Honey is best known for great healing. Its natural sugar content and the rich sources of nutrients makes it a great sweetener for coffee and sugar. Let’s study closely how it started gaining popularity for the variety of uses ancient people started centuries ago.
HONEY’S NUTRIENTS and HEALING PROPERTIES
Honey’s rich nutrients, enzyme and antioxidant content combined with its ability to thwart infections makes it a potent healer. From ancient time, honey has been known for its high nutritional and medicinal value. It is believed to be very beneficial for eyesight, reducing effects of poisoning, stopping hiccups, treating urinary tract disorders, worm infestations, nausea, vomiting, cleansing, healing wounds and many more healing properties.
Honey contain mainly carbohydrates, water, vitamins and minerals, including niacin, riboflavin, pantothenic acid, calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium and zinc.
Honey is also rich in enzymes, antioxidants and other phytonutrients. It also contains flavonoids and phenolic acids which act as antioxidants, scavenging and eliminating free radicals. These antioxidants substances found in honey have been responsible for the wound-healing properties of honey. Due to its wound-healing properties, honey has been used widely as an antiseptic therapeutic agent for treatment of ulcers, burns and wounds for centuries.
HOW HEALING of WOUND WORKS By USING HONEY
Due to its contents of glucose and fructose, which attract water, honey absorbs water from wound, drying it out so that the growth of bacteria and fungi are inhibited. Secondly, an enzyme called glucose oxidase found in raw honey, which if combined with water, produces hydrogen peroxide, a mild antiseptic for medication benefits.
BEAUTY BENEFITS Of HONEY
The vitamins, minerals and amino acids found in honey make it a wonderful beauty aid. It provides great nutritional value to the skin and hair and the effects will be seen if taken over a period of time. In fact if taken for longer period of time, it helps our skin to glow more radiantly, helps to reduce wrinkles, thus making us look younger.
Honey is also an excellent moisturizing agent and natural cleanser and therefore, popularly used in wide skin-cleansing formulations. It increases exfoliation or renewal of the skin cells that makes the skin softer and younger.
Other supplementary products of honey which are royal jelly, propolis have been used in beauty saloon as facial mask that command great prices due to its effective results for a more glowing skin.
OTHER HEALTH BENEFITS Of HONEY
Due to its ready availability of carbohydrates, honey provides instant energy sources if taken prior to exercises which improves performances. It helps in muscles recovery faster if taken after an exercises program.
Honey also increases the growth and activity of good bacteria in the gut. Results from recent studies show that taking honey with dairy products such as yogurt can enhance growth and viability of bifidobacteria.
Other benefits of honey are its anti-inflammatory actions which help in treating a sore throat.
HOW To TAKE HONEY As HEALTH SUPPLEMENT
Honey can be taken as it is in one tea spoon without mixing with water first thing in the morning or anytime in the day as you wish. For me I prefer to take honey as it is with royal jelly and propolis in the morning before breakfast and drink. It provides me with energy for the whole day with royal jelly as a good beauty aid and propolis a great antioxidant too. After a short period of time, my complexion improved tremendously with intake of honey and this motivated me to continue taking it knowing that it has high antioxidant and healing power too.
By: Janice H.
