What Are The Health Benefits Of Raw Honey

Health Benefits of Raw Honey

Raw honey is something you see in many DIY recipes and healthy food recipes. Unfortunately, most of these recipes do not tell you why the honey is added or the benefits it will have to your body as a whole.

This may leave you wondering why you should add it, why you should use specifically raw honey, and what benefits it is going to give to your body. Here are a few of the answers that may help you choose raw honey in the future.

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All-In-One

One of the leading benefits of raw honey is that it is an all-in-one remedy that can replace several of your current supplements.

For example, if you are taking supplements for anti-inflammatory or for digestive issues and antioxidants than consider chucking them in the bin and going with just raw honey.

Raw honey is antibacterial, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, and is loaded with antioxidants. It even helps with digestive issues that range from constipation to upset stomachs and ulcers.

Reduction of Allergies

Allergies are an issue for many people, and some have them more severe than others. If you have to load up on allergy medicine every day just to get through your day without a headache, or if you are tired of being tired from the same medicine, then raw honey may be ideal.

You can use honey water on a daily basis, and it will start to have lasting effects within a few days to a few weeks. This does not help on its own.

You will need to make sure that you take additional steps, such as cleaning your home and vacuuming or using HEPA filters throughout your home to help reduce the allergy-causing agents as well.

Natural Energy

Natural energy is one of the key reasons that many people have turned to raw honey in their diet and especially in their weight loss journeys. You can take just a few spoonfuls of raw honey a day or add it to your coffee in the morning.

You’ll find after a few tries of this that you won’t need the costly and dangerous energy drinks you’ve been taking when your afternoon crash hits. You will also see an increase in energy before your workouts as well.

These benefits are the three main benefits that raw honey can offer you. Remember, raw honey is the purest and organic form you can buy.

If the honey is not raw, it may be cut with processed sugars and other preservatives that take away from the health benefits.

One way to check for raw honey is either looking on the label or buying honey that has a piece of the honeycomb in it.

How to Add More Raw Honey to Your Diet

You know that there are health benefits to raw honey, but you may not know the best ways to add it to your diet.

In fact, you may be concerned about adding it to certain foods because it may make them overly sweet. The truth is, there are three very easy ways to add raw honey to your diet and get the benefits that you need.

Adding to Your Morning Coffee or Tea

Instead of adding sugar to your coffee or tea, grab the raw honey instead. The trick to this is, if you use a coffeehouse or coffee chain to get your morning coffee, you will want to have your own raw honey on hand instead of theirs.

This is because most coffee shops do not store raw honey and use commercially processed honey instead.

Before you think this may be tougher than you think, consider that most health food stores do sell raw honey in straw form.

You can pack a few straws and take them with you in your purse or bag. The honey sticks equal about one teaspoon of raw honey and can easily be added after you order your coffee.

Use Instead of Syrup

If you have pancakes or waffles in the morning, or if you add syrup or sugar to your oatmeal, consider using raw honey instead.

You do not need as much of it to get the sweet flavor you are looking for. It also will give you the benefits you need throughout the day including a burst of energy.

Add to Energy Bars

One of the easiest ways to add raw honey to your diet is to make your own energy bars and use a daily serving of honey in each bar. This will make it easy for you to know how much you are getting in a serving.

It will also replace the sugars that you would normally use in the energy bars. Make sure you are making a superfood bar to increase the benefits. You can have this energy bar at lunch, for a snack, or as part of a dessert for your lunch.

These are the three easiest ways to add raw honey to your diet. Try these and expand the uses out to other foods and other points in your day. You may be surprised how easy it is to add it to your daily routine.

The Difference Between Regular and Raw Honey

When you see recipes with honey, you may be wondering why just grabbing a plastic bear full of the stuff won’t work as well. You may be wondering what the difference is and how to make sure you are choosing the right honey for the job.

You may also be wondering how to find the right raw honey and labeling differences to look for. Here are some of the differences to look for and why you need to look for them.

Pasteurization

One of the key differences between regular and raw honey is how it is processed. Regular honey is pasteurized and filtered.

This is done to prevent fermentation of the honey while it is sitting on the shelf waiting to be purchased or while it travels through different climates to the selling location.

One way to tell if the honey you are buying has been put through this process is to look at it simply. If it is clear, then it has gone through this process.

Real raw honey has a milky like the color and has small grains. These grains melt in hot water or hot liquid.

Check the Vitamins

One easy way to see if the raw honey you are buying is really raw is to check the nutrition label. The nutrition label will list what vitamins and nutrients, along with the percentages of each, are in the honey. If you don’t see any, or if certain ones like Vitamin B, aren’t listed then you know it isn’t raw.

Raw honey contains Vitamins A, C, D, E, and B-complex. Also, look for something called amylase. This is an enzyme you will only find in raw honey. This helps with digestion and stomach issues.

Antibacterial and Soothing

You can also test the honey by using it on sore throats and wounds. If it doesn’t work, or only helps for a few minutes, then you know it isn’t raw.

Overall, raw honey will work for several hours on a sore throat and will help with wound healing. It is evident if it is working or just putting a sugary substance on the infected area.

By keeping these three differences in mind, and what to look for, you can make the right choice between regular and raw honey. You can also begin using raw honey for the benefits to your health and not just the taste.

How to Use Honey for Weight Loss

Weight loss journeys are all different. Everyone has a different plan, a different goal, and different obstacles in their lives. One of the things that everyone can benefit from on their weight loss journey is honey.

Specifically, the benefits found in raw honey. If you are starting a weight loss journey, here are a few of the ways you can use it to help with that weight loss.

Honey Water

Drinking honey water in the morning and at night can help you boost your energy and your immune system. Having a healthy immune system is important during your weight loss journey.

As you change the foods, you eat and your lifestyle, you will notice that your energy level may drop and that you are having issues with getting sick.

Your body is adapting and trying to adapt to your new routine, and this can make it switch gears a little too quickly.

Honey water helps with that by delivering the raw nutrients of raw honey directly to your system in an easy to use a method.

Digestive Assistance

Your digestion during weight loss is equally as important as all the other focuses on your journey. As you change your diet and your routine, you will notice an increase in your bowels.

Unfortunately, this may not last, and you may start having issues with constipation due to the change in foods and an increase in supplements or energy bars.

If this is the case, you will need digestive assistance to keep things regular and to make sure that you aren’t bloated or retaining water.

Sugar Replacement

One of the foods that will prevent you from dropping the weight you want and from moving forward in your weight loss journey is sugar. Sugar can be in most of the foods you eat and can take a toll even when you think it isn’t.

For example, you may think that just having sugar in your coffee is fine, but that does add up. Instead, switch to honey and use it as a sugar replacement.

Try to stick to raw honey which has less of a processed sugar taste and gives you the nutrients you need.

By putting these three weight loss methods into action, where raw honey is concerned, you will start to notice that it is easier to drop the weight and to keep your sugar intake to a minimum.

You will also notice fewer cravings which can help during tougher points of the weight loss journey.

Honey Water 101

Honey water is a drink that you may have heard of, but you may know very little to nothing about it. The truth is honey water is easy to make, easy to mix, and offers many benefits especially for those people on a weight loss journey.

If you are thinking of using honey water or at least trying it, in your diet then consider these key points about the drink and how to use it properly.

Making Honey Water

Making honey water is very easy. The key thing to remember is the amount of honey you start with and that adding to that amount is okay after you taste it. You don’t want the water too sweet. It should not be like drinking sugar water.

Your first step is to boil water as if you are making tea. Remove the water from the heat and add one to two tablespoons of honey. If you measure this in grams, it should be between 15 and 30 grams. Adjust this to taste.

When to Take it and How

You can drink the water first thing in the morning or right after your coffee or tea. You can also drink it at other times during the day.

Some people using it for weight loss tend to drink it twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening before bed.

The key to using honey water is to drink it hot or at the very least warm. You need to drink it like a tea. Now, you may be wondering if you can add things to your honey water. You can.

You can add apple cider vinegar to help with cleansing, orange to give a boost of Vitamin C for your immune system, or even lemon. Ginger is also an additive that can help boost your immune system.

Increasing Weight Loss

Weight loss assistance is one reason that many people use honey water in their daily routine. It can help with digestive issues that may prevent or pose an obstacle to weight loss.

The water flushes the system, helps with constipation, and helps keep you regular so you aren’t holding onto extra weight or bloat.

It can also help reduce cravings for sugar which is an issue for many people on their weight loss journey. Energy during weight loss can also be an issue, and raw honey does offer natural energy to boost properties.

This is just the basic information regarding honey water. Keep in mind, by starting to use this water daily you will notice a difference in your body. Make sure to note those differences and adjust the honey water accordingly.

Juice Recipes With Raw Honey

If you have been juicing, then you may already have your juicing routine down. In fact, most people who juice stick to one or two recipes that work well for them.

If this sounds like you, but your juicing is starting to get a bit old, and you want to boost it, then you may be wondering the best way to make a change that helps but isn’t dramatic.

One way you can do this is to add raw honey to your juicing. Here are a few recipes that you can try and see how they work for you.

Energy Boosting Juice with Raw Honey

Raw honey is known as a natural energy-boosting agent. This is even better if you mix it with other energy-boosting superfoods in a morning juice. This juice can be made easily with cucumbers, apple, and raw honey.

Simply juice down the apple and cucumber as you would normally do. Strain the juice if necessary and add raw honey. This gives you a hydration boost with the cucumbers being over 90 percent water.

It also gives you the energy from the honey and the vitamins and minerals from the apples. It is easy, and easy to find all of the ingredients year-round. You can even grow cucumbers indoors if you want.

Digestive Boosting Juice with Raw Honey

Orange, aloe vera and spinach can make powerful digestive juice. It can help flush your system and keep it regular. It can also get you back to a regular digestive tract depending on your needs.

The problem with this juice is that some people can taste too much of the spinach or feel like the aloe vera makes the drink to dilute.

If this is the case, you can add raw honey to the juice. It will offer more digestive boosters and help flavor the drink to cover the spinach or the dilution that you may taste on the first try.

Immune Boosting Juice with Raw Honey

Immune boosting juices are popular during cold and flu season or when you start or change your diet routine. For that reason, most people want the most potent immune-boosting juice they can find.

One of the easiest juices is carrot, apple, and orange. All three of these have immune-boosting properties, but adding raw honey to the mix can give it even more. You can find all of the ingredients year-round and all are fairly inexpensive.

These three juice recipes are based on very common and easy to make juices. Regardless of where you are located, you should be able to find these ingredients year-round and adjust the recipes accordingly to your tastes.

Herbal Teas That Taste Great With Honey

If you are a tea drinker, you may be wondering what teas you can easily add honey too without making them too sweet. Though there are the traditional black teas, there are other teas that taste great with honey.

Here are a few of those teas and how you can easily make them yourself or how to make them without having them turn out too sweet.

Fruit Based Teas

Most fruit-based herbal teas taste great with honey. You can make these yourself fairly easily by just using citrus-based fruits or dried fruits like strawberries. Boil water, add the fruits, and then add some raw honey.

You can drain it if necessary or eat the fruit. You can also buy fruit loose leaf tea blends that are easy to mix with honey and easy to store.

Though you can buy pre-bagged fruit teas, finding a loose leaf option or making your own is best because it gives you the whole fruits and not just the powdered processed versions. This means you are getting more of the benefits.

Chamomile

Chamomile is known for its calming effects, but sometimes the taste may not be ideal. In fact, if you have an upset stomach or if you are giving it to a teenager, the taste may be off-putting. If that is the case, then adding honey may be ideal.

You will not only get the benefits of the chamomile, but you will also gain the digestive benefits of the honey which can calm your body and help soothe your stomach. This can help you sleep better and make the tea palatable.

Green Tea

If you are on a weight loss journey, then you probably already use green tea in your daily routine. Even if you use it once a week or more, you may know that the taste can be a bit bitter.

This is especially true if you are using green tea that is a loose-leaf or organic option instead of pre-bagged cheaper options.

You may be using sugar to help offset this taste, but even then it doesn’t do much to mask the bitterness. What can help, and can boost the weight loss properties of your green tea, is to add raw honey.

Major brands have already proven how well honey works with green tea in iced tea formulas, and the same can be said for hot tea as well.

If you are concerned with adding honey to your tea when you are on the go, consider carrying raw honey sticks with you.

They are easy to carry, easy to store, and can easily be added to any of the tea you order while out. You can also get flavored raw honey sticks as well that can add cinnamon or other flavors.

Natural Ways to Boost Your Immune System

Boosting your immune system isn’t something that is reserved for colder months of the year. Anytime the seasons change you should boost your immune system.

You should also keep it boosted off and on throughout the year as you make changes to your routine, your diet, or following a trip.

When you are trying to boost your system, you may be inclined to grab an over the counter option, but those options have far too many preservatives and chemicals.

There are natural ways to boost the immune system that you should consider first.

Citrus Fruits and Juicing

One of the immediate ways you can boost your immune system is to add citrus fruits to your daily routine. If you feel like you would have to add too many, then juicing is the way to go.

All you have to do is add oranges, lemon, and some other citrus fruits and create a juice. If you want to boost the immune qualities that citrus provides, then you should consider adding a tablespoon of raw honey.

This won’t make the drink too sweet, and it will give you not only the vitamins of the citrus but the immune properties of the raw honey.

Replace Sugars with Raw Honey

Most people drink either hot coffee or hot tea at least once a day. In fact, most of the people who drink a hot drink tend to add sugar to the beverage.

This can add up, especially when you are doing it a tablespoon at a time. In fact, it can derail your weight loss plans, and it can damage the benefits you are trying to get from other immune-boosting agents.

Instead, use raw honey in place of sugar. With each tablespoon, you are gaining more immune-boosting properties and helping your digestive system remove toxins from your body that can cause bacteria and viruses.

One Vegan Meal a Day

You may not think about this as something that can help, but try to eat one vegan meal a day. This can be your juice in the morning, or it can be your lunch or dinner. Just make sure that one full meal is 100% vegan.

This will help you boost the fruits and vegetables in your diet as well as the nuts and oils that will boost your immune system and digestive properties.

This will help keep your body going and help keep your energy up during immune degrading times of the year like cold and flu season.

These are the three most common natural immune boosters. They are also the easiest to find and can be found in most stores, both general and health food-based.

Raw Honey vs. Bee Pollen

When you start buying supplements, you may be buying them based on what you know of them. This is fine until you have a cabinet full of supplements and you haven’t cross-referenced them to see what they do and if you are overlapping some of the supplements you are taking.

One of the confusing supplement options is bee pollen. If you are already using raw honey, then you may want to know what benefit bee pollen will have.

Here is what you should know about the differences between each.

Fatigue Reduction

One of the key points to note between raw honey and bee pollen is what it can do for fatigue levels. If you suffer from chronic fatigue issues, then you may want to take bee pollen over raw honey.

Yes, raw honey does help with an energy boost, but it does not help with long term fatigue issues and the root causes of those issues.

So the difference in this area is that raw honey is a quick fix to energy-boosting like boosting energy in the afternoon when you start to feel tired or before a workout.

Bee pollen is more of a long term option that can be taken daily for CFS issues.

Allergy Reduction

Raw honey is something you can use in your daily routine to help reduce allergy symptoms. This does help during allergy seasons to boost your immune system and to boost your reduction to allergy-causing agents like pollen.

However, if you have long term issues, then you may find bee pollen is an ideal option. Just like with fatigue issues, bee pollen helps with long term effects instead of instant or relatively instant effects of raw honey.

Most people that use honey for allergy issues do use both in some mixture throughout the day.

Production

One of the key things to remember about the difference between raw honey and bee pollen is how it is produced. Raw honey is produced over time by bees.

Bee pollen is the flower pollen that bees carry with them during the pollination process. In essence, bee pollen is the pollen that creates the honey while the honey is the end product of the pollination process.

By keeping these three key points in mind, you can make the better choice on which one you want to take and how you want to mix it into your daily routine.

You may find that taking both works, or that taking one or the other at different parts of the year works best.

Health Benefits of Bee Pollen

Bee pollen can be found in raw form, capsules, and sometimes in liquid drops. You may be wondering how this type of supplement can help you in your daily routine.

You may also want to know what the best way to take the supplement is. Here are a few of the health benefits, what you should know about bee pollen, and how it may help you in your daily routine.

Allergy Reduction

One of the key benefits of bee pollen is the help it offers with allergy reduction. Specifically, it can help with respiratory issues and breathing problems related to allergies.

These allergies may be to dog hair, dander, the environment, or to pollen in your environment. By taking the bee pollen capsules daily, you can help clear your breathing and make it easier to breathe in and out through your normal allergy issues.

Though it will not stop the allergies, it can be an effective alternative to over the counter allergy pills that cause drowsiness and other related issues.

Fatigue Reduction

If you have issues with chronic fatigue, then you know how difficult fatigue can be. You know that it is not something you can just sleep off or take an energy drink for.

In fact, chronic fatigue can lead to other issues including soreness, muscle issues, and trouble sleeping.

By taking bee pollen on a regular basis, you can help reduce these issues and make the chronic issues easier to deal with and easier to manage. This is especially ideal if you work out of the home and need some additional assistance getting through the day.

Digestive Assistance

Your digestion can affect so many things in your life including your weight loss goals, pain from bloating, and the frequency to which you get sick or ill.

This can be incredibly difficult when you have weight loss goals or during cold and flu season.

Bee pollen can help keep your digestion running smoothing and regularly. It can also help soothe issues with painful intestines or with sour stomach issues that can cause further problems.

You can take bee pollen in conjunction with raw honey to help boost your digestive tract during rougher times of the year or during times when your digestive system is having increased issues due to dietary changes.

These are only three of the key points related to the health benefits of bee pollen. There are other benefits you can explore based on your weight loss needs.