13 Ways to Use Honey For Your Health

Natural honey which hasn’t been heated is an excellent raw ingredient for your health: add it to bath water, use honey as a face mask or as a relaxing drink – and you will gain its anti-bacterial properties that help treat infections, skin problems, emotional stress and will also help you to lose weight.

The main ingredient in honey is fructose (sugar from fruit source), which gives it long lasting durability. Compared to white sugar, fructose decomposition in the body is more slowly, resulting in a moderate increase in blood sugar levels. Honey also contains proteins, minerals (such as iron, copper, phosphorus, potassium and sodium), enzymes and vitamins, especially B group.

Honey color varies between the different types. Darker color indicates that the antioxidants level is higher. It is important to note that heating honey over 40 degree Celsius may destroy its health properties.

Using honey, and not just for eating, is also one of the 70 habits featured in my e-book 70 Powerful Habits For A Great Health which will guide you how to take positive steps to improve your wellness and overall health. Aside from eating, you can use honey in several additional ways to benefit your health:

1. Cold and flu

A traditional drink for cold or flu is hot water with honey, lemon, cinnamon and ginger. It is recommended to drink it every two hours. See my recipe for cleansing ginger lemon tea. Find more natural ways to stay free from cold and flu here.

2. Cough, sore throat and chest infections

Honey is used in many homemade syrups to treat cough and chest infections. Find here an easy to make homemade syrup to relieve sore throat and cough that contains only 3 ingredients. Another great recipe is garlic syrup for chest infections which also contains honey.

3. Acne and skin breakouts

Apply a drop of natural honey on the pimples before going to sleep and it will disappear almost overnight because of its anti-bacterial properties. Also honey dries wounds and prevents skin irritation and inflammation. Find here more natural treatments for acne.

4. Wounds and burns

A gauze smeared with honey provides a moist environment for the skin, helps prevent infections, removes odors and reduces inflammation. Find here more homemade minor burn treatments.

5. Dry skin

Honey is an excellent ingredient to use in the bath thanks to its healing and softening properties. You can apply it directly on rough skin, or dissolve the honey in the water and add the mixture to the bath water. Find here how to make great and easy homemade honey face masks.

6. Dry lips

Apply a little honey on dry or chapped lips, and leave it for a few minutes to soften them. If you have more time, you can make this great lip balm which also contains honey.

7. Gingivitis

Apply honey directly on the affected area. This will help to address the problem quickly. Find more natural treatments for gingivitis here.

8. Stress

Prepare a calming herbal brew using herbs like melissa, passionflower and chamomile, and sweetened it with honey to enhance the calming effect. You can find here more natural remedies for stress and anxiety.

9. Stomach ulcers

Two tablespoons a day should be enough for most types of honey. Eat it on an empty stomach three times a day for three weeks. Find here more natural treatments for stomach ulcers.

10. Menstrual cycle

Honey stimulates the production of omega-6 fatty acid that regulates hormonal processes in our body. The recommendation is to take a tablespoon of honey in a glass with warm water or herbal tea once a day.

11. Hangover

Drinking alcohol loads the liver, which leads to the familiar symptoms of dehydration, thirst, headache and nausea. Drinking a cup of warm water with half a fresh lemon and half a teaspoon to a teaspoon of honey will help to detoxify the liver and reduce the affect of alcohol. You can also consume the drink daily on an empty stomach for cleaning the body. If you are interested in detoxifying your body, you can find useful information in my e-book The Detox Guide. This e-book will teach you how to use detox to cleanse and energize your body naturally and safely.

12. Dry Hair

Mix ½ cup honey and ¼ cup olive oil, and keep the mixture in a clean glass jar. After washing the hair (without shampooing), apply two tablespoons of the mixture and rub well with your fingers. Wear a shower cap and leave the mixture on your head for 30 minutes. Then shampoo and dry the hair as usual. You can find here more natural treatments for dull hair.

13. Aging Skin

Prepare an anti aging mask: mix 2-3 tablespoons of honey with 7 drops of evening primrose oil (helps reconstruct the skin cells). Add 1 drop each of lavender essential oil (which has soothing and antiseptic properties) and sandalwood essential oil (maintains healthy skin, soothing and highly effective for mature and dry skin). Apply the mask on clean face and wait for half an hour. Then rinse with warm water.
To enrich of the mask you can add a small mashed banana, which contains large amounts of magnesium, potassium, iron, zinc, iodine and vitamins A and B, and 1 tablespoon oatmeal (which has the ability to calm the skin and has a gentle peeling effect). You can also add two tablespoons of yogurt, which contains natural lactic acid which can shed dead skin cells and thus cause a natural peeling. You can keep the mask in the refrigerator for up to six days.

In summary, the wide range of honey properties allows us to use honey every day in different ways to improve our health. Please note that honey is not recommended for diabetics, candida sufferers and infants up to the age of one year old.

Honey is also one of the superfoods mentioned in my e-book about superfoods which is part of the Natural Health Revolution Program. This program will help you to achieve your health, nutrition and weight loss goals.

Read my other related articles:
1. The Amazing Health Benefits of Honey Lemon Water
2. Delicious Honey & Cinnamon Weight Loss Drink
3. Golden Honey Mixture – The Strongest Natural Antibiotic