By Sean Bissell
www.BeeHelp.com
www.WorldOfBeekeeping.com
Honey: The Sweet Truth
You put what in your coffee? Honey? Really? Don’t you know honey is basically just sugar
that comes from bees? You might as well just be eating white sugar.
Unless you’re living in a cave you’ve probably heard someone say something like that
either in person, online, or read it in an article somewhere.
And the truth is, they’re right. Honey is basically sugar from bees. Honey is almost identical
to white refined sugar on the surface. But there’s a lot more to honey than just its
similarities to sugar.
White refined sugar is basically two molecules that are connected, one molecule of
glucose, and one molecule of fructose. Refined sugar is a highly pure substance that is
devoid of any vitamins, minerals, or other substances.
What Makes Honey So Special?
On the other hand, honey is the only sweetener that can
be stored and used exactly as it is produced in nature.
Honey is a very complicated biologically created
substance with a very elaborate chemical composition.
Honey is made primarily of glucose and fructose, just like
white sugar, but it also contains at least 181 other
substances. [1,2] Some of these substances include
vitamins, minerals, proteins, complex carbohydrates,
free amino acids, enzymes, flavonoids, phenolic acids, antioxidants, volatile compounds,
and so on. Some of the more recognizable elements found in honey—however in small
amounts—are: Salt, calcium, potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, selenium, copper, iron,
manganese, chromium, zinc, vitamin C, vitamin K, and vitamins b1, b2, b3, b5, b6, and b9.
Of course the composition of honey is going to change depending on where the hives are
located, and what environment the bees interact with.
The highest concentration of substances other than glucose and fructose found in honey
are fructooligosaccharides. [3] Fructooligosaccharides compose about 3­4% of honey and
are basically a type of fiber that is digested by the part of your colon called the cecum.
These fructooligosaccharides are known to feed a “friendly” bacteria species called
bifidobacteria. When a food feeds friendly bacteria it is often referred to as a “prebiotic.”
So because honey can feed good bacteria it can be said that honey is a prebiotic
substance.
Fructooligosaccharides are technically a fiber in the “inulin” family. And inulin fiber has
been shown to reduce LDL cholesterol in obese patients. It can help increase calcium
absorption, as well as possibly magnesium absorption. Studies have also shown that
adding six grams of inulin to food can be as filling as 260 extra calories, and help reduce
hunger.
Beyond honey having fructooligosaccharides, as mentioned above, honey contains
approximately 181 other substances which are yet to be completely understood. And
although we don’t know everything about the substances in honey, we do know that honey
appears to have significant benefits for most people who eat it.
How Does Honey Contain 181 Different Substances?
Those approximately 181 substances are most likely a result of
tens of thousands of bees landing on millions of flowers and
bringing back little bits of material with them to mix in with the
honey. It is that mix of little bits of the environment all condensing
into one concentrated source gives your body exposure to a large
part of your environment. With a food that grows in the ground or on
a tree, you are getting the environmental factors from that one spot
of land. But with honey you are getting little “bites” of millions of
bees over a large radius of land. [4]
Because of the local environment essentially being concentrated in a single substance
many people feel that the environmental exposure through honey can help reduce allergies,
especially if you eat local honey. This theory is highly debated, and there is little proof that
honey actually helps with allergies, even local honey. [5] And although no studies have
definitively proved honey helps with allergies, many people do report that it helps them
despite the lack of scientific evidence.
While there are many beneficial substances in honey, it is important to note that some of
these substances could be “contaminants” such as pesticides, fuel from cars, or farm
equipment, or other random small materials that the bees could touch and bring back to the
hive. [6]
Contaminants In Honey
Even if you get local, organic honey the beekeepers cannot control
where their bees fly. And if there is a pesticide “contaminated”
farm, or a homeowner with lots of pesticide covered flowers within
a few miles in any direction, those bees will likely find it, land on it,
and bring some back to the hive.
That being said, the level of “contaminants” in honey are extremely
small, and are hardly worth worrying about at all. But it would be
smart to note that not all 181 substances that are found in honey
may be “natural” or even “beneficial.” It is interesting to note that honey originating from
China and India have been previously shown to have more contaminants on average, such
as lead, and antibiotics. [7] And because of these likely contaminants, honey from India
and China are illegal to be imported to many countries. Unfortunately, there seems to be
some creative ways around these bans, and many “industrial” honeys are contaminated
with honey originating from China or India. Knowing this, it is smart to be sure of the source
of your honey, and going local, or with a company you trust can be beneficial.
It is very important to know that you should never feed honey to your child until they are at
least one year of age. This precautionary measure is because of the small risk of the toxic
bacteria botulinum, which can cause botulism. This is much more of a risk with raw honey
however, it is still advisable to avoid honey of all kinds until at least one year of age. Past
one year old the risk of contracting botulism is virtually nonexistent.
Even with the potential “contaminants” in honey, the good outweighs the bad in almost all
cases. Let's forget about the wide array of tiny elements contained in honey whose effects
aren't fully understood yet, and let's start talking about what good things honey has been
shown to do.
Antioxidant Capacity
Honey contains antioxidants, and it appears that the darker the honey, the more
antioxidants it is likely to contain. Researchers have found that humans can be significantly
protected from free radical damage by the antioxidants in honey. [8] That means that there
aren’t just antioxidants in honey, but that the antioxidants are biologically available, which is
a very important distinction.
Athletic Performance
Athletic performance can be improved with the use of honey and
can be a better substitute to options which contain glucose as
their primary ingredient. This has been tested on cyclists who
were given a glucose only gel, and other cyclists who were given
honey. [9] Both the glucose and honey caused an increase in
performance, but the honey produced even better results than
glucose. This can be partly due to the fact that honey releases
sugar into your blood slower than pure glucose, or even pure
sugar. Honey takes longer to digest and has a “slow burn” effect,
letting energy “trickle” into your body which can be beneficial for
increasing physical performance, specifically endurance related
performance. [10]
The slow digesting nature of honey can be attributed to its concentration of fructose
combined with complex carbohydrates called oligosaccharides such as maltose,
melezitose, palatinose, trehalose, raffinose, isomaltose, maltulose, maltotriose, panose,
erlose, turanose, gentiobiose and cellobiose. It is because of this slowly digesting effect
that some researchers believe that honey can have an antidiabetic effect. [21]
Anemia
Honey has also been found to help with anemia because of it’s ability to build blood volume
and red blood cells. [11] In addition, honey also appears to be able to help with building
immunity by increasing production of antibodies. [12]
Tooth Decay
Many people claim that sugar can contribute to tooth decay. While
this could be true with sugar, it appears that honey can do the
exact opposite. Honey with high levels of antibacterial properties
can actually reduce the risk of cavities. [13] Plaque, and gingivitis
can also be reduced by eating honey. [14] Honey can even be
less likely to produce cavities than fruit juice. [15] No one knows
exactly why honey prevents or produces less tooth and gum decay than other sugar­like
substances, but some theories are the antibacterial properties as well as the trace
amounts of colloidal calcium, fluoride, and phosphorous.
Stomach Issues
Ulcers and other digestive issues can be prevented by the use of
honey. [16] Ulcers specifically are often caused by a bacteria
called Helicobacter pylori, and honey is able to help prevent that
bacteria from growing, or potentially kill it off when it’s already
become a problem. Due to honey’s natural acidity, and small
levels of hydrogen peroxide, it has the potential to inhibit some
pathogens. [17]
Wound healing can also be increased by the use of topical honey, even in wounds that
were not healing quickly with other treatments. [20] This is probably due to the antimicrobial
properties in honey, as well as creating a sticky barrier which protect from letting any other
contaminants from making contact with the wound.
Eye Health
Eye health can also be improved through the use of topical honey.
Especially in the treatment of “pink eye” or in the inflammation of the
cornea, or the eyelids. [18] Specifically, applying a drop of honey
under the lower eyelid can have the most benefit. Even if that honey
is diluted by a 50% water mixture.
Blood Sugar And Cholesterol Influence
Honey can also help reduce overall blood glucose levels, and cholesterol levels compared
to other sweeteners. [19] Therefore, honey as a sweetener choice, can be especially
beneficial if your goal is to lower and stabilize your blood sugar and cholesterol levels. This
lowering of cholesterol is most likely due to honey’s ability to increase the active thyroid
hormone called T3. Because any carbohydrate is actually able to help increase T3
concentrations, especially fructose, which honey contains a great deal of. [22,23,24,25]
When T3 increases it can convert cholesterol into other beneficial substances such as
hormones. When cholesterol is converted for beneficial purposes, it can lower your overall
cholesterol number. [26,27]
Metabolic Syndrome, Diabetes And Obesity
There are even some researchers that claim, although with unpublished research, that
honey cannot induce metabolic syndrome. And metabolic syndrome is said to be
responsible for many chronic health issues such as obesity, and diabetes 2. In addition to
honey possibly not being able to cause metabolic syndrome, it can also help prevent
overeating because honey can potentially help modulate appetite­regulating hormones and
make you feel fuller longer. [28, 29]
Even with all of these potential benefits of honey, ranging from tasting great, to helping
boost athletic performance, reducing cholesterol, helping to prevent diabetes and obesity,
honey is certainly not a bad food choice for most people. In fact, honey seems to be much
more beneficial than it is harmful in almost all cases.
So the next time someone gives you a hard time for dumping a big pool of honey in your
coffee, you can feel good that you’re satisfying your sweet tooth and making your body
healthier at the same time. And you can tell your “honey attacker” the sweet truth about
honey. Honey is healthy.
If you’d like to discover how to start beekeeping, and get your own honey, check
out our online beekeeping class by visiting the link below:
www.BeeHelp.com
References:
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