HEALTH BENEFITS OF HONEY

HEALTH BENEFITS OF HONEY

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.

Honey for allergies

The idea behind honey treating allergies is similar to that of a person getting allergy shots. But while allergy shots have been proven to be effective, honey hasn’t. When a person eats local honey, they are thought to be ingesting local pollen. Over time, a person may become less sensitive to this pollen. As a result, they may experience fewer seasonal allergy symptoms.

It’s true that bees pollinate flowers and make honey. But the amounts of pollen from the environment and plants are thought to be very small and varied. When a person eats local honey, they have no guarantee how much (if any) pollen they’re being exposed to. This differs from allergy shots that purposefully desensitize a person to pollen at standard measurements.

Honey can prevent us from cancer 

• Honey and cancer has a sustainable inverse relationship.
•  Carcinogensis is a multistep process and has multifactorial causes.
•  Among these are low immune status, chronic infection, chronic inflammation, chronic non healing ulcers, obesity, and so forth.
•  There is now a sizeable evidence that honey is a natural immune booster, natural anti-inflammatory agent, natural antimicrobial agent, natural cancer “vaccine,” and natural promoter for healing chronic ulcers and wounds.
•  Though honey has substances of which the most predominant is a mixture of sugars, which itself is thought to be carcinogenic, it is understandable that its beneficial effect as anticancer agent raises skeptics.
•  The positive scientific evidence for anticancer properties of honey is growing.
•  The mechanism on how honey has anticancer effect is an area of great interest. 
• Among the mechanisms suggested are inhibition of cell proliferation, induction of apoptosis, and cell-cycle arrest.

 Honey and cancer has sustainable inverse relationship in the setting of developing nations where resources for cancer prevention and treatment are limited.

Honey helps us with acne 

• Honey is an antiseptic: An antiseptic prevents the growth of disease causing organisms, AKA the bacteria in your pore.
•  Honey releases low levels of hydrogen peroxide that disinfects your skin.
•  Additionally, It’s high sugar concentration and acidic properties impair bacteria’s ability to replicate.
•  Applying an antiseptic to a fully developed pimple or a whitehead can stop the infection in your pore from getting worse.
• Honey also has anti-inflammatory qualities that help prevent the swelling and redness that can come from acne.
• Finally for those with dry skin, honey is a natural humectant, which preserves moisture in your skin and can prevent some peeling and dryness that other acne treatments can cause.

An amazing energy booster

"Honey is composed of a unique carbohydrate composition of natural sugars and trace amounts of antioxidants, enzymes, minerals, vitamins and amino acids, making it a smart, natural energy-filled afternoon snack," Dulan says. "In fact, for years, sports dietitians have recommended that athletes include pure honey into their pre-exercise meal or snack for that very reason."

How to Use Honey to Boost Energy

So what's the best way to use honey when you need a fast fix? 

Dulan shares her tips for portable, on-the-go meals and snacks:-

• Add a tablespoon of honey to 8 ounces of water for a budget-friendly energy drink.
• Mix honey with cream cheese or nut butter for an energy-boosting fruit and vegetable dip.
• Spread nut butter, honey and sliced bananas on a whole-wheat sandwich thin.
• If you have time to prepare food in advance, try this honey quinoa breakfast bake,honey peanut butter protein energy balls or honey-pecan salmon.

Works amazingly as memory booster

• Honey has tremendous healing properties and since times immemorial it has been found to cure tons of ailments. 
  It  is also called the inability to recall past events.
•  It can be temporary, permanent, short term or long term. The inability to recall the past evens could relate to distant past, near past or recent events. 
•  It is also referred to as amnesia which can be either total or partial memory loss.
• If you have recently started to forget things, or your are unable to recall things, you don’t know where did you put your keys, just forgot what did you eat this morning, unable to remember a phone No, or even the name of your mate at work etc, then most probably your memory has gone weak.
• There is nothing to worry about as most cases are not serious and can be treated easily. All you need is just take a few steps to get the job done. People’s experience and research shows that honey is a big booster for strengthening the weaker memory.

Helps perfectly in sleepless nights

• Honey can promote relaxation and help ease you to sleep at night.
•  The natural sugar found in honey raises our insulin slightly and allows tryptophan, the compound famous for making us sleepy after eating turkey at Thanksgiving, to enter our brains more easily.
•  Taking a spoonful of honey before bed can help you get restful sleep.

Helps in scrapes and cuts

Honey has antibacterial properties that prevent infection in minor abrasions. Plus, its thickness will protect against bacteria and dirt entering a wound. Simply dab a little honey onto your cut and cover with a bandage.

Excellent natural moisturizer

Honey not only attracts water but it helps absorb and retain it on hair and skin. Because of this, honey is added to countless shampoos, soaps and cosmetics. You can enjoy the moisturizing benefits of honey at home by stirring it up with milk for a facial, adding it to your bath water to soften skin, or mixing it with olive oil as a natural hair conditioner. You can even make your own moisturizing exfoliator: Just add sea salt or crushed oats to the honey and rub it on the body.

Honey is a natural humectant, meaning it draws moisture from the air into the skin and ensures it's retained it in the layers where it’s needed most for penetrating, long-lasting hydration.

Try it: Spread one teaspoon raw honey on clean, dry skin, and let sit for 15-20 minutes. Rinse with tepid water

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All images are taken from Google images.