Honey & Health: All raw honey is considered beneficial to good health. The best way to ensure that your body is benefiting from the honey you are consuming, is by consuming it ‘as is’. Like any other food, raw honey should be consumed in moderation and in the right way. According to Ayurveda, a adult should limit the consumption of honey to 3-4 teaspoons per day.
Honey for diabetics: Honey is known to balance blood sugar levels. If you are diabetic, whose blood sugar is under control, then you will more than likely be allowed by your dietician to consume honey. But, you should consult your physician or dietician on how to include raw honey as part of your carbohydrate intake and how much of raw honey you can consume.
Honey for allergies: If you are prone to allergies, consult your allergist before you consume honey.
Heated honey and health: Do not make heated honey a part of your regular diet. If it must be mixed with water, then the water must be either room temperature or lukewarm. Exposing the honey to heat and moisture destroys almost all of its beneficial properties. When honey is heated, it’s chemical composition shifts from being exceptionally life giving, to becoming deleterious to good health. In Ayurveda, it is said that consuming honey that is treated with heat or mixed with hot food and drink causes ‘Ama’ or accumulation of undigested matter causing digestive issues. The chemicals generated by heating honey tend to adhere to mucous linings in the digestive system and obstructs nutrients from food being absorbed by body cells and also obstructs proper discharge of wastes.
People in Sports: Due to its high carbohydrate content, Honey is a natural and one of the most effective energy boosters, making it an excellent source of energy for people in sports. The glucose in honey provides an instant surge of energy as it is absorbed quickly by the body and the fructose is absorbed slowly therefore providing a more consistent release of energy.
Honey for Children: Please note that honey shouldn’t be given to children below the age of 12 months. In the extremely rare chance that the Clostridium botulinum bacteria is present in honey, the intestines of babies are not developed enough to fight the bacteria.
However, honey is beneficial for young children (as long they are not allergic to honey). Honey is said to be excellent for strengthening of the brain, the immune system and is an excellent source of energy.
What is in honey?
Honey consists of roughly 18% water and the rest are carbohydrates, amino acids, enzymes, organic acids, flavonoids, vitamins and minerals. The presence of phytonutrients imparts excellent antibacterial & anti-inflammatory properties to the honey. Each honey varietal has its own special twist that is more beneficial in certain ways, than other honey varietals. Generally speaking, darker honey varietals are more rich in antioxidants than lighter honey. These antioxidants come from
Significance of Antioxidants: Antioxidants protect body cells against damage caused by free radicals. To protect yourself from disease, it is important to have a balance between free radicals and antioxidants in the body. Free radicals are molecules with one unpaired electron. This makes them highly reactive and they take electrons from other molecules to become a pair and this continues like a chain reaction. This can help in destroying pathogens that cause infection. But, excess of free radicals can destroy healthy cells and cause oxidative stress. This can cause diabetes, cancer, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s among other diseases. When there enough antioxidants there is balance between free radicals and antioxidants because an antioxidant is capable of giving up an electron to the free radicals and yet remain stable.
Ayurveda and Honey
In Ayurveda, raw honey is used for external applications and also for internal consumption. It is used in medicinal preparations for its own beneficial properties or to offset certain side effects of the ingredients used and create a balance in the concoction. Raw honey is best consumed by those whose constitution is predominantly Vata and is taken in moderation if your constitution is predominantly Pitta. Consult an ayurvedic practitioner to figure out if your constitution is Vata, Pitta or Vayu or a combination of.
Raw honey was used to treat problems with memory, wounds, eye infections, coughs, cold, obesity, blood pressure, blood sugar, digestive and bowel issues, bleeding, bone health in women, among others.
Go ahead and check out The Honey Company™ range of raw honey varietals for the health benefits they could provide. Or just enjoy the wide diversity of Indian honey with a grand range of flavours that cover sweet, tangy, floral, pungent, fruity, citrus, spicy, bitter, woody, herby and few others.
There’s the Black Wild Forest Raw Honey from forests of Nepal, Kashmir Tulsi Raw Honey from Kashmir, India, Tulsi Raw Honey from Fields of Tulsi in UP & MP, India, Neem Raw Honey from Rajasthan, India and others listed below.