kidney stones
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Improving the body’s ability to absorb other nutrients, including iron
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Supporting normal cognitive function through hydration
Choosing Between Them
If you have to choose between lemon water and green tea, it may be best to choose the one that you’ll drink the most.
You can also enjoy the benefits of both by adding lemon to your green tea to create a hybrid beverage. This will also increase the potency of green tea while providing the benefits of lemon water simultaneously. That’s because lemon juice can enhance the body’s ability to absorb the catechins in green tea.
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