Hi Honey

Yeah, not talking about Jessica Alba in the 2003 sleeper-hit “Honey”.

And not Honey Boo Boo from the TLC show.

I was thinking about the sweet-sticky stuff today because I am convinced the last few days my head has been ravaged by allergies. Fall time had always meant allergy time for me- until I moved to Southern California. Once I moved, the fall colors and the allergies that went with them disappeared. Until this year.

When Katie Bressack of Balanced Beings came by my house for a health eval, I allowed her to snoop through my cupboards. She had discovered my generic honey bear and mentioned casually that honey is not only great for you, but builds your immunity to allergies- if you are consuming raw honey from a local source that has a similar pollen profile to your environment.

This intrigued me, I decided to research a bit more about what honey can do for you. What I discovered, was pretty amazing.

There are articles by homeopathic and natural remedy websites, as one would suspect. There are also articles from BBC, CNN, and WebMD.

Most of the natural healing sites claim that honey can heal these various ailments (from http://www.naturalnews.com):

BURNS – Apply freely over burns. It cools, removes pain and aids fast healing without scarring. Apart from being a salve and an antibiotic, bacteria simply cannot survive in honey.

BED WETTING – A teaspoon of honey before bed aids water retention and calms fears in children.

INSOMNIA – A dessertspoon of honey in a mug of warm milk aids sleep and works wonders.

HYPERACTIVITY – Replace all use of white sugar with honey. White sugar is highly stimulating with no food qualities. Honey provides the energy without the “spike.”

NASAL CONGESTION – Place a dessertspoon of honey in a basin of water and inhale fumes after covering your head with a towel over the basin. Very effective!

FATIGUE – Dissolve a dessertspoon of honey in warm water or quarter honey balance of water in a jug and keep in the fridge. Honey is primarily fructose and glucose, so it’s quickly absorbed by the digestive system. Honey is a unique natural stabilizer: Ancient Greek athletes took honey for stamina before competing and as a reviver after competition.

FACIAL DEEP CLEANSER – Mix honey with an equal quantity of oatmeal, and apply as a face pack. Leave on for half an hour, then wash it off. Great as a deep cleanser for acne and other unwanted blemishes.

POOR DIGESTION – Mix honey with an equal quantity of apple cider vinegar and dilute to taste with water. This is also wonderful for the joints – and promotes weight loss.

HAIR CONDITIONER – Mix honey with an equal quantity of olive oil, cover head with a warm tower for half an hour then shampoo off. Feeds hair and scalp. Your hair will never look or feel better!

SORE THROATS – Let a teaspoon of honey melt in the back of the mouth and trickle down the throat. Eases inflamed raw tissues.

FOR STRESS – Honey in water is a stabilizer, calming highs and raising lows. Use approximately 25 percent honey to water.

ANEMIA – Honey is the best blood enricher by raising corpuscle content. The darker the honey, the more minerals it contains.

FOOD PRESERVATIVE – If you replace the sugar in cake and cookie recipes with honey, they’ll stay fresher longer due to honey’s natural antibacterial properties. Reduce liquids in the mixture by about one-fifth to allow for the moisture present in the in honey.

BABY’S BOTTLE – Four teaspoons of honey to a baby’s bottle of water is an excellent pacifier and multivitamin additive. If the baby’s motions are too liquid, then reduce the honey by half a teaspoon; if too solid increase by half a teaspoon. (Caution: Don’t give raw honey to babies under 1 year old; it’s just too rich.) For teething, honey rubbed on a baby’s gums is also a mild sedative and anesthetic.

OSTEOPOROSIS – Research has shown that a teaspoon of honey per day aids calcium utilization and prevents osteoporosis – probably not a bad idea for anyone over 50.

LONGEVITY – The most long-lived people in the world are all regular users of honey. An interesting fact, yet to be explained, is that beekeepers suffer less from cancer and arthritis than any other occupational group worldwide.

MIGRAINE – Use a dessertspoon of honey dissolved in half a glass of warm water. Sip at the start of a migraine attack, and, if necessary, repeat after another 20 minutes.

CONJUNCTIVITIS – Dissolve honey in an equal quantity of warm water. When cooled, apply as a lotion or eye bath.

COUGH MIXTURE – Combine 6 ounces (170 grams) liquid honey, 2 ounces (55 grams) glycerin and the juice of two lemons. Mix well. Bottle and cork firmly, and use as required.

Have you ever used honey for these purposes? I know honey tastes good- who knew it could be so good? My next order of business is to search out raw, local honey. The Farmer’s Market may be my next stop!

To see the beauty of the honey harvest, watch this very pretty video:

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