Typically, in the first trimester, many women, including myself, have reached for ginger ale to calm a queasy stomach.
But even if the ginger ale is organic, it still has a ton of sugar in it. And we all know, sugar is the devil.
One day, I had a very strong craving for lemonade. It was too late to run out somewhere and get it, and I happened to have one fresh lemon on hand at the house. So I figured, what the hey, I will make myself some lazy homemade lemonade and see if it does the trick.
And sure it enough, it totally hit the spot and it made me feel better. Really feel better, not the momentary “better” that sugar makes you feel, and then you feel 10 times worse a few minutes later. I have continued my lemon water tonic since then and it still amazes me. It immediately settles my stomach and makes me feel better.
And I feel great knowing that I am not putting any sugar into my body and growing baby. I love that I am getting vitamins, nutrients and minerals (lemons are high in potassium, citric acid, calcium, phosphorous and magnesium) in the form whole foods.
Here are some other benefits of Lemon Water:
-It is a very mild detox. It helps any bacteria or toxins that build up, get flushed out of your system, by stimulating your liver to just plain work better.
-It aids in digestion, helping to move things along. And if you are pregnant, you know that getting a little help to move things along is very needed! It also helps with heartburn, which thank God, I have not had to experience yet (maybe it’s the lemon water!), but when I was pregnant with my daughter, I had it so bad, I had a bottle of Tums glued to my hands at all times!
-All that calcium and magnesium you are getting goes to your baby and will help them build strong bones.
-It lowers blood pressure.
-It tastes good!
Be sure to take a swig of regular water after you drink your glass of lemon water, the acidity can hurt your teeth’s enamel. Did you drink lemon water while pregnant? What benefits did you see?
And remember morning sickness can be a sign of nutrient deficiency, especially magnesium and can be a sign your liver is sluggish, so taking extra supplements will help too.
Enjoy!
Did you drink lemon water while pregnant? What benefits did you see?
The Annessa Family
January 12, 2012 at 3:41 PMI wonder what else lemon water could be good for?
Brooke
http://www.TheAnnessaFamily.com
SophieJP
January 13, 2012 at 3:06 PMHave you ever tried boiling ginger and lemon slices in water, then using the water in tea? I do that when I have an upset stomach. I get the herbal lemon tea and if I want it sweetened I put some honey in it. It tastes good and helps me feel better.
Stephanie
January 17, 2012 at 2:12 PM@Brooke…I am not sure, but even if you are not pregnant, it is a good mild detox and great way to get nutrients.
@SophieJP…I have not tried that. I have tried ginger tea and like that, so I bet the ginger and the lemons together would be awesome, thanks for the idea!
Elizabeth Hill
January 20, 2012 at 3:09 AMWith all three of my pregnancy, the only thing that got me through with my nausea was Lemon Heads. Of course I now have some cavities to show for it.
Stephanie
January 20, 2012 at 6:27 PMOh no! There is a really good book out there that talks about healing your cavities with good nutrition instead of getting them filled. I can’t think of the title right now, but if you googled it, I bet it would come right up.
Monica
January 23, 2012 at 12:45 AMOh, I’m so glad I found your website! I had terrible morning sickness with each of my 6 children, and blessedly had a friend who was a nutrititionist who had written a book on morning sickness (managing morning sickness, by Marilyn Shannon). She was such a great help to me. I never tried the lemon water but salt was a big help (I also have low blood pressure) so I would, believe it or not, have a salt shaker by my bed and would lick salt out of the palm of my hand in the morning. I think that’s why they recommend saltines, but the carbs were too much for me. Anything high carb was sure to tip me over the edge (bananas, potatoes, etc.) I found some supplements that are supposed to help prevent caveties too that I’m trying but I’m so bad about taking them daily.
Aubri
December 27, 2012 at 7:18 PMIs there a way to get this article still? 🙂
Stephanie
December 28, 2012 at 11:40 PMJust listed it. 🙂
Jenn
December 27, 2012 at 10:02 PMThe link doesn’t seem to be working… Do you by chance have the lemon water posted elsewhere? Thanks! 🙂
Stephanie
December 28, 2012 at 11:40 PMI just posted the full article so you can see!
nicole
May 9, 2013 at 10:23 PMthis is my fourth pregnancy and have had pretty uncomfortable nausea in the past….this time around the nausea is much less and i am drinking plenty of lemon water. I also have been drinking a small amount of coconut kefir when i first wake up. It has billions of probiotics. I really feel like both of these are making the big difference in my energy level and lack of nausea…
Stephanie
May 10, 2013 at 2:16 AMAwesome,so happy for you!
Meghan
June 18, 2013 at 4:08 PMHow do you make it? I don’t see the recipe.
Thanks
Stephanie
June 19, 2013 at 2:54 AMIt’s just water and lemon. 🙂 One whole lemon per glass of water.
Rillita Wilson
July 29, 2013 at 9:43 PMI hate drinking regular water so I’ve been drinking 3-4 bottles of lemon water followed by a glass of regular water almost every day since my second trimester. I am 30 weeks pregnant now and I will say lemon water has gotten me to put down the sugar beverages.
Stephanie
July 30, 2013 at 1:49 PMNice!! Good for you!
Lulu
August 23, 2013 at 2:48 PMHow frequent can I take the Lemon water. Will it be a problem if I take it everyday?
Stephanie
August 23, 2013 at 5:23 PMNo problem, just rinse or brush your teeth, a lot of acid can hurt your teeth.
Katie
February 19, 2014 at 4:03 PMI am in my first trimester with my first child and I am addicted to lemon water. I drink so much lemonade and for some reason when I got pregnant it makes me sick immediately. I started drinking lemon water and I have felt great! This article was really helpful, because I wasn’t sure it was safe to drink it everyday. Thanks!!
Elle
July 10, 2014 at 3:26 AMTried it for the the first time tonight and it worked wonders. My fiancé and I are expecting our first baby. I’m still very very early into my pregnancy…5 weeks but already I can tell this is going to be a rough time. The lemon water is really tasty too. I just hope my little bundle starts to take it easy on me…sooner rather than later.
Stephanie
July 10, 2014 at 11:35 AMIsn’t it amazing how great it works?! Glad it made you feel better. Have you read some of the other posts on morning sickness? Uping your magnesium intake is huge too. And congrats on your new baby, so exciting!
ama
October 20, 2014 at 12:04 AMI’m in my 1st 1at trimester and I’ve satrted lemom water but can I drink lime water if I dnt see lemom to bu at times is it safe for me ?
Stephanie
October 21, 2014 at 6:33 AMThat is a really great question and I am not sure of the answer. My gut reaction would be to say it can’t hurt, so try it and see how you feel. But also you may want to consider getting some Young Living Oil, high quality essential oils that you can ingest and do a drop or two of lemon oil instead of fresh lemons if you can’t find them in your area. Congratulations and hope you feel better soon!
GENEVIEVE
October 29, 2014 at 5:44 AMTHE LEMON WATER IS REALLY DOING ME GOOD. I JUMB OUT OF BED LIKE LION EVERY MORNING, NO MORNING SICKNESS, I DONT EVEN FEEL WEAK DURING THE DAY. UNLIKE MY FIRST PREGNANCY. IT WAS HELL FOR ME THAN. BUT I HOPE IT WOULD HURT MY BABY COS AM JUST 9WEEKS PREGNANT AND I TAKE IT FIRST THING IN THE MORNING BEFORE EATING ANYTHING.
Cynthia
February 15, 2015 at 1:44 AMHi, please am 3weeks pregnant, is it ok to drink lemon and tea at the same time? Please help me.
Stephanie
February 15, 2015 at 2:38 PMI wouldn’t drink caffenated tea, but there are lots of herbal teas that are safe for pregnancy.
Jeanetta
August 6, 2015 at 8:27 AMCan you use bottled lemon juice instead of fresh lemons? Thanks!
Stephanie
August 6, 2015 at 9:03 PMYou could if you were just using it for taste, but fresh, raw lemon is really important for the actual benefits of feeling better… If you are short on time, you could squeeze a bunch of lemon juice at once and it will store in an air-tight container for a week in the fridge and then you just pour out what amount you want each time, instead of having to squeeze a lemon each time… 🙂
Kate
September 11, 2015 at 3:22 PMI found that drinking lemon water helped me with bloating. I’m 10 weeks pregnant now and wish I would have thought of this sooner! I honestly tried lemon water because I was having trouble drinking regular water. Now I just squeeze a lemon slice in to my water bottle and I’m good to go!
Stephanie
September 17, 2015 at 2:46 PMAwesome!! Congrats on your pregnancy!
Lilly
January 30, 2016 at 12:38 PMThis is indeed a great eye opener. I do take lemon water but didn’t dare try it during pregnancy and breastfeeding cos I thought it would hurt my baby. But now I know better, the second journey would be easier.
Jenny West
July 31, 2016 at 12:59 PMMy nausea was driving me insane and nothing was going to help unless I started drinking an organic tea called No to morning sickness tea. I think the ingredients are like lemon, lemon peel, chamomile etc. It was a great help and eased my nausea.
Elizabeth D. Shover
September 14, 2016 at 1:18 AMWhich has greater health contribution, to use apple or lemon?
lavets
September 17, 2016 at 1:58 PMIam 8 weeks pregnant this article really was a help because I was always spittng and feeling like throwing up and I tried lemon water, wow m great now thank you.