Honey is an amazing natural food, prepared by the bees from the nectar of various plants. It has occupied a prominent place in traditional medicines throughout world history.We use honey in daily diets as a nutritional food but do we get the benefits from it?
And is the honey sold at super markets is really a nutritional food?
Reality is that the honey we get from shelves is not the 'pure honey' which can provide us health benefits, Honey has many health-promoting qualities. It contains natural antioxidants, enzymes, amino acids, vitamins, and minerals.
Tests Show Most Store Honey Isn't Honey
More than three-fourths of the honey sold in U.S. grocery stores isn't exactly what the bees produce, according to testing done exclusively for Food Safety News.
The results show that the pollen frequently has been filtered out of products labeled "honey."
The removal of these microscopic particles from deep within a flower would make the nectar flunk the quality standards set by most of the world's food safety agencies.
The food safety divisions of the World Health Organization, the European Commission and dozens of others also have ruled that without pollen there is no way to determine whether the honey came from legitimate and safe sources
Why Remove the Pollen?
Removal of all pollen from honey "makes no sense" and is completely contrary to marketing the highest quality product possible, Mark Jensen, president of the American Honey Producers Association, told Food Safety News.
Raw honey – which has not been pasteurized or filtered, and ideally taken directly from the hive – is a treasure chest of nutritional value and medicinal remedies. It contains an abundance of vitamins and minerals and is a natural and powerful medicine, both internally and externally.
How can we differentiate 100% pure honey and adulterated honey?
The term "adulterated honey" means that the honey has been added glucose, dextrose, molasses, corn syrup, sugar syrup, invert sugar, flour, starch, or any other similar product, other than the floral nectar gathered, processed, and stored in the comb by honey bees. Legal standards and requirements for foods, including honey quality, and tests for honey adulteration vary widely amongst countries and some may not meet the wish of every consumer around the world.
* It is hard to find pure honey, but may be we can still try to find best quality or pure quality honey.
* When selecting a raw honey for you and your family, make sure the word “raw" is on the label. Or "un-pasteurized."
Source: 'food safety news'
Useful links:
* Medical benefits of honey
