Honey is a widely used ingredient both for its exquisite flavor and for its beneficial properties. Still, perhaps not everyone knows when it is best to add it to the diet. Let’s find out the conditions for preferring. Here we will give you a complete guide about is honey good for you.
All the sweetest nature is enclosed in honey! A food product that we have learned from time immemorial to appreciate and that. We owe to the work of the bees that produce it, starting from collecting. The nectar of the flowers up to the transformation into, in fact, sweet and golden fluid that. For the most difficult times of the year. Such as winter when flowers are not available, and bees cannot fly due to the cold.
Composition
Honey contains many nutrients and many active ingredients that promote health. It is composed of water, sugars such as fructose, glucose, maltose, vitamins, and many enzymes such as diastase and invertase. It is also rich in mineral salts such as calcium, potassium, sodium, magnesium, and sulfates. Finally, it contains many pigments, organic acids, tannins, and other aromatic substances that benefit our health.
Better to prefer honey to sugar
Honey has a delightful taste and is really appreciated for this characteristic, also because it brings energy to the body. The main composition, as we have seen, is essentially formed by the presence of simple sugars. And in particular, fructose is the main ingredient.
Conversely, the common simple sugar (sucrose) is the main component. White cooking sugar produces very high blood sugar spikes. And can stress the body to produce insulin. Thus, we can prefer honey and replace it with white cooking sugar, benefiting our health and the figure. In fact, honey is preferable to white sugar for slimming diets and those who have diabetes. Even if the quantity must remain limited. In fact, in the case of diabetics, the presence of glucose still leads. To blood sugar peaks, and this must be kept under extreme control in cases of diabetes.
Is honey good for your throat?
A spoonful of honey to soothe a sore throat. Each type of honey carries its specific beneficial properties. But all of them help fight throat pain and relieve the inflamed mucosa. The use of even alone in herbal teas or drinks such as cow’s milk or vegetable milk has. Its effectiveness in helping to heal sore throats.
Its preparation is easy and consists of squeezing a lemon and mixing it with a teaspoon. The combination of honey and turmeric is another excellent remedy for sore throats thanks to their anti-inflammatory properties. Just take a spoonful of honey and mix a pinch of turmeric powder to savor. It naturally or dissolve in a little hot water or herbal tea.
Use honey for sore throats.
It will also be possible to prepare honey and lemon syrup. Its preparation begins with heating half a kilo of honey over low heat without bringing to a boil. Otherwise, we would lose its precious health benefits. To this, we will add the juice of one lemon and 250 ml of water. Once the mixture is ready, we can put it in a previously sterilized glass bottle or jar. And it can be stored until the moment when it is necessary to use it. Some recipes add a few cloves or lemon slices to increase the disinfectant and anti-inflammatory effect.
Finally, an excellent herbal tea of cloves cinnamon is an excellent remedy to soothe a sore throat. This remedy is also easy to prepare. 4 cloves, a half teaspoon of cinnamon powder, or a stick of its bark. And a spoonful of honey will be enough to infuse for 10 minutes in 200 ml of boiling water. By filtering everything, we can drink this herbal tea—up to 2 or 3 cups a day, saying goodbye to a sore throat.
Also Read: Benefits Of Turmeric Tea
Can children eat honey?
Honey is a trendy food for its sweet taste, and it is also completely natural,l given its origin, which does not require any transformation. The body’s health by strengthening the muscles and the immune system. Because their immune system is still immature and is not ready to react to any bacteria or toxins present in honey, the main danger is Botox’s presence, which can be found in glass jars of honey. And can lead the child to severe food poisoning. In general, these toxins or bacteria can contaminate during the extraction process, potting, or even transporting it.
Athletes choose honey
Even for those who do sports, the choice of eating honey is highly recommended because. It releases energy ready for use and in a completely natural and balanced way. Whether we are in training or before, during, or after a competition, it is preferred as a food. In this case, the property of fortifying the muscles, increasing physical endurance. And even helping to recover energy after intense and prolonged efforts are appreciated. Many athletes, even at high levels, such as climber Edmond Hillary who was the first. To climb Everest, use honey during their activities, whether short-term or even days long.
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I prefer when health goes down.
It has many healthy properties, and for this reason, it is to be preferred. Whenever we are in poor physical condition. For example, it helps strengthen the immune system, such as colds, flu, coughs, phlegm, and other respiratory problems. Honey soothes the mucous membrane of the gastrointestinal tract and helps to heal with a tissue healing action. And still reduces bad cholesterol levels as well as being heart-friendly. Even the brain has beneficial effects when we eat to improve memory and relax the nervous system.
Honey is used in a spoon dose in a cup of herbal tea. To drink before going to sleep to promote sleep. The free radicals were responsible for cellular aging. So eating also keeps us younger. All these activities are present when we eat: one or two tablespoons a day can be enough. To take advantage of these benefits. The best time to eat it in the morning for breakfast is to give us more charge and energy. During the day, or we can choose to eat in the evening. To brighten our sleep and recharge our batteries for the next day.
Is honey good for you?
Honey, when it is of excellent quality, raw, organic, and unfiltered. It is one of the most powerful and energetic foods we can use. It is rich in minerals, antioxidants, probiotics, and enzymes and is a healing food. That provides long-lasting energy to the body in natural sugars. So it is one of the complete superfoods we have. It contains vitamin B9 and all 22 essential amino acids. It is, therefore, a rich source of complete proteins. Plus, it tastes delicious.
Unfortunately, honey also has problems and these extraordinary benefits, making it unsuitable for some people and some uses. Let’s find out a little more about the benefits and problems of this product.
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HONEY HAS A WARM NATURE
Some precautions to take honey at its best:
- Please don’t put it in too hot liquid and don’t cook it in a dessert.
- Do not eat it in the evening, especially if you have insomnia, as it may disturb your sleep.
- Honey is not a sweetener but a real supplement.
Its energizing power and all the other benefits make it a real supplement for your body. But be careful with the way you eat it.
Some precautions:
- Honey should be taken between meals because it does not go well with any food or drink.
- It should be used as a sweetener, neither in desserts nor in hot drinks.
- However, the best way to take it is to dissolve a teaspoon in a glass of warm water. Add a drop of lemon, and drink this drink in the morning. Perhaps after a glass of hot water.
Or you can put a teaspoon in your morning smoothie as an energy supplement.
Finally, you can use it occasionally in the preparation of raw food treats.
CONTAINS FRUCTOSE
Honey is considered harmful because it contains sugar, especially fructose. However, fructose is natural and has nothing to do with what is sold in supermarkets.
In fact, honey is produced by bees with a natural and laborious process:
- Honey bees flit in their natural environment to collect nectar from plants rich in liquid sugars.
- The production of honey from nectar takes place in the hive. It is a group activity consisting of repeated cycles of consumption, digestion, and regurgitation (expulsion from the digestive tract).
- Some of these cycles end with what we know as honey. But the composition and nutritional properties of honey itself depend on the sources of the nectar. That is, on the type of flowers found in the vicinity of the hive.
According to the nutritional data, a typical batch of honey provides:
- 82% by weight of sugar
- half of this sugar (40% of the total weight) is fructose
- vitamins and minerals
- various antioxidants ( Read the study here )
- levels of glucose and fructose, which can vary considerably depending on the type of.
STUDIES RISK FACTORS FOR DISEASES
Through the blood test, one can measure the factors involved in many modern diseases. Among the most important factors, we have cholesterol, triglycerides, and blood sugar.
People with diabetes have major problems with all of these factors.
A randomized controlled study in 48 diabetic patients found that in those fed for 8 weeks. There was a decrease in body weight, triglycerides.
Another study ( Read the study here ) done on healthy, diabetic, and hyperlipidemic subjects revealed that:
1.Honey caused lower blood sugar increases than dextrose (glucose) and sucrose (glucose and fructose). It also increased, although not by much, the blood level.
2.Its reduced C-reactive protein (CRP) – an indicator of inflammation.
3.Honey lowered LDL cholesterol and triglycerides in the blood and raised HDL cholesterol.
4.It also lowered homocysteine, another blood factor associated with the disease.
If you have blood sugar problems, it is still advisable. To stay away from and other sweeteners for at least 2-3 months. Even for those with a history of cancer, high sugar consumption. And therefore also of honey is not a good idea.
HONEY AND SUGAR IN COMPARISON
Many studies have compared honey and sugar and found. That has slightly less damaging effects on metabolism (Read studies 1, 2). But that doesn’t mean honey is a viable alternative to sugar.
ANTIOXIDANTS
Raw, unfiltered, contains an abundance of various antioxidants that can have important health benefits. Two human studies revealed that consuming honey increases the blood’s antioxidant value (Read studies 1, 2 here ).
SOME STUDIES DONE ON RATS
In some studies done on rats, it has been shown. That leads to a reduction in oxidative stress, a decrease in triglycerides. And a lower increase in fat than pure sugar or fructose (Read studies 1, 2 here ).
TOPICAL ADMINISTRATION OF HONEY
It has medicinal properties when used directly on the skin as it kills bacteria and accelerates wound healing ( Read the study here ).
ALWAYS CHOOSE THE BEST QUALITY
As I have already said, the composition of it depends on the environment. In which the bees live, and the antioxidant content can vary up to 20 times. It from wax and other components or preserve it better. If you are healthy, active, you don’t need to lose weight, and you don’t have too hot a constitution. Eating some honey as a supplement can be good for you. However, people with a hot constitution who are also overweight and/or diabetic and have eaten a diet loaded. With fructose and carbohydrates for years should avoid honey as much as possible.
