Honey Nutrition

Honey’s nutritional profile is primarily carbohydrates, water, vitamins and minerals. These vitamins include: B6, thiamin, niacin, riboflavin, pantothenic acid and certain amino acids. The minerals found in honey include: calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium and zinc. We have learned that "conductivity" is an indirect way of measuring the mineral content of a honey. This means the higher the conductivity, the better nutritional value of the honey.

Nectar itself is composed mainly of sucrose and water. Bees add enzymes that create additional chemical compounds, inverting the sucrose into fructose and glucose, and then evaporate the water so that the resulting product will resist spoiling. Hence, honey is a source of carbohydrates, containing 80% natural sugar. Due to the high level of fructose, honey is sweeter than table sugar. The other 20% of honey is made up of 18% water and 2% minerals, vitamins, pollen and protein.

Honey is an excellent source of antioxidants. Flavinoid pinocembrin is unique to honey, which optimizes health benefits; whereas, pinostrobin supports and promotes healthy enzyme activity. Propolis is a gummy substance full of enzymes, created by bees when they add their own proteins with tree sap and other plant resins.

Honey supports "good bacteria" like bifidobacteria in the gastrointestinal tract, which is essential for efficient digestion and good health. Honey contains pre/pro biotics that help the growth and activity of bifidobacteria because it is an alkaline-forming food, and is similar to ingredients found in fruits. It doesn’t ferment in the stomach and it can be used to counteract indigestion.

Honey has a healthier Gycemic Index (GI) which measures the negative impact of a given food on the blood-glucose level. The lower the GI rating, the slower the absorption and infusion of sugars into the bloodstream. This means that the fructose can be gradually absorbed into the bloodstream, resulting in a healthier digestion process. This is important because high-glycemic foods prompt an elevated insulin release in our body, stimulating the pancreas to metabolize the sudden surge of glucose into the blood. This causes an imbalance in the body and eventually the disease, diabetes.

In conclusion, this natural sweetener is fat free, cholesterol free and sodium free. One tablespoon of honey contains only 64 calories. Honey helps the metabolizing of undesirable cholesterol and fatty acid on the organs and tissues into the system, hence preventing obesity and promoting better health for us. Reaching for honey as a sweetener shows to be the “Healthy Choice”.