Citrus limon.  柠 檬 Níng méng   Lemon   Family: Rutaceae      

柠 檬 Níng méng Lemon fruit
Nature: Neutral   TASTE: Extremely Acid and Sour  Channels: Lung, Stomach
FUNCTIONS
1. Dissipate phlegm.[1]
2. Ease coughing.[1]
3. Promote the production of saliva.[1,5] Produce fluids.[2] Relieve thirst.[5]
4. Strengthen the Spleen.[1] Harmonize the Stomach.[5]
5. Secures restless fetus.[2] Considered good for pregnant women.[2] Prevent miscarriage.[5]
INDICATIONS
1. Inflammation of the throat- to quench thirst.[1] Pharyngolaryngitis.[2]
2. Indigestion.[1,2] Poor appetite.[5] Stomach Heat, sunstroke.[5] Abdominal distension.[5]
3. Coughing,[5] with phlegm.[1,2] Also whooping cough.[1]
4. Vitamin deficiency causing listlessness.[1]
5. Blurred vision, difficulty in adapting vision to the dark.[1]
6. Diabetes.[2]
7. Vomiting during pregnancy.[5]
CONTRAINDICATIONS: Gastric or duodenal ulcers and excessive gastric acid.[2]
PREPARATIONS: Commonly used as food. External- Juice is useful for tinea on the body or feet.[1]


- Eat preserved lemons with meals to relieve indigestion- To make preserved lemons- Place 500 g fresh lemons in a large earthenware container; add 250 g salt and leave the container in the sun to dry until the peels become wrinkled and soft with the juiced flowing out. The older preserved lemons are the best.[2]
- Summer Heat, diabetes, and pharyngolaryngitis- Peel a lemon and squeeze it to make lemonade.[2]
- Cough with mucous discharge and whooping cough in children- Stem a fresh lemon with an adequate amount of rock sugar. Eat it in the morning and evening.[2]
柠 檬 种 子 Níng méng zhǒng zǐ    Lemon seeds
Nature- neutral   FLAVOR: Bitter                   
FUNCTIONS
1. Promote flow of Vital Energy.[1,2]
2. Help ease pain.[1,2]
PREPARATIONS
- Blurred vision- Crush 15 g lemon seeds and grind into powder. Dissolve 3 g lemon seed poweder in water each time, once a day, for 5 consecutive days.[2]
- Body pain from excessive fatigue- Grind lemon seeds into powder. Dissolve 3 g lemon seed powder in a little rice wine. Drink at bedtime.[2]

柠 檬 皮 Níng méng pí  Lemon skin
Nature: Warm FLAVOR: Extremely acid and sour. CHANNELS: Spleen and Stomach
 FUNCTIONS
Promote the flow of qi, harmonize the stomach and alleviate pain.[3]
INDICATIONS
Qi stagnation in spleen, abdominal distension, poor appetite.[3]
PREPARATIONS: Decoction 9-15 g.[3]
柠 檬 叶 Níng méng yè  Lemon leaf
Nature- Slightly warm FLAVOR: Pungent, sweet, CHANNELS: Lung, stomach and large intestine
FUNCTIONS
1. Resolve phlegm, relieve cough, regulate qi.[4]
2. Harmonize the stomach, check diarrhea.[4]
INDICATIONS
1. Cough with excessive phlegm.[4]
2. Abdominal distension due to Qi stagnation, diarrhea.[4]
PREPARATIONS: Decoction 9-15 g.[4]
ORIGIN: Asia, cultivated widely.
DESCRIPTION: Citrus type of tree, often with thorns.
References
Inner Path can not take any responsibility for any adverse effects from the use of plants. Always seek advice from a professional before using a plant medicinally.
Constituents.
Research.

The hypocholesterolemic effect of lemon peels, lemon pectin, and the waste stream material of lemon peels in hybrid F1B hamsters.
Terpstra AH, Lapré JA, de Vries HT, Beynen AC.
Abstract
BACKGROUND:
We found in preliminary studies with hamsters that citrus peels have a cholesterol lowering effect comparable to that of pectin extracted from these peels.
AIM OF THE STUDY:
We wanted to examine whether the cholesterol lowering effect of the peels could be completely accounted for by the pectin in the peels.
METHODS:
We fed cholesterol enriched (0.1 %,w/w) semipurified diets containing 3% (w/w) of cellulose, lemon peels, lemon pectin, and the waste stream material of the lemon peels to hybrid F1B hamsters for a period of 8 weeks. The waste stream of the lemon peels is the left over after extraction of the lemon pectin.
RESULTS:
Feeding the semipurified diets resulted in an increase of plasma cholesterol levels in all the dietary groups after 2 and 4 weeks on the diets. Cholesterol concentrations in the cellulose fed hamsters continued to increase after 4 weeks on the diet, whereas cholesterol levels in the other groups had reached a plateau. As a consequence, the plasma cholesterol levels in the hamsters fed the peels (5.59 +/- 0.74 mmol/L, mean +/- SD, n = 14), pectin (5.19 +/- 0.48 mmol/L), or waste stream (5.53 +/- 0.94 mmol/L) were lower than those in the hamsters fed cellulose (6.71 +/- 1.52 mmol/L) after 8 weeks on the diets. Differences in total plasma cholesterol were reflected in differences in both VLDL and LDL cholesterol concentration, but this effect was more distinct for the VLDL. There was no effect of the type of fiber on HDL cholesterol levels. Liver cholesterol concentrations paralleled. the concentrations of plasma cholesterol and the liver cholesterol concentrations in the hamsters fed the peels (3.57+/- 1.01 micromol/g liver, mean +/- SD, n = 14), pectin (4.86 +/- 1.42), and the waste stream (4.96 +/- 1.89) were lower than those in the cellulose group (7.19 +/- 2.32). The hamsters fed the peels, pectin, or waste stream tended to have a higher excretion of fecal bile acids and neutral sterols then the cellulose fed hamsters.
CONCLUSION:
The results of this study suggest that lemon peels and the waste stream of the lemon peels are as effective in lowering plasma and liver cholesterol in hamsters as the pectin extracted from the peels and that also compounds other than pectin are probably responsible for the cholesterol lowering effect of the citrus peels.Eur J Nutr. 2002 Feb;41(1):19-26. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Lemon oil vapor causes an anti-stress effect via modulating the 5-HT and DA activities in mice.
Komiya M, Takeuchi T, Harada E.
Abstract
We examined the anti-stress action of the essential oils of lavender, rose, and lemon using an elevated plus-maze task (EPM), a forced swimming task (FST), and an open field task (OFT) in mice. Lemon oil had the strongest anti-stress effect in all three behavioral tasks. We further investigated a regulatory mechanism of the lemon oil by pre-treatments with agonists or antagonists to benzodiazepine, 5-HT, DA, and adrenaline receptors by the EPM and the FST. The anti-stress effect of lemon oil was significantly blocked by pre-treatment with frumazenil, benzodiazepine receptor antagonist, or apomorphine, a nonselective DA receptor agonist. In contrast, agonists or antagonists to the 5-HT receptor and the alpha-2 adrenaline receptor did not affect the anti-stress effect of lemon oil. Buspirone, DOI, and mianserine blocked the antidepressant-like effect of lemon oil in the FST, but WAY100,635 did not. These findings suggest that the antidepressant-like effect of lemon oil is closely related with the 5-HTnergic pathway, especially via 5-HT(1A) receptor. Moreover, the lemon oil significantly accelerated the metabolic turnover of DA in the hippocampus and of 5-HT in the prefrontal cortex and striatum. These results suggest that lemon oil possesses anxiolytic, antidepressant-like effects via the suppression of DA activity related to enhanced 5-HTnergic neurons.Behav Brain Res. 2006 Sep 25;172(2):240-9. Epub 2006 Jun 15. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Citrus lemon essential oil: chemical composition, antioxidant and antimicrobial activities with its preservative effect against Listeria monocytogenes inoculated in minced beef meat
Anis Ben Hsouna, Nihed Ben Halima,corresponding author Slim Smaoui, and Naceur Hamdi
Abstract
Background
Lemon (Citrus limon) is a flowing plant belonging to the Rutaceae family. Citrus plants constitute one of the main valuable sources of essential oil used in foods and medicinal purposes.
Methods
In this study, we assessed chemical composition, antioxidant and antimicrobial activities of C. limon essential oil (ClEO) with its preservative effect against Listeria monocytogenes inoculated in minced beef meat. Gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was used to identify the major components of the obtained ClEO. The antioxidant activities of this ClEO were determined according to the ß-carotene bleaching assay, as well as by 2.2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) radical scavenging activity. For antimicrobial activity, agar well diffusion method was used and the minimum inhibitory concentrations (MICs) as well as the minimum fungicidal concentrations (MFCs) were determined. The in situ effect of the ClEO was evaluated through physicochemical parameters (pH and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS), as well as against L. monocytogenes in minced beef meat model.
Results
Twenty one components were identified in the ClEO and the two dominant compounds were limonene (39.74%) and ß-Pinene (25.44%). This ClEO displayed an excellent DPPH scavenging ability with an extract concentration providing 50% inhibition (IC50) of 15.056 µg/ml and a strong ß-carotene bleaching inhibition after 120 min of incubation with an IC50 of 40.147 µg/ml. The MICs varied from 0.039 to 1.25 mg/ml for Gram positive bacteria and from 0.25 to 2.5 mg/ml for Gram-negative bacteria. The meat preserving potential of ClEO was investigated against L. monocytogenes. ClEO successfully inhibited development of L. monocytogenes in minced beef meat. The application of ClEO at a 0.06 and 0.312 mg/g, may open new promising opportunities for the prevention of contamination from and growth of pathogenic bacteria, particularly L. monocytogenes, during minced beef meat storage at 4 °C. Additionally, during storage period, physicochemical values (pH and TBARS) were higher in control meat than treated meat with ClEO suggesting an efficient antioxidant activity of ClEO.
Conclusion
It was suggested that the ClEO may be a new potential source as natural antimicrobial and antioxidant agents applied in food systems and pharmaceutical industry.
Lipids Health Dis. 2017; 16: 146.
Published online 2017 Aug 3. doi: 10.1186/s12944-017-0487-5
PMCID: PMC5543433
PMID: 28774297 hncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Lemon oil vapor causes an anti-stress effect via modulating the 5-HT and DA activities in mice
Migiwa Komiya, Takashi Takeuchi, Etsumori Harada
Abstract
We examined the anti-stress action of the essential oils of lavender, rose, and lemon using an elevated plus-maze task (EPM), a forced swimming task (FST), and an open field task (OFT) in mice. Lemon oil had the strongest anti-stress effect in all three behavioral tasks. We further investigated a regulatory mechanism of the lemon oil by pre-treatments with agonists or antagonists to benzodiazepine, 5-HT, DA, and adrenaline receptors by the EPM and the FST. The anti-stress effect of lemon oil was significantly blocked by pre-treatment with frumazenil, benzodiazepine receptor antagonist, or apomorphine, a nonselective DA receptor agonist. In contrast, agonists or antagonists to the 5-HT receptor and the alpha-2 adrenaline receptor did not affect the anti-stress effect of lemon oil. Buspirone, DOI, and mianserine blocked the antidepressant-like effect of lemon oil in the FST, but WAY100,635 did not. These findings suggest that the antidepressant-like effect of lemon oil is closely related with the 5-HTnergic pathway, especially via 5-HT(1A) receptor. Moreover, the lemon oil significantly accelerated the metabolic turnover of DA in the hippocampus and of 5-HT in the prefrontal cortex and striatum. These results suggest that lemon oil possesses anxiolytic, antidepressant-like effects via the suppression of DA activity related to enhanced 5-HTnergic neurons.
Article in Behavioural Brain Research 172(2):240-9 · October 2006 with 127 Reads
DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2006.05.006 · Source: PubMed 32.61Tottori University researchgate.net