Is Raw Honeycomb Good For You? Raw Honeycomb Benefits And Nutrition Facts

Is Raw Honeycomb Good For You? Throughout the centuries, honey has been used as both medicine and food. But did you know that there’s a big difference between the commercial honey you buy from the stores and the other raw natural honeycomb products? Indeed there is.

Most of the honey we find in stores is already processed. Meaning it’s been heated or pasteurized. The extraction process for honey will, in most cases, remove some vital nutrients ideal for the body’s use.  And for this reason, consuming raw honey that hasn’t been processed can offer more health benefits.

Here, we examine several raw honeycomb facts and health benefits that may change your entire perception of honey. But before that, let’s explain what is a honeycomb.

What Raw Honeycomb?

This is a natural product that honey bees make to enable them to produce and store their honey. Also, it’s where bees house their larvae. Honeycombs comprise of a sequential structure of hexagonal cells made from beeswax.

It is where raw honey is stored. The entire honeycomb is edible and may contain multiple health benefits to human health.

So, what are these benefits of consuming raw honeycomb?

Is Raw Honeycomb Good For You? Raw Honeycomb Benefits And Nutrition Facts

1. Loads of minerals

Since raw honeycomb is not processed, it contains the entire spectrum of minerals, proteins, vitamins, and pollen. Some of the main minerals your body absorbs when you chew on that raw honeycomb include:

• Iron
• Calcium 
• Sodium chloride
• Magnesium 
• Potassium

The minerals are present in varying amounts depending on the type of honey. This is because various flora offers different levels of specific minerals.

The raw honeycomb also contains specific enzymes such as glucose oxidase. This enzyme is responsible for the honey’s antibacterial and antimicrobial properties.

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How To Make Quick And Easy Honey Glazed Almonds

Recipe by Sonia Gupta

Snacking with Honey Glazed Almonds Food and beverages that we eat in between our regular meal is termed as snaking. Honey glazed almonds are also great snacking option. No matter what time of a day you feel like eating snacks, these honey glazed almonds are a perfect companion of all times.

Typically snacking is not looked at as a good habit. It is because snacks are mostly referred to high calories and fatty foods e.g. cookies, cakes and wafers. Honey glazed almonds, on the contrary, is a healthy snacking option that even your dietician will like you to eat.

Healthy snacking vs unhealthy snacking. Whether snacking leads to weight gain or weight loss is no proven theory behind that. Few claim snacking to increase metabolism, but again there is no scientific research that proves the same. Healthline released a beautiful, evidence based article and wrote in detail about healthy and unhealthy snacking.

Concluding many research's together, the fine line is to choose healthy snacking option. You may snack to prevent hunger or may be to eat smaller portions thorough out the day. The reason could be different, but the choice should be healthy.

In healthy eating habit one of the suggested step is to replace unhealthy snacks with healthy snacks. Honey glazed almonds would be a good replacement. Almond and Honey benefits.

Almonds are a great source of vitamin E. Along with vitamin E, Almonds are also source of vitamin B2, magnesium, phosphorus, manganese, biotin, and copper. Interestingly, more than 60% of the fat that almonds contain are monounsaturated fat that helps in lowering cholesterol.

On the other side, honey prevents cancer and heart diseases. I always depend on honey and turmeric when it comes to treating cough and throat irritation. Honey also helps in regulating blood sugar and its probiotic nature increase good bacteria in the body.

When combined together, almond and honey benefit the entire body system. Heating effects on Honey. Pure honey can stay unspoiled for thousands of years. A spoon of honey with Luke warm water helps in cutting down the fact, however, boiling or heating honey directly is never a good idea. Temperature more than 37 Degree Celsius (98.6F) has detrimental effects on the nutritional values of honey.

Healthy Roasted Almonds recipe with Glazed Honey. Honey glazed almonds with a hint of salt, is my favorite tea time partner. This recipe is a tried and tested recipe that satisfies the need of both, sweet and salty, snacking. Therefore, I consider this as the best honey roasted almonds recipe.

Check out this recipe

2. Protects the Liver

Various studies indicate that honey contains properties that can support your liver and its functions. A study by NCBI showed that honey could neutralize toxins and help to offer balance in the liver.

This is because most liver problems emanate from oxidative damage. And, since honey contains antioxidants like peptides and phenolics, consuming the product can protect the liver.

Moreover, raw honey has a low glycemic index, which is not the case in processed sugar. This makes honey a better alternative for sugar-sensitive individuals.

3. Healthy Gut 

Sometimes, important issues such as having a healthy gut may escape our minds and be dismissed as simple. However, once we experience indigestions, that’s when we all go running for treatment.

Several studies have shown honey to have some prebiotic properties. This means that it can help to support the “good bacteria” in your gut, leading to a healthy gut. And a healthy gut means fewer indigestion problems.

Also, raw honey is known to facilitate a “healthy alkaline balance” in our digestive system. This balance indicates that one has the right pH and perfect acidity level. 

With the current lifestyle, acidity levels in our stomach can be quite unbalanced. This mostly depends on the type of foods we take.

And, since healthy body cells thrive in alkaline environments, it’s therefore vital to maintain the proper pH level. Raw honey can be an ideal source of that desirable pH balance.

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Lekach/Honey Cake

Recipe by mukulika sengupta

Lekach is a Jewish honey cake traditionally eaten during the festival of Rosh Hashanah. It is the Jewish New Year and it is begun with eating something sweet. When I started reading about the festival and the origins of the Honey Cake I was surprised to know that honey as an ingredient in dessert has been used for centuries. The Egyptians used to eat bread with honey. The Romans and Greeks used to eat fried treats generously drizzled with honey. The Lekach/Honey Cake is of German origin. It evolved from the gingerbread. Even now there are many variations of Honey cake. Some recipes use walnut or almond meal. Cinnamon and ginger are the main spices but many other such as nutmeg, all spice, mace, clove etc are also added.

Check out this recipe

4. Protection Against Infections

Raw honeycomb can offer that desired boost to enable your body to fight specific fungi and bacteria. For example, research indicates that beeswax extracts contain properties that can protect your body from fungi and various disease-causing bacteria such as:

• Salmonella enterica
• Candida albicans
• Staphylococcus aureus
• E. coli

This means that the intake of raw honey can be quite beneficial in making sure you remain healthy. Also, honey is known to contain some antimicrobial properties. Some studies, although not experimented on humans, suggests that these properties can help guard the gut against Giardia lamblia, which is an intestinal parasite.

5. Royal Jelly Honeycomb for Overall Health

Royal jelly is a different kind of honeycomb than the normal one we know. This one is the superfood designated for the queen bee’s consumption, and thus the royal title.  

For humans, this jelly-like honeycomb contains both anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory properties. These unique properties combined with others are perfect for various health issues like:

• Asthma 
• Allergies like hay fever
• Infertility
• Fatigue
• Pancreatitis and skin disorders

Also, it is thought to help in boosting the overall immune system.

6. Promotes Heart Health

Beeswax contains alcohol and long-chain fatty acids. These are known to reduce high cholesterol levels in the blood, which is a risk factor attributed to heart diseases.

For example, a specific review indicates that alcohol in beeswax can lower the LDL cholesterol levels by up to 29%. Also, these alcohols can raise the HDL cholesterol level by an average of 8 to 15%. The LDL is referred to as the “bad” cholesterol, while the HDL is the “good” cholesterol.

One thing to note, though, this study used high levels of alcohol from beeswax. This means that it’s still not clear if the low level of these alcohols offers similar results.

Another study to determine the cholesterol-reducing ability of honey gave the following results:

• One group of participants was given 70 grams of honey daily, while another group, 70 grams of processed sugar.
• The study took 30 days
• After the period, those that were given honey had an increase of 3.3% in their HDL “good” cholesterol. 
• Those that took sugar had an increase of 5.8% in their LDL “bad” cholesterol. 

In Conclusion

Honeycombs contain natural raw honey that offers multiple health benefits. It’s therefore beneficial to your health to consume honeycombs, rather than the commercial honey. Nonetheless, they should be consumed in moderation as honey is still rich in sugars.

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• Is Honey Healthy? Exploring the 4 Main Benefits and Creative Ways to Incorporate Honey into Your Daily Diet
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