
Like watermelons, cucumbers are made up of 95% water, making them one of the most H2O-rich veggies you could lay your hands on. This also means that they’re probably the easiest (and rather delish!) way of keeping your body hydrated and toxin-free.
Cucumbers are also a rich source of dietary fibre—something that is crucial for digestion. Natural fibre fights indigestion and gastritis, clears your gut and keeps the digestive tract in top running condition. Since cucumbers also have zero calories, they’re the perfect green snack for everyone who’s on a diet.
The super high nutrient content in cucumbers will put any other vegetable to shame. Its skin is loaded with Vitamin C (almost makes up for about 1/10th of our everyday requirement) that helps in the formation of collagen, the protein that gives our skin elasticity and age. To put it simply, eat your cucumbers to ward off wrinkles.
Cucumber is an excellent natural skin saviour. Owing to its content of ascorbic acid, cucumber slices can be used on puffy eyes to ease water retention and reduce puffiness. Its bleaching and cooling properties also make it an excellent home remedy for sun tan and sun burn. When grated, combined with lemon and used as a mask, it acts as an instant pick-me-up for your skin and provides it with all the gentle nourishment it needs.
Cucumber juice is a powerhouse of silicon, sulphur and a whole bunch of other minerals that are required to improve hair growth. When added to distilled water and used as a rinse it helps to smoothen unruly hair, get rid of tangles and make it more manageable. Plus, unlike other strongly scented rinses, it leaves no odour.
Written by Girija Naiksatam on 13th May 2014