Have You Been Using Fake Honey?
If you think honey is your health’s ally, today’s article might come as a shock to you.
Do you know those little plastic honey bear recipients on supermarket shelves?
They might contain nothing but high-fructose corn syrup, artificial flavors and colors, industrial-grade glucose, and other horrifying compounds that could be damaging your internal organs.
I had to learn that the hard way…
Why Picking The Right Honey Is Important For Your Health
In 2018 I was in constant pain.
I barely ate. I used to stay up all night long searching for an answer, but to no avail.
I went to the doctor’s office and he told me I was fine, that it was some sort of ghost-pain… All I got was a recommendation to go on Tylenol.
But one day, as I was reading Dr. Nicole Apelian’s Holistic Guide to Wellness, I came across this paragraph:
That’s when everything clicked. Could the inflammation I had be caused by the honey I was eating?
Was I using the wrong kind of honey?
And I had it in my tea, my coffee…. I was buying it from a store that’s part of the the largest American chain of supermarkets, so I had to look it up, even though the label mentioned honey as the only ingredient.
I found that the brand I was using was shown to have elevated levels of the toxic compound Hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) — which is associated with cancer.
This toxin is generally absent in fresh honey, but it forms through heating, conditioning and storage. So this honey that I’ve been taking for years now was not only devoid of all its benefits, but it was also loaded with the HMF compound.
That set off my alarm bells. I immediately threw out all the honey I had already bought.
Once I had stopped using it, the pain subsequently went away.
But I was among the lucky ones – often, consuming fake honey could lead to worse things…
How To Tell If You Are Using Fake Honey
To boost profits, some producers may add various substances to highly processed honey to improve its appearance, taste, or shelf-life.
Improperly processed or low-quality commercial honey may also contain contaminants like pesticides or heavy metals, which can lead to neurological issues, kidney damage, and other serious diseases.
Consuming fake honey contributes to insulin resistance over time, making it challenging for individuals to successfully regulate blood sugar levels and contributing to an increased risk of cardiovascular issues.
This is why the best type of honey that you should always use is raw honey.
Always make sure you purchase from trusted producers. You can visit farmers’ markets, talk to local beekeepers, and you can choose to support them if you have the means to do so. Local beekeepers prioritize the wellbeing of their bees, and thus their bees produce high-quality honey.
Another great choice is Manuka Honey, but that is more on the expensive side.
To make sure you’re not using fake or adulterated honey, you can always do the water dissolution test. If you add honey to a glass of water and it just sits at the bottom of your glass, your honey is safe for use. If the honey starts dissolving quickly, you should throw it away.
But even after you’ve made sure the honey you take is the real kind, it’s still missing something.
To maximize its healing potential, you should start combining it with other ingredients. I would like to share just 5 of my favorite herbs and spices I now add to my honey.
The Root That Can Help Every Organ In Your Body
During the colder months, it’s a good idea to consider including ginger in your diet. Winter tends to bring an increased risk of colds and the flu, so taking ginger can help boost your immune system.
Among the many health benefits of ginger are also its digestive aid, anti-inflammatory effects, and respiratory health support.
The Ancient Root That Fights Infections For You (It’s Not What You Expect)
The use of Turmeric dates back 3000 years ago, but people still don’t know how to properly use it.
It aids in reducing internal inflammation and increasing the antioxidant capacity of your body, thus helping to inhibit cancer cells.
However, curcumin has low bioavailability, which means the body absorbs and utilizes it poorly. The next ingredient on this list is essential if you want to take advantage of all the health benefits that turmeric has.
You Should Never Use Turmeric Without This
Turmeric is almost useless without Black Pepper.
This combination of piperine and curcumin works synergistically to make turmeric more effective for you.
Black pepper is rich in vitamin B6, which is essential for your mental health during these months. It boosts the production of serotonin and dopamine naturally, fighting the ”winter blues”.
Increasing Black Pepper consumption can also detox your body. As this season often brings an increase in sugary and starchy comfort foods, Black Pepper can contribute to better digestion, and enhanced nutrient absorption.
Why Should Seniors Consume Cinnamon?
Cinnamon has antimicrobial properties and is rich in antioxidants. These properties can support your immune system, helping to defend your body against the cold and flu.
Cinnamaldehyde, the active compound in cinnamon, has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. So adding a dash of cinnamon to your morning coffee or tea can help preserve brain function and slow the cognitive impairment process associated with Alzheimer’s Disease.
Anti-Inflammatory Spiced Honey
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw honey
- 2 tsp. of fresh ginger
- 2 tsp. of turmeric powder
- A pinch of black pepper
- 2 tsp. of ground Cinnamon
Steps
Step 1: Peel off the ginger, cut it in small pieces and set aside.
Step 2: In a small bowl, mix the ground turmeric and ground black pepper.
Step 3: Gradually add honey, stirring continuously, until you achieve a smooth paste-like consistency.
Step 4: After you have activated the Turmeric, mix all the other ingredients (the cinnamon and the ginger) with the turmeric paste in a small bowl.
Step 5: After that, mix in the rest of the honey.
Store it in a cool, dark place for increased shelf-life. I usually pour it in a jar and keep it in my pantry. Take one teaspoon of it every morning.
This pairing of ingredients will create the perfect immunity blanket for your body.
Since I mentioned her earlier, this information mostly comes from Nicole Apelian’s newest book, The Holistic Guide to Wellness.
She has created an entire protocol filled with a lot of tips and tricks that help you strengthen your inner doctor.
Some of these would be:
- The Common Weed That Helps Every Part of Your Body At Once
- Why You Should Boil Onion Peels
- The Juice That Heals From Inside Out
- How To Eat Pumpkin Seeds To Kill Intestinal Parasites and Worms In 3 Days
- What Happens When You Pour Honey Over Garlic
…and so many others!
There are 45 other Protocols inside for the following ailments:
Read about the ones that interest you the most in the Holistic Guide to Wellness: Herbal Protocols for Common Ailments.
such a great article i just realized i might have been using fake honey too
THIS IS OUTRAGEOUS!! I can’t believe this is how I find out about the honey that I’ve been giving to my sick 8-year old. I’m beyond disgusted. Thank you for sharing this information and this recipe with us
Would fresh grated turmeric be better? How much would I use? Thanks so much for the info!
Do you happen to know if Kirkland brand honey that is labeled raw, organic (from Brazil) is the real thing? Also, I bought curcumin powder at the health food store along with a bottle of curcumin activator, which dissolves the powder so it can mix with water. Do you know what might be in the activator that makes it work? I never think to ask when I’m in that store and google has no information about anything that dissolves curcumin.
Hey, Beth! It is hard to tell and trust brands. But most cases look for Raw Unfiltered Honey. If you have it in your cupboard now, try the trick she provides about how it dissolves in water. In the meantime, a rule of thumb I use is try to buy honey that is local to you, the closer made to you the better (try within 10 to 20 miles) or where you spend most of your time. It may be a little more expensive, but the pollen in your state/surrounding area is used by the bees to make the honey. This helps with allergies/medicinal purposes! I cannot assist with the other questions you have, but wanted to share my thoughts.
We now have our own hives and just extracted our first batch of honey.Beautiful!
As far as honey goes there is one big thing to take into consideration as well as what has been outlined…. ALWAYS buy local to you whenever possible, as you will get the best medicinal results. It can be a chore to find it, but well worth the effort and often times the extra money. From what I have come across in the last few years, aim for less than a 25mi radius.
Hello everyone,
What I miss in here, is the warming to never put honey in tea or any other hot drink.
I’m a natural beekeeper and we share the honey that is created by our bees between the bees and us. We leave enough honey in the hive as winter food.
Honey loses all its vitamins, minerals and healthy stuff when heated above 40 degrees celsius. So if you want to use it in your tea, let the tea cool down before you put the honey in your cup.
The honey also gets crystallised after a short period of time. It depends which plant contains. The pine honey is the first to crystallise. Also never put honey in hot drinks higher than 40 degrees, as it destroys all its enzymes. Thanks for the article.