8 Surprising Ways Honey Can Help Your Health

Honey is most notably known for its sweetness. So much so, in fact, that you can substitute honey for sugar in almost anything. Since honey tastes sweeter than sugar to most people, using less is advised. Of course, there’s so much more to honey than its sweet flavor, including plenty of health benefits.

To get the most out of your honey, you’ll want to use it in its raw form if you can. When honey is cooked it breaks down the chemical properties, making it much less beneficial. You can find raw honey at your local farmer’s market or at most health food stores. If you’re lucky you may live close to a bee farm so you can get your honey directly from the bees. It doesn’t get any fresher than that!  Local honey is known for helping with allergy relief, too.  A fabulous added benefit to this super sweet treat.

In fact, honey is great for treating lots of ailments – both internally and externally.  Some you may already know about but some will certainly surprise you:

Sore throat and cough. Next time you are plagued with a sore throat or irritating cough, take a teaspoon of raw honey and mix into a warm glass of water, drink over a period of 5 minutes. This will help coat your throat and sooth the cough. You can take as often as every half hour to relieve the symptoms.

High cholesterol and high blood pressure. Studies have shown that many people benefit from having honey in their diet and that it’s natural properties may help you lower your blood pressure and cholesterol levels with repeat use.  The preferred method is to mix a tablespoon of apple cider vinegar, a teaspoon of raw honey and in a glass of warm water to make an elixir. Make this part of your routine and drink a glass each morning for the best results.

Arthritis relief. Honey is believed to help with the pain of rheumatoid arthritis. You can take a teaspoon full of raw honey by mouth or mix with warm water to get pain relief. This should be taken daily for the best long-term results.

Indigestion. Did you know honey is great for calming your stomach if you’re feeling nauseated or have heartburn or indigestion?  It’s a little known property of this power food! Mix together a teaspoon of honey with one teaspoon of freshly squeezed lemon juice. Sip this slowly. This can be repeated several times throughout the day to help alleviate symptoms.

Weight loss. A promising aid for your weight loss efforts is to drink a glass of water mixed with one teaspoon each of raw honey and apple cider vinegar three times a day. This concoction is said to help clear the fat cells in your body, resulting in weight loss.  Whether this aid helps you shed pounds or not, the other fabulous health benefits of pure honey and apple cider vinegar will certainly help your body function at peak performance which will certainly enhance your overall efforts, so it’s totally worth a try!

Relieves Sunburn. Next time you spend a little bit too much time in the sun, rub a quarter size amount of honey between your hands vigorously (to warm up and make easier to spread.) Then apply directly onto sunburned area for relief.

Heals wounds. If you don’t have a disinfectant on hand or are looking for a natural approach, honey is a natural antiseptic which can disinfect scrapes, cuts, burns or infections. Place raw, unprocessed honey on a bandaid, gauze strip or clean cloth and put directly over the affected area.

Facial wash. Skin looking a little drab, dull or dry?  Take a bit of honey on your fingers and rub all around your face in small circles. Be sure to work into problems areas, such as around your nose and forehead. Leave this on your face for about 10 minutes and wash off warm water and clean cloth. Pat your face dry and see the glow on your skin!