Honey, What's so sweet about it?

Honey, what so sweet about it? The only known human food source manufactured solely by animals. Bees’ require the nectar nearly two-million flowers to produce one pound of the sweet golden syrup we call honey. “The most concentrated natural source of sweetness is Honey, the stored food of a certain species of bees. It can reach up to 80% sugars.”(Mc Gee, Harold) A thick golden syrup that can be separated from its edible bees’ wax honeycomb or left in it. One of the longest lasting food sources on earth, Honey has a long history and a healthful reputation, there’s no wonder it’s called “The Nectar of Gods”. 

It is probable that honey was introduced as a food source by the nomadic peoples of Central Asia ( Tannahill, Reay) But did those nomads know of all the benefits that this sweet liquid gold possesses? Realizing first that honey has sweet succulent flavor, and then the lift or energy one felt after consuming it caused them to desire more. Since then, humans have had an insatiable need for sugar and sweeteners, so much that over the last ten thousand years, we have gone to great lengths to collect this golden nectar. Honey bees’ have stingers and are extremely protective of their hives. Rock paintings found in caves in Valencia, Spain dating back as far as 8000 BCE and Egyptian tomb reliefs dating back to the 3000 BCE show people collecting honey by smoking bees out of their nests.
History shows us that honey became a staple in society after the domestication of the Bee with the advent of artificial hives in approximately 2500 BCE. As society and technology have advanced, so has our ability to collect, utilize, and store food sources such as honey. Most store bought honey is heated to kill off any spoilage yeast and to dissolve any glucose crystals that may have formed. “Like invert syrup, honey is very sweet, browns easily, and has the ability to keep baked goods and icings soft and moist” (Figoni, Paula). In modern society we enjoy honey in many different forms such as comb honey which is sold as is, in the edible bees’ wax comb. Most popular in the United States is Liquid honey, drained from its comb and strained, mostly free of visible crystals, especially when fresh. Cut comb honey is liquid honey with chunks of the comb added to it. Naturally Crystalized Honey has glucose that naturally and spontaneously crystalized, sold without straining. Whipped or Creamed honey is brought to the market in a controlled crystallization state that makes this style of honey easily spreadable at room temperature.

More interesting and healthful than traditional beet or cane sugar, the variations in color and the flavor of honey are truly limitless depending on the bees’ and the flowers of their respective regions. Flavor and color are in direct correlation to the nectars source. Generally speaking, the darker the honey is in color the stronger the flavor. The flavor and name depend on the flower source that the bees are frequenting. Some of the more popular ones in the Americas are Orange Blossom, Sage, Alfalfa, Strawberry, Clover, and Lavender, with the exotic imports being more rare and pricey. “Many expensive specialty honeys are available but they should be considered flavoring agents.” (Figoni, Paula) You can infuse different honeys’ together with other flavors and fruits to make an even more unique combination of sweetness. Bakers and Gourmands alike love it’s unique sweetness so much that we substitute it for sugar on a regular basis. However, a teaspoon of honey weighs more than a teaspoon of white sugar and contains water and a slightly larger number of carbohydrates and calories.

Honey is a natural, more healthy source of sweetness, 39% fructose, 31% Glucose, 7% Maltose, 1.5% Sucrose and various amounts of the enzymes invertase and amylase. It also contains small amounts of all the B vitamins, potassium, calcium, vitamin C, phosphorus, sodium, and other minerals and antioxidants. “Unfortunately as an anaerobic environment, honey has the properties of being a good breeding ground for Clostridium Botulinum, the bacteria that are responsible for producing the botulin toxin.” (Wolk, Robert L.) This is why experts say you should never feed honey to infants or children under 12 months of age. Their bodies digestive systems can’t yet fight off the deadly bacterium that causes botulism as older children and adults can.

Probably the most unique properties of honey are being realized in the use of it as a natural medicine. “Honey pollen is shown to stimulate the reproductive system.” (Irons, Diane) and across the globe trials, tests and experiments are currently underway to see the effectiveness of honey and its unique composition of natural sugars, vitamins, enzymes, and minerals can be put to proper use in the medical field. Honey has been described in ancient and modern medicine as being effective in the healing of various infected wounds. “Honey is effective in the treatment of post-surgical wounds” (Vardi, A). A number of substances in honey also contribute to a sort of antimicrobial activity when properly used. Honey has the ability to help increase Cytokine production may explain it ability to heal. It is also showing up in more and more overt the counter medicines mostly for cough and sore throat, it has an uncanny ability to soothe, make you feel better and tastes awesome, better than cough syrup.

With such a large number of benefits, a wide array of uses and applications, it really is no wonder that this golden nectar of gods has such an awesome reputation between gourmands, health fanatics, and the medicinal world alike. Using it instead of sugar on a daily basis may increase your health, energy, stamina, and in all quite possibly your life. Now that’s Sweet.