Honey is a Health & Fitness Queen

With a lot of great health and fitness benefits, honey should be a common staple in people’s daily diets. Other than its great taste, it has numerous benefits for our bodies, immune systems, weight, and energy which you may not be aware of.

Honey is a source of a variety of vitamins, minerals and amino acids. The main vitamins it provides are niacin, riboflavin and pantothetic acid, and the main minerals are calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium and zinc. Importantly, the amount of these substances in honey varies depending on its floral source, just as its color and taste vary.

On top of this, what are the main health benefits of honey?

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Energy Booster — For Quick Bursts of Energy AND Endurance

First of all, honey contains natural sugars (glucose and fructose) that don’t need to be digested. That’s why, thanks to its quick absorption, honey is a powerful, natural energy booster. Our body absorbs honey’s glucose very quickly, giving us an instant energy shot, while the fructose we get from it needs more time to be absorbed and so provides our organism with more constant, long-term energy. Add one spoon of honey to your morning cup of tea or milk or spread it on some toast and you won’t have to wait long to see its energy boosting effects.

Immune Booster

Honey can also have great benefits for your immune system. Due to its antioxidant and anti-bacterial qualities, honey can help to eliminate free radicals from your body. This helps in your overall health and immunity and can protect you from serious diseases as well.

Home Remedy for Cuts, Burns, Sore Throats, Insomnia, and More

Honey, because of its antiseptic properties, is known as a wonderful natural home remedy. It can be helpful in healing wounds, burns and cuts. It helps to decrease swelling, scarring and pain, and it guards against infection. Honey is a natural treatment for sore throats. It smooths your throat and kills bacteria –- the main cause of the infection.

Honey can also be very useful for people who suffer from sleepless nights. Drinking a cup of hot milk or chamomile tea with a teaspoon of honey in the evening can help to calm your emotions and give you a good night’s sleep.

Weight Loss Support

Another benefit of having honey in your daily diet is that it helps to digest the stored fat in your body when consumed with warm water. In a similar manner, you could mix honey with lemon juice or honey with cinnamon to help you lose weight.

Tips for Using Honey

Honey is great with peanut butter, cream cheese, tahini or alone on rice cakes, bread and crackers. You can add it to milk, fresh lemon juice, tea, or even coffee. You can also make home remedies by mixing it with warm water and herbs or spices. You can also substitute it for sugar in your favorite recipes.

With this information, if you have not done so already, maybe you will be convinced to start using honey in a lot of your meals and drinks!

*Important Note: It is recommended that babies under 18 months old (some doctors say 12 months) NOT consume honey. It is fine for pregnant or nursing women, but young infants do not have digestive systems acidic enough to deal with some of its potential components.

Image Credit 1: Mundoo via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: The Rocketeer via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: BotheredByBees via flickr under a Creative Commons license