Winnie the Pooh knew what he was doing when he made honey his go to comfort food. Honey is a natural form of sugar. For those of you who count your calories you may think that honey isn't your sweetener of choice considering that a tablespoon of honey has 64 calories and a tablespoon of raw sugar only has 15 calories. However, I encourage you to consider all of the benefits of honey before making your choice. Honey is a natural source of energy, vitamin C, vitamin A, vitamin E, calcium, and iron. The extensive list of benefits include honey playing a role in the following: improving athletic performance, weight loss, antibacterial and anti-fungals, digestion, antioxidants, wound management, skin care, cancer prevention, sleep aides, and inflammation. I'll briefly elaborate on a couple of these benefits, starting with its role in weight loss. It has been discovered that dissolving honey in hot water helps the body to burn its fat storages. This fat is converted to energy. The second I'll mention is one that was new to me, honey being an antiseptic. Honey can be used not only to treat external bacterial and fungal infections but can also be used to treat internal ones. This is another reason to drink some tea with honey in order to help soothe and hinder the growth of the bacteria that causes illnesses such as the common sore throat. An example of an internal infection honey can help treat is a yeast infection. Along with fighting off infection, honey can also help stimulate wound tissues to heal faster by providing a moist environment, which also reduces the development of scar tissue. The thick consistency of honey also prevents any foreign invaders from entering into the wound. Raw honey contains the most benefits because it's unpasteurized. However, although most honeys found at grocery stores have been filtered, this honey still contains numerous benefits. The most beneficial form of honey seems to be Manuka honey, which is a honey from New Zealand. The darker the honey, the healthier it is. Now find me a refined sugar that can compete with honey, you can't. Oh the sweet taste of victory.
References:
Honey: The Liquid Gold
Health Benefits of Honey
