Honey Essential Benefits and Uses

There is fossil evidence of the existence of honey bees as far back as 150 million years ago.

However, it isn't until about 8000 years ago that Stone Age paintings show bees, hives, and people in hieroglyphics.

So, honey has been created from pollen by bees for millions of years and humans have become wise to its effectiveness since finding a way to collect it. In ayurvedic civilization honey was considered one of nature's most remarkable gifts to mankind and ayurvedic experts used honey for a wide range of skin disorders. Ancient Egyptians medicine records show honey incorporated in one way or another over 500 times throughout 900 different remedies.  Ancient Greeks were known to use honey long ago as a healing medicine mostly for the treatment and prevention of scars but also as one of the oldest known forms of wound dressings. The ancient physician Hippocrates, who lived around 400 BC noted how honey seemed to help with treating  sunburns and healing infected wounds as well being an extended for lifespans. Cleopatra, among other famous women of history was also known to frequently use honey for her skin. In 1892 ran Ketel scientifically “discovered” the antibacterial activity of honey. In the past few decades, honey has been under intense investigation by scientists worldwide to find out more about its incredible healing properties.

With these more recent experiments, it has become clear that honey takes up water from its environment which gives it the ability to dehydrate bacteria. Also, its high sugar content hinders the growth of microbes and its natural pH inhibits the growth of microorganisms. The other aspect of honey when used for wound treatment that is gaining a lot of attention is the fact that because of its high osmolality, when honey comes into contact with the fluids from wounds, hydrogen peroxide is produced. So basically, the sugars interact with water and microorganisms can no longer develop. Another experiment showed that honey being an emollient that helps reduce the loss of moisture, is soothing to the skin, retards wrinkle formation and regulated pH. For these reasons, among others, honey therapy is again gaining popularity as an effective treatment for a wide range of skin and digestive issues. It is mainly composed of fructose and glucose but because of the process bees take to create honey, it is also full of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, amino acids, and organic acids. These components help make honey antiseptic, antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, moisturizing and also a natural preservative.

Honey’s effectiveness makes it an easy top choice for many natural and organic skin care products on the market today. It is a healthy sweetener that helps retain moisture and elasticity without drying skin out. It is adaptable for both dry and oily skin types. It is a natural antioxidant that has been proven to be very protective to skin.

It is a natural form of sunscreen. It helps speed healing, prevent infection, and is an antimicrobial whose smooth thick texture helps keep moisture close to the skin creating a more supple glow to complexion. Honey is also known to help reduce redness and rid pimples. It is also an effective exfoliant because it's organic acid content accelerates the shedding of dead skin cells which helps gives shine to dull or patchy skin. Honey is also a known anti-inflammatory which is helpful and soothing for sensitive skin. This rejuvenator has been used effectively to stimulate an immune response for the treatment of eczema, dermatitis, dry patches, and cracked lips, among many other conditions. Honey is also currently under clinical investigation because of its ability to create a unique and powerful seal around wounds that have been infected by antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

Overall, honey is a gift that the earliest civilizations cherished and continues to be appreciated by humankind for its simplicity and wide range of therapeutic virtues.