5 Things You Didn't Know About Honey
October 20, 2014
Story at-a-glance
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Honey is a blend of sugar, trace enzymes, minerals,
vitamins, and amino acids that has antibacterial,
anti-fungal, and antioxidant properties
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Honey works as well as dextromethorphan, a common ingredient
in over-the-counter cough medications, to soothe cough and
related sleeping difficulties
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Unprocessed honey can help treat skin infections, helps
wounds heal, and improves dandruff and itchy scalp
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It takes about 60,000 bees, collectively traveling up to
55,000 miles and visiting more than 2 million flowers, to
gather enough nectar to make one pound of honey
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Choose raw, unfiltered honey for medicinal properties; most
honey on the market is highly processed and may even contain
additives like corn syrup
By Dr. Mercola
Honey has been valued as a natural sweetener long before
sugar became widely
available in the 16th century. Honey production flourished in
ancient Greece and Sicily, for instance, while animals other
than humans – bears, badgers, and more – have long raided
honeybee hives, risking stings for the sweet reward.1
Honey is truly a remarkable substance, made even more
extraordinary by the process with which it is made. This blend
of sugar, trace enzymes, minerals, vitamins, and amino acids is
quite unlike any other sweetener on the planet.
And while honey is high in fructose, it has many health
benefits when used in moderation (assuming you’re healthy).
Before I delve into those, here’s a brief “lesson” on how honey
is made...
How Honey Is Made (Fascinating!)
It takes about 60,000 bees, collectively traveling up to
55,000 miles and visiting more than 2 million flowers, to gather
enough nectar to make one pound of honey.2
Once the nectar is gathered, the bee stores it in its extra
stomach where it mixes with enzymes, and then passes it (via
regurgitation) to another bee’s mouth. This process is repeated
until the nectar becomes partially digested and is then
deposited into a honeycomb.
Once there, the honeybees fan the liquid nectar with their
wings, helping the water to evaporate and create the thick
substance you know as “honey.” This honeycomb is then sealed
with a liquid secretion from the bee’s abdomen, which hardens
into beeswax. As Live Science reported:3
“Away from air and water, honey can be stored
indefinitely, providing bees with the perfect food source
for cold winter months.”
There are more than 300 kinds of honey in the US, each with a
unique color and flavor that is dependent upon the nectar
source. Lighter colored honeys, such as those made from orange
blossoms, tend to be milder in flavor while darker-colored
honeys, like those made from wildflowers, tend to have a more
robust flavor.4
5 Honey Facts You Might Not Know
Honey, particularly in its raw form, offers unique
health benefits that you might not be aware of. Among them…
1. Honey Makes Excellent Cough “Medicine”
The World Health Organization (WHO) lists honey as a
demulcent, which is a substance that relieves irritation in
your mouth or throat by forming a protective film.5
Research shows honey works as well as dextromethorphan, a
common ingredient in over the counter cough medications, to
soothe cough and related sleeping difficulties due to upper
respiratory tract infections in children.6
2. Honey Can Treat Wounds
Honey was a conventional therapy in fighting infection up
until the early 20th century, at which time its use slowly
vanished with the advent of penicillin. Now the use of honey
in wound care is regaining popularity, as researchers are
determining exactly how honey can help fight serious skin
infections.
Honey has antibacterial, antifungal, and antioxidants
activities that make it ideal for treating wounds. In the
US, Derma Sciences uses
Manuka honey for their Medihoney wound and burn
dressings.
Manuka honey is made with pollen gathered from the
flowers of the Manuka bush (a medicinal plant), and clinical
trials have found this type of honey can effectively
eradicate more than 250 clinical strains of bacteria,
including resistant varieties such as:
- MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus
aureus)
- MSSA (methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus
aureus)
- VRE (vancomycin-resistant enterococci)
Compared to other types of honey, Manuka has an extra
ingredient with antimicrobial qualities, called the Unique
Manuka Factor (UMF). It is so called because no one has yet
been able to discover the unique substance involved that
gives it its extraordinary antibacterial activity.
Honey releases hydrogen peroxide through an enzymatic
process, which explains its general antiseptic qualities,
but active Manuka honey contains "something else" that makes
it far superior to other types of honey when it comes to
killing off bacteria.7
That being said, research shows that any type of
unprocessed honey helped wounds and ulcers heal. In one
study, 58 of 59 wounds showed “remarkable improvement
following topical application of honey.”8
3. Honey Improves Your Scalp
Honey diluted with a bit of warm water was shown to
significantly improve seborrheic dermatitis, which is a
scalp condition that causes dandruff and itching. After
applying the solution every other day for four weeks, “all
of the patients responded markedly.” According to the
researchers:9
“Itching was relieved and scaling was disappeared
within one week. Skin lesions were healed and
disappeared completely within 2 weeks. In addition,
patients showed subjective improvement in hair loss.”
4. Help Boost Your Energy
A healthy, whole-food diet and proper sleep is the best
recipe for boundless energy, but if you’re looking for a
quick energy boost, such as before or after a workout, honey
can suffice. This is particularly true for athletes looking
for a “time-released fuel” to provide energy over a longer
duration.10
5. Reduce Allergy Symptoms
Locally produced honey, which will contain pollen spores
picked up by the bees from local plants, introduces a small
amount of allergen into your system. Theoretically, this can
activate your immune system and over time can build up your
natural immunity against it.
The typical recommendation is to take about a
teaspoon-full of locally produced honey per day, starting a
few months PRIOR to the pollen season, to allow your system
to build up immunity. And the key here is local.
This approach only works because it has pollen of local
plants you may be allergic to. Honey from other parts of the
country simply won’t work. While research on this has
yielded conflicting results, one study found that, during
birch pollen season, compared to the control group, the
patients using birch pollen honey experienced:11
- 60 percent reduction in symptoms
- Twice as many asymptomatic days
- 70 percent fewer days with severe symptoms
- 50 percent decrease in usage of antihistamines
Interestingly enough, there were few differences between
the two honey groups (those who took regular honey, versus
those who took honey that contained birch pollen.) However,
the birch pollen honey group used less histamines than those
who used regular honey. The authors concluded:
"Patients who pre-seasonally used birch pollen
honey had significantly better control of their symptoms
than did those on conventional medication only, and they
had marginally better control compared to those on
regular honey. The results should be regarded as
preliminary, but they indicate that birch pollen
honey could serve as a complementary therapy for birch
pollen allergy."
Honey for Herpes
Good-quality honey offers several topical wound-care benefits
that can explain some of its success as a remedy for herpes
sores:
- It draws fluid away from your wound
- The high sugar content suppresses microorganism growth
- Worker bees secrete an enzyme (glucose oxidase) into the
nectar, which then releases low levels of hydrogen peroxide
when the honey makes contact with your wound
In one study, 16 adult subjects with a history of recurrent
labial and genital herpes attacks used honey to treat one
attack, and a commonly prescribed antiviral drug, Acyclovir
cream, during another. (It's important to realize that neither
the drug nor the honey will actually cure genital herpes. They
only treat the symptoms.)
Interestingly, honey provided significantly better treatment
results. For labial herpes, the mean healing time was 43 percent
better, and for genital herpes, 59 percent better than
acyclovir. Pain and crusting was also significantly reduced with
the honey, compared to the drug. Two cases of labial herpes and
one case of genital herpes remitted completely with the honey
treatment, whereas none remitted while using acyclovir.12
3 DIY Honey Home Remedies
Honey is a humectant, which means it attracts and retains
moisture, making it an ideal addition to moisturizers, shampoos,
and conditioners. Along with its antimicrobial properties, honey
makes a wonderful addition to homemade personal care products.
The National Honey Board has a few you can try out for yourself:13
- Honey Hair Conditioner: Mix ½ cup honey
with ¼ cup olive oil. Work a small amount through your hair
until coated. Cover your hair with a shower cap and let sit
for 30 minutes. Shampoo as normal and rinse.
- Honey Body Moisturizer: Mix 5
tablespoons honey, 2 tablespoons rose oil, and 2 cups almond
oil in a medium-sized bottle. Apply as needed onto wet skin.
- Honey Almond Scrub: Mix 3 teaspoons
honey, 1 teaspoon olive oil, and 6 ½ tablespoons of finely
crushed almonds. Rub the exfoliating scrub onto your face
gently and rinse with warm water.
The Organic Consumers Association has also published this
simple honey lemon cough syrup that’s useful to keep on hand
during the winter months:14
Honey Lemon Cough
Syrup
Lemon helps promote health by quickly alkalinizing
your body, and honey will kill most bacteria while
soothing your throat. This is a perfect choice for a
quick cough remedy.
- Put a pint of raw honey in a pan on the stove on
VERY low heat (Do not boil honey as this changes its
medicinal properties).
- Take a whole lemon and boil in some water in a
separate pan for 2-3 minutes to both soften the
lemon and kill any bacteria that may be on the lemon
skin.
- Let the lemon cool enough to handle then cut it
in slices and add it to the pint of honey on the
stove.
- Let mixture cook on warm heat for about an hour.
- Then strain the lemon from the honey making sure
all lemon seeds are removed.
- Let cool, then bottle in a jar with a lid and
store in the refrigerator.
This syrup will keep for 2 months in the
refrigerator. To soothe a cough, take 1/2 teaspoon for a
25 lb. child and 1 teaspoon for a 50 lb. child, about 4
times a day, or as often as needed. Adults can take
1-tablespoon doses.
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Is Honey a Healthy Natural Sweetener? How to Avoid Fake Honey
As far as natural sweeteners go, honey does have a place. The
main thing to remember when it comes to honey is that not all
honey is created equal. The antibacterial activity in some
honeys is 100 times more potent than in others, while processed
refined honey will lack many of these beneficial properties
altogether. Your average domestic “Grade A” type honey found in
the grocery store is likely highly processed.
It’s also been found that more than 75 percent of the honey
on American supermarket shelves may be ultra-processed—to the
point that all inherent medicinal properties are completely
gone—and then smuggled into the country by the barrel drum.
Nearly all of this “fake” honey is made in China. Some of these
brokers will even create bogus country of origin papers. All 60
jars of "honey" tested by Food Safety News (FSN) came back
negative for pollen, which is a clear sign of ultra-processing.15
According to FSN:
"The removal of these microscopic particles from deep
within a flower would make the nectar flunk the quality
standards set by most of the world's food safety agencies.
The food safety divisions of the World Health Organization,
the European Commission and dozens of others have also ruled
that without pollen, there is no way to determine whether
the honey came from legitimate and safe sources."
In their investigation, FSN discovered the following:
- 76 percent of honey samples bought at grocery stores
(such as TOP Food, Safeway, QFC, Kroger, Harris Teeter,
etc.) were absent of pollen
- 77 percent of the honey from big box stores (like
Costco, Sam's Club, Walmart, and Target) were absent of
pollen
- 100 percent of the honey sampled from drug stores (like
Walgreens, Rite-Aid, and CVS Pharmacy) were absent of pollen
The good news is all of the samples from farmers markets,
co-ops, and natural stores like Trader Joe's had the full,
proper compliment of pollen, as did organic brands from common
grocery stores. When choosing honey, be sure it is raw,
unfiltered, and 100% pure, from a trusted source.
Honey Should Be Consumed Only in Moderation
Honey has many healthy attributes, but it is also high in
fructose, averaging around 53 percent. Each teaspoon of honey
has nearly four grams of fructose, which means it can exacerbate
pre-existing insulin resistance and wreak havoc on your body if
consumed in excess. So when consuming honey, carefully add the
total grams of fructose (including fruits) that you consume each
day, and stay below 25 grams of total fructose per day.
Keep in mind, though, that if you have insulin resistance
(i.e. if you are taking drugs for high blood pressure,
cholesterol,
diabetes, or if you're overweight) you'd be better off
avoiding all sweeteners, including honey, since any
sweetener can decrease your insulin sensitivity and worsen your
insulin resistance. If you’re healthy, however, eating raw honey
in moderation could provide many of the benefits listed above.
Copyright 1997- 2014 Dr. Joseph Mercola. All Rights Reserved.
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