Raw honey, is it good for you?

Raw honey - is it good for you? Well the answer is yes, but it isn’t the word raw that you should be focusing on, rather the process behind the honey getting into the jar. Pure honey is as good for you as raw honey. Both raw honey and pure honey (like ours) are known for their healing qualities.

Raw and pure honeys are: 

• high in antioxidants which protect you from cell damage
• high in antibacterial and anti fungal properties. Pure and raw honeys contain hydrogen peroxide which is an antiseptic.
• Able to help heal wounds by regenerating tissue
• Known to fight infection
• Able to help with digestion. It a prebiotic which means it helps the good bacteria in your gut.

This type of honey is also great for sore throats, coughs and colds, as discovered by some research by Oxford university in the summer of 2020. Honey was found to be better at suppressing colds and fighting illness than most over the counter medicines. Read about it here.

The only difference between raw and pure honey is that raw honey hasn’t been heated at all, whilst pure honey has, but only to the temperature that it was within the hive to allow filtration to get rid of all the dirt, pollen and dead bees/flies. Raw honey filters without warming the honey, which is a longer more difficult process.

Like most things, raw and pure honey are good for you in moderation. Eating it like Winnie the Pooh will actually have the opposite effect from eating it sparingly. 

Saying all of this, raw honey does carry some harmful bacteria. This bacteria is called Clostridium botulinum. It doesn’t affect adults very often, but is dangerous for babies and therefore raw and pure honey should not be give to children under the age of one. It is possible for babies to develop symptoms such as constipation, lethargy, loss of body functions as well as struggling to feed, cry and breathe. Adults can be affected although this is rare, and symptoms include diarrhoea and vomiting.

You can check out our range of honeys here. Fan of the bees? Why not sponsor a queen bee, hive or broodbox - part of your sponsorship goes directly to Repollinate, our charity helming;ing to protect the bees1