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Our team includes licensed nutritionists and dietitians, certified health education specialists, as well as certified strength and conditioning specialists, personal trainers and corrective exercise specialists. Our team aims to be not only thorough with its research, but also objective and unbiased. In fact, limes may be able to help amp up weight loss, enhance immunity, boost iron absorption, prevent kidney stones, improve heart health and even fight off cancer. Best of all, this fruit is widely available and easy to add into your diet, making it the perfect way to give your health an easy upgrade with minimal effort required. Improve Heart Health Heart disease is a major problem around the world. As the leading cause of death, it was responsible for an estimated 31.

5 percent of all deaths worldwide in 2013. Studies show that eating lime fruit could reduce several heart disease risk factors and may help give your heart health a boost. One animal study in Iran, for example, showed that treating rabbits with lime juice and lime peels helped slow the progression of atherosclerosis, the buildup of plaque on the artery walls. Limes are also loaded with vitamin C, an important nutrient that may be protective against heart disease. A study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine looked at the diets of 126,399 adults over an eight- to 14-year period and found that each serving of fruits and vegetables was associated with a 4 percent decreased risk of coronary heart disease. For best results when it comes to heart health, include limes as part of a balanced diet and combine with a healthy lifestyle and regular physical activity. Help Fight Against Cancer One of the most impressive lime health benefits is its ability to fight against cancer cells in the body.

This is because limes are jam-packed with antioxidants, which are compounds that fight against the harmful free radicals that can cause cell damage and chronic disease. Limes contain a concentrated dose of many powerful phytochemicals, including flavonoids, flavones, triterpenoid and limonoids. Several of the compounds found in limes have been shown to have potent cancer-fighting properties. In a test-tube study published in Plant Medica, one particular compound was isolated from lime extract and was found to block the growth of colon cancer cells by 67 percent after just 72 hours. Enhance Weight Loss Many people enjoy a cold glass of water with a spritz of lime or lemon as a refreshing alternative to regular water, but did you know that weight loss could be one of the health benefits of lime juice with water? If you regularly drink soda or juice, trading it in for lime water may amp up weight loss.

For example, a can of cola has 136 calories, 35 grams of carbohydrates and 33 grams of sugar, plus next to no nutritional value. On the other hand, water is free of calories, carbs and sugar, and there are only 20 calories and seven grams of carbs in an entire lime. Limes have also been shown to have some beneficial weight-reducing properties. An animal study in Iran, for instance, found that essential oil from limes was able to reduce both body weight and food consumption in mice. Pair limes with a nutritious diet full of fruits and vegetables, limit your intake of ultra-processed foods, and squeeze in some exercise a few times per week to see the most results when you step on the scale.

Boost Immunity Limes are an excellent source of vitamin C. In fact, just one lime can knock out nearly one-third of your vitamin C needs for the entire day. Getting enough vitamin C in your diet is important for many aspects of health, but it’s especially crucial when it comes to immunity. Metabolism found that meeting your vitamin C needs could help reduce the duration and severity of respiratory tract infections and could also help prevent and improve the outcomes for malaria, diarrhea and pneumonia. Limes also contain plenty of antioxidants. These beneficial compounds promote immunity by neutralizing harmful free radicals, which protects your immune cells and helps ward off infections.

A few other natural immune system boosters include elderberry, ginger, ginseng and oregano. Aid in Kidney Stone Prevention Including a few servings of lemons or limes in your diet is one of the easiest ways to kick kidney stones to the curb. Like lemons, limes contain a good amount of citric acid, a type of acid that can help prevent kidney stones by increasing urinary citrate and urine volume. Although there is limited research looking at the effects of limes on kidney stones specifically, there are many studies showing that increasing your citric acid intake could be beneficial in kidney stone prevention. One study, for example, showed that treating patients with lemonade therapy for almost four years decreased kidney stone formation from an average of one stone per year down to just 0. You can also help prevent kidney stones by increasing your fluid intake, eating plenty of magnesium-rich foods and following a plant-based diet.