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Warning
Up front you should know that I am not a Dr or Nutritionist, so you should seek medical advice from a trained professional before making any changes to your diet.
You should never give raw honey orally to a child under the age of one years old. The reason being, is that it is possible to give that child infant botulism , which can be fatal!
Honey has been used for many of years for medicinal purposes and it is still used today in alternative medicine as well as some Hospital settings.
The honey sold in stores do not have the same benefits as raw honey. Unpasteurized honey is best for the medical benefits. Honey sold in most stores are Pasteurized and that makes the honey less effective for medicinal purposes.
There are a lot of potential Medical uses for raw honey out there, but just know, the scientific studies done by one group, wont always be what another group finds. With that being said, I am not a Dr. so don’t rely on just the information you find in this post.
- Warning
- Cough Suppressant
- Wound healing
- Seasonal Allergies
- Preventing Acid Reflux
- Replacing it as a sweetener
Cough Suppressant
With the potential dangers of most medicines out there, you want to be sure that the benefits outweigh the risks. If you have looked at the warning label on a bottle of cough syrup lately you’ll understand where I’m coming from.
There have been some studies conducted that show how Honey has been more effective against certain coughs, over the OTC cough syrups you can by at the local pharmacy or store.
Wound Healing
The best type of honey to use for these purposes would be Manuka Honey. This has been found to be the most effective, but other Raw honey can be used.
Manuka honey has been used for over a thousand years to treat burns and cuts!
One of the best antiseptic benefits Manuka Honey has, is the Hydrogen Peroxide released that is perfect for killing off the bad bacteria that can cause infection.
You can either lather the honey in and around the wound, then cover it with a dressing, or you can also lather the dressing with the honey as well. Now you can get dressing’s that are pre-treated with the honey, or you can just do it yourself.
Seasonal Allergies
Local raw honey from your area or neighborhood can help you build up a resistance to the local allergens in the area. When bees pollinate the flowers, they also take a bit of that and take it to the hive and it gets added to the honey.
This method has been tested but the tests aren’t conclusive. It would only help with flower allergens. If you have allergies to trees and such, this won’t be very beneficial for you.
Preventing Acid reflux
The honey helps line the esophagus and stomach, helping prevent acid reflux. I have tried this one personally and it seemed to help. I was taking Priolsec for my Acid Reflux, but I had to stop taking that. I started to take a table spoon of honey a day and it seemed to help stop the burning.
Replacing it as a sweetener
I have done this on occasion’s, It doesn’t work with everything though. The less processed sugars you intake, the better off you are. The High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS) that is in almost everything now days, tricks the body in a bad way.
I have tried to use natural sweeteners like honey to sweeten certain foods and for the most part it turned out well. some stuff it didn’t. but everyone has a different sense of taste.