Humans have known the benefits of raw honey since centuries. From fitness to beauty, a glowing skin to strong immunity, from soothing sore throats to helping heal wounds, raw honey benefits are many and varied.
1. Honey contains antioxidants
Honey contains protective, polyphenolic antioxidants, as found by researchers at the University of California in a study.
In the simplest of terms, antioxidants are naturally occurring molecular compounds that fight free radicals responsible for premature ageing and various types of illness.
The polyphenols found in raw honey may be able to keep off heart disease and several other illnesses.
2. Honey is a natural energy booster
Honey contains natural sugar. This natural sugar provides an instant energy spike to your body. This will keep you from feeling tired or exhausted after or during exercise.
The combination of glucose and fructose in honey produce a unique effect. The human body can swiftly absorb glucose and it is carried in the blood throughout the body. This gives an immediate boost to your energy. Fructose, on the other hand, is absorbed by your blood over a longer time. As a result, it provides you energy for a longer time.
3. Honey improves memory
The effects of honey on human memory are positive. More than one study found that consumption of honey improved memory, especially the spatial memory.
The positive effect on memory is also indirect. Honey helps you calm down and prevent stress, which, in turn, improves retention. Finally, it strengthens those areas of your brain (technically called the cholinergic system) that regulate sensory processing, attention and sleep.
4. Honey helps in weight loss
One of the benefits of honey that is of particular interest for the current generation is the effect honey has on diet intake and weight management.
A study says eating honey can help keep in check your desire to eat. Popularly, honey mixed in lemon and warm water in the morning helps burn fat.
5. Honey heals wounds
The unique composition of honey helps in multiple ways.
The antioxidants in honey help you heal wounds. Using honey in dressing can not only speed up healing but also lead to better healing.
Also, the extremely low moisture content of raw honey and its low pH (approximately 3.5 to 4) are big deterrents to microbial growth. Most microbes cannot live or reproduce in these conditions.
6. Honey soothes your sore throat
The natural antibacterial properties of raw honey can help you in many ways and soothing a sore throat is just one of them.
Just mix two spoonfuls of honey in a glass of warm water, mix it well and drink it.
7. Honey alleviates dandruff issues
As you probably know, dandruff is associated with dry scalp.
The natural sugar in pure honey is a natural humectant. Humectants are substances or ingredients that are great at preserving moisture. Raw honey, because of this property, can prevent loss of moisture from your hair and thus ensure you don’t have an unduly dry scalp.
8. Honey balances the two cholesterol
Most people today know our bodies have two types of cholesterol: LDL and the HDL. The LDL is bad for you while HDL is good for you.
A study found that raw honey lowered the LDL (bad cholesterol) and raised the level of HDL (good cholesterol). The same study also reported a reduction in weight.
9. Honey helps in digestion
While there is still some research pending as to how exactly honey helps digestion, the relationship is believed to be positive.
Pure, unadulterated, and unprocessed honey has prebiotic content. Prebiotics are compounds that contribute to the growth as well as functioning of helpful microorganisms in your body. These helpful, friendly microorganisms are commonly known as probiotics. (Source)
10. Honey improves your immunity
A study by Michigan State University found that the honey builds a strong immunity system. Immunity is your body’s ability that stops you from falling ill.
This immunity in raw honey comes from its antioxidants that have been mentioned elsewhere in this article too. Particularly, the sugar nigerooligosaccharides present in honey strengthens your immunity system.
11. Honey has important antibacterial and antifungal properties
Just like harmful bacteria, fungi also can cause various illnesses and health issues in your body. For instance, ailments like allergic and asthamtic problems, itching, athlete’s foot are caused by fungal infection.
Unprocessed, raw honey of certain types possess strong antibacterial and antifungal properties.
12. Honey can lower fats contributing to heart disease
A type of fats called lipids are found in human blood and one of them is triglycerides.
Triglycerides are the calories your body stores for future use. When your body doesn’t burn enough calories these unused triglycerides begin hardening your artery walls, which can lead to heart diseases.
As per a study, raw honey that is not pasteurised or processed can lower triglycerides and thereby may contribute in preventing heart diseases.
13. Honey might help you sleep better
This is one of those home remedies that has been quite popular. What’s more, even some doctors seem to agree.
If you have trouble falling asleep in the night, just add one teaspoon of pure honey in a glass or warm milk and drink it. It is believed that honey releases neurotransmitters that improve your mood and help you sleep better and longer.
14. Honey is good for your skin
Honey, as mentioned earlier, helps retain moisture. As a result, you can apply it on dry patches of skin, say elbows, to restore the normal moisture of your skin. A healthy moisture in skin adds a natural glow to your skin.
Besides, honey is also used as an exfoliator. What’s more, face masks prepared with honey are quite popular too.
15. Honey is good for respiratory infections
Oxford University researchers compared the effect of honey on upper respiratory tract infections (URI) with the effect of common OTC drugs and found that honey achieved better results in intensity and frequency of coughing.
Summary
Apart from the benefits mentioned above, raw and pure honey is known to have many more benefits. That includes bad breath, acidity, stress, gums, sinus, arthritis and so on.
All this is not surprising, considering the various antioxidants, antioxidants and antibacterial ingredients of pure honey as also its special characteristics. From helping sleep to good skin, from fighting dandruff to cough, from improving your immunity to providing instant energy, the benefits of eating pure honey are truly unique.
Before we end, it’s important to remember two things with respects to these benefits.
One, always make sure you contact an expert before you make any major changes in your food habits by including honey. And two, remember that only pure, unprocessed raw honey can give you these benefits. Adulterated or processed honey is often nothing more than sugary solution and can bring you no real benefits.
So be sure to always buy your honey from a trusted source.
Meanwhile, enjoy your delicious honey and stay healthy!
References:
- ResearchGate: Honey and antioxidants
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, USA: Honey and Memory
- Taylor & Francis, UK Honey and weightloss
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, USA Honey and dandruff
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, USA Honey and cholesterol
- Michigan State University College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, USA Honey and immunity
- Hindawi Journals and Articles, UK Honey and antibacterial properties
- Evidence Based Medicine, UK Honey and respiratory infections
- Public Medicine, National Center for Biotechnology Information, USA Honey and triglycerides
- Penn Medicine, Pennsylvania Hospital, USA Honey and sore throat
- Vice Media Group, USA Honey and dandruff
Naturally, it’s important that you eat only unprocessed, unadulterated raw honey. If the honey you eat is pasteurized, has been heated or contains artificial flavors, it’s almost certain that the honey has been stripped of nearly all its nutritional value.
If you want to enjoy the genuine health benefits of honey, along with its genuine taste, you should buy only from a trusted source.
