Staying hydrated throughout the day can get boring with plain old H2O. Adding a punch of natural flavour can transform water from ho-hum to sexy and suddenly, the hydration effort becomes much more appealing.
Lately, I have been nursing a sensational woo-hoo of a water recipe to stay the course.
It’s a simple concoction.
Lemon juice (always the real thing and not bottled), freshly-grated ginger, and a few good pinches of cayenne pepper. Ooh la la! Depending on your taste for sweet, you can also add a small dollop of raw honey or a couple of drops of stevia. Give a stir and taste; adjust to suit your mood.
In addition to providing a zippy bite, this elixir is chock-full of healthy goodness:
Lemon – Always seek out the yellowest, thin-skinned and heaviest (aka juiciest) globe in the bin. Lemons provide a knock-out punch of vitamin C to kick up our immune system. Teeming with antioxidants, they also provide citric acid to help with digestion and dissolve kidney stones; ascorbic acid keeps us away from the dreaded scurvy (!!). Lemons are terrific to add to smoothies (skin and all if organic) to combat any bitterness from greens.
Ginger – Knobby ginger has been used medicinally for 2000 years all around the world. Rich in antioxidants, it reigns supreme with its broad-spectrum antiviral, antibacterial and antiparasitic properties. Use ginger to soothe an upset stomach, calm inflammation, and reduce the severity of a migraine.
Cayenne pepper – Say what? Named after the capital city of French Guiana, cayenne’s active ingredient – capsaicin – is believed to bring cluster headache relief and to treat arthritis and muscle pain when topically applied. The addition of this zesty pepper to your food can help suppress appetite and burn calories, and even treat psoriasis.
Social tagging: cayenne > ginger > lemon > turmeric