Health Benefits Of Honey

I remember as a kid, whenever I would get a sore throat, the first thing my mother would do would be to boil up some water and throw in a little lemon juice and a heaping tablespoon of honey. I didn't ask her why, but I do know that 9 out of 10 times after I'd finish that yummy mixture, my sore throat was gone. Later on in life, as I started to study the health benefits of many foods, I discovered just what it was in the mixture that got rid of my sore throat.

Honey is probably one of natures most wonderful foods. Naturally, this also depends on the quality of the honey itself. Not all honeys are alike so you really have to do your due diligence when buying honey.

The biggest problem with finding a really good honey is that the process by which the bees make honey greatly depends on the flowers from which the pollen is collected. Some plants are better than others and so naturally, some honey is going to be better than others.

Raw honey, in its purest form, which means not adulterated by additives that some companies feel they have to put in, is a powerful anti bacterial and anti fungal substance. Honey is a great energy source and a terrific substitute for processed sugar, which is just plain bad for your health.

But here's something about honey that few people know. Honey is actually great for applying topically and healing wounds. Honey has been used to treat ulcers and burns for many years in a number of areas around the world. The United States, which unfortunately has become a "go to your doctor" society, is totally oblivious to the wound healing properties of honey.

The reason that honey is such a great healer is because it is composed mostly of glucose and fructose. These two sugars strongly attract water. So what happens is that honey absorbs the water out of the wound, thus drying it up. It is so simple how it works, yet so incredibly effective.

But the most effective use of honey is internally. Just taking one spoon of honey a day will be enough to eliminate most of the free radicals in your body. The reason for this is because honey raises the levels of antioxidant compounds in your body. Many controlled studies have been done to show that people on a daily regiment of honey, when given blood tests at the end of the study, showed higher levels of antioxidants.

And if all this isn't enough, honey is absolutely delicious. Like I said, not all honey is the same and you really have to shop around. You want to look for a honey that is as natural as possible. Your best bet is with your local health food store, though even there you have to be careful.

The health benefits of honey are numerous. And it tastes great too.

It's almost like heaven on Earth.

To YOUR Health!