Honey is a sweet ‘food’ (a natural source of sugar) made by bees using nectar from flowers, and has been a staple ingredient for thousands of years for its benefits as both a food and a medicine.
Honey has approximately the same relative sweetness as that of granulated sugar. Most microorganisms do not grow in honey and it can be stored safely at room temperature, making it a great preparedness ‘food’ for your food storage.
How Much Sugar In Honey?
Natural bee honey contains about 80% sugar, 17% water, and some minerals and vitamins.
38% Fructose (releases energy slower, needs no insulin from pancreas to be processed)
31% Glucose (immediate energy, needs insulin from the pancreas for metabolizing)
7.1% Maltose (malt sugar)
1.3% Sucrose (sugar)
17% Water
Processed Honey
Did you know that more than three-fourths of the honey sold in U.S. grocery stores is not exactly what the bees produce?
Typically, much of the honey found in grocery stores has been processed in one way or another – having removed the pollen itself and/or having been ‘watered down’ with other ingredients – but still labeled “honey.”
Without pollen there is no way to determine whether the honey actually came from legitimate and safe sources. Some of it might not even be honey as you perceive honey to be…
To be better assured of getting ‘real’ organic honey, you might consider looking for pure & natural local honey (to support your local community). Natural honey will vary in taste depending on the local region, season, and what the bees are feeding on (the variety of flowers, etc..).
Raw honey may change its consistency over time, sometimes crystallizing. Don’t worry though – the honey is still ‘good’. Warm it up and the crystals will dissolve (place the container in a pan of very warm water for awhile).
Benefits From Honey
Honey is a natural source of sugar, providing energy, sweetness, and is much better for you than processed table sugar.
Used while cooking, baking
Add to tea for sweetener
Spread on bread or toast (yum!)
Obvious uses for most any sugar substitute
Will store indefinitely
Antibacterial
Antioxidant
Cough Suppressant
Helps insomnia
Helps upset Stomach
Better than white sugar for blood sugar regulation
Wounds and burns
Will Eating Local Raw Honey Help My Allergies?
No, not so much. It is apparently mostly a myth that consuming locally procured honey will help you build up a tolerance to allergies.
According to WebMD.com, The pollen blowing in the wind (released by non-flowering trees, weeds, and grasses) are what triggers springtime allergies, not the pollen in flowers carried by bees. So even local honey won’t have much, if any, of the type of pollen setting off your allergies.
CAUTION
It is advisable NOT to feed honey to infants.
Honey is a sugar. Do not eat jars full of it.
Like any sugar, too much honey will put you on a sugar ‘high’ and subsequent ‘low’.
High caloric content.
While I buy local honey when I can find it, I have also purchased the following ‘pure’ honey several times now, and am still satisfied.
Ambrosia Pure Honey From Colorado’s Western Slope
Some comments and tips:
Manuka honey has a greater concentration of antibacterial properties. It’s a lot more expensive, but would be a great addition to a wound/burn care kit. UMF of at least 10+, but ideally 15+ or better.
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Some of the store bought honey has water added. Tip the bottle and if it runs fast it has water.
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If you plan on purchasing honey for long term storage I would recommend transferring the honey out of the plastic bottles into canning jars. Over time as the plastic degrades who knows what chemicals are imparted into the honey. In the past, other items that we have stored in their original plastic containers have taken on an off flavor. We even had some ibuprofen take on the taste of soap just because it was stored next to bars of soap for a couple of years. Which also makes me think that the plastic over time allows the penetration of strong chemical scents.
Start now to make sure you are staying prepared.
Via: modernsurvivalblog
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