Honey is a sweet food made by bees using néctar from flowers.
It is known as Honig in Dutch, Miele in Italian, Shahad in Hindi, Miel in French and Spanish, Mel in Portuguese, мед in Russian, and μελι in Greek. There is almost no part in the world where honey is not widely used and celebrated as a part of the cultural diet.
Honey has had a long history in human consumption, and is used in various foods and beverages as a sweetener and flavoring. It also has a role in religion and symbolism.
Humans apparently began hunting for honey at least 8,000 years ago, as evidenced by a cave painting in Valencia, Spain. The painting is a Mesolithic rock painting, showing two honey-hunters collecting honey and honeycomb from a wild bee nest.
In ancient Egypt, honey was used to sweeten cakes and biscuits, and was used in many other dishes. In the absence of sugar, Honey was an integral sweetening ingredient in Roman recipes.
The spiritual and therapeutic use of honey in ancient India is documented in both the Vedas and the Ayurveda texts, which were both composed at least 4000 years ago.
Some cultures believed honey had many practical health uses. It was used as an ointment for rashes and burns, and to help soothe sore throats when no other practices were available.
In Islam, there is an entire Surah in the Qur’na called an-Nahl (the Bee). According to hadith, Prophet Muhammad strongly recommended honey for healing purposes. The Qur'an promotes honey as a nutritious and healthy food. Below is the English translation of those specific verses.
"And thy Lord taught the Bee to build its cells in hills, on trees, and in (men's) habitations; Then to eat of all the produce (of the earth), and find with skill the spacious paths of its Lord: there issues from within their bodies a drink of varying colours, wherein is healing for men: verily in this is a Sign for those who give thought" [Al-Quran 16:68–69].
The healing powers of honey have been around for centuries, but you might be surprised how many health benefits you can get from this kitchen staple.
Scientific knowledge, which has been reached in recent years, tells us that daily consumption of honey, at least one teaspoon a day, provides a number of beneficial effects on human health.
Honey is the most accessible bee product used since ancient times. It is also called “the gold of nature˝, and “forgotten treasure of history”.Honey was the first sweet taste that mankind tasted.
It’s a sweet, thick, viscous liquid or crystallized substance that people didn’t successes to produce on
industrial way. Unlike ordinary sugar that is just “raw energy”, honey contains simple, easily digestible sugars fructose and glucose, followed by vitamins, minerals, proteins, ferments, plant hormones, flavonoids.
Honey is mixture mainly of carbohydrates and water, and in small quantities containing organic acids, minerals, vitamins, enzymes, antioxidants and other substances. 75-80% of honey is mixture of simple sugars or monosaccharides (Glucose and fructose) and complex sugars (disaccharides, oligosaccharides).
Glucose and fructose are simple and easily digestible sugars, which are directly carried in the blood (an excellent source of energy). Glucose can easily crystallize, is not hydroscopic and about 20% is less sweet than fructose.
Honey contains vitamins B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, Bc, E, K, C and carotene in very small quantities.
This golden liquid has been shown to help fix ailments ranging from a pesky cough to a painful wound.
Historically, honey has been used by humans both orally and topically to treat various ailments including gastric disturbances, ulcers, wounds, and burns.
Research suggests that raw honey's active phytonutrients. The phytonutrients in raw honey have antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral properties that may help boost your immune system and fight sickness.
For people who are overweight or obese, honey not only reduces risk of cardiovascular disorders, it also does not increase the body weight.
Honey has been promoted as being potentially of use in the treatment of cancer. However, while experiments have found honey can - in common with many substances - kill cancer cells in the laboratory, there is no evidence of its benefit treating cancer in people.
There is little evidence for or against honey as treatment of coughs for children. The UK authorities recommend "a warm drink of lemon and honey or a simple cough syrup that contains glycerol or honey" in children instead, but warn that honey should not be given to very young children because of the risk of infant botulism.
The glucose in honey is absorbed by the body quickly and gives an immediate energy boost, while the fructose is absorbed more slowly providing sustained energy. It is known that honey has also been found to keep levels of blood sugar fairly constant compared to other types of sugar.
So, to experience these health benefits of honey, here are a few tips for you:
1. Next time before you go for a workout, take a spoon of honey to enable you to go for the extra mile.
2. If you are feeling low and lethargic in the morning, instead of reaching out for a can of carbonated energy drink, try honey. Spread it on hot toast or replace the sugar in your tea with it for a refreshing surge of energy.
3. If your kids are finding hard to cope with the physical strain from the buzzing activities at school, prepare them some sandwiches with honey, butter and ham to make sure they have enough energy to sustain through the day.
Source: wikipedia,
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