Honey is a remarkable product that is much more than just a natural sweetener. For millions of years, honey has been used for culinary, religious and healing purposes. Packed with natural, flowery goodness; its golden sweetness is iconic of busy bees, summer and the countryside.

Interesting things about honey bees

We know that honey is produced by bees, but just how amazing these creatures are is not so well known.

Honey bees are the highest form of insect life. Intelligent and socially organised; they live and work together in a community and all have specialised roles to perform such as collecting, cleaning, nursing larvae, etc. The hive consists of a Queen who produces all the eggs, female workers that collect pollen and nectar and non-working males (drones) that mate with the Queen. In autumn the male drones are evicted and the remaining bees huddle together and live off their stored honey over winter months. Bees require 20-30lbs of honey to sustain them over winter and will fly an average of 55,000 miles just to make 1lb!

In addition to nectar, worker bees collect and store pollen on stiff hairs on their back legs. The pollen is mixed with water to form ‘bread’ which they feed to growing larvae. Bees have five eyes and are sensitive to blue and ultra violet, but colour blind to red. They don’t sleep, but remain motionless during the night to conserve energy.

The honey is produced by worker bees which fly up to 5 miles to collect nectar from flowers. How bees communicate the location of nectar rich flowers to their co-workers is quite incredible. They do so by ‘dancing’ the directions. Research with bees has shown that they ‘wiggle’ out the direction of the source, in relation to the position of the sun. As the sun moves 1 degree further west every 4 minutes, so does the dance. The duration of this amazing dance indicates the distance. Bees also have sensitivity to the Earth’s magnetic field and polarised light, so can navigate through the likes of thick cloud.

Once gathered, the nectar is returned and mixed with enzymes produced by glands found in the bee’s mouth. The mix is then placed in hexagonal honeycombs and the water content reduced by the bees fanning their wings rapidly. The honeycomb is then sealed with wax. Wax is produced by young bees from glands in their abdomens. This is gathered by worker bees and used around the hive. Once sealed, the honey will keep indefinitely. Edible honeycomb has been discovered in the tombs of the Pharaohs and dated as 3000 years old.

The type of honey produced can vary depending on the types of foliage and flowers that grow in the area. For example, garden flowers will produce a clear, liquid honey, and heather honey (extremely popular), is produced by beekeepers placing their hives out on the moorlands in autumn.

What is honey used for?

Honey can be used as a sweetener, or for home remedies. Always use organic, preferably locally sourced honey, in moderation. Do not give unpasteurised honey to young children as it may contain harmful bacteria.

Mead
Honey mead is a sweet, alcoholic drink that has been drunk by our ancestors for 1000s of years. Known as the ‘honey moon’ drink, it was traditional drunk at weddings.

Natural sweetener
Honey contains natural sugars (fructose and glucose), which are better for your health and more easily tolerated. Add to hot drinks, use in cooking and baking. Honey is delicious on toast, muffins and on oatcakes, etc.

Bedtime drink
Add honey to a milky, oat based drink to create a mildly sedating bedtime drink.

Hay fever
Research has shown that eating locally produced honey can help to improve symptoms associated with hay fever. It appears that consuming the honey from local plants and flowers initiates some sort of immunity in the individual.

Wounds and burns
Honey is antiseptic and anti-inflammatory and is a traditional remedy for healing wounds.

Dab individual mouth ulcers with honey to ease pain and promote healing. For larger wounds and burns, ensure the area is clean and checked by a doctor if serious or inflamed.

Add honey to a clean dressing or compress and apply. For burns where the skin is unbroken; add 3 drops of lavender essential oil to 10ml of honey, mix well and apply as a cool compress. The lavender will ease the burning and promote skin cell renewal.

Skin care
Honey is a beneficial addition to your natural skin care routine. Apply neat to individual spots or dry patches.

A luxurious face mask for dry or dehydrated skin can be made by blending together 3 teaspoons of honey with some ripe avocado. Apply and leave for 10 minutes. Remove and rinse well. Moisturise with a honey lotion or cream. Add 1 teaspoon of honey and 1 teaspoon of sweet almond oil (avoid if nut allergic), to 10ml of fragrant and colour free cosmetic cream or lotion. Use daily.

Sore throats and coughs
The soothing and anti-inflammatory properties of honey will help to alleviate the dry, scratchy soreness associated with these conditions. There are several remedies, but the easiest way is to eat 1 teaspoon of raw honey several times a day. If you can bear the taste, add some chopped, raw garlic to the honey.

Sore throats can be alleviated with a tea made from sage and honey.

Make a tea from 1 teaspoon of fresh or dried sage to 1 cup of hot water. Strain into a cup and add 1 teaspoon of honey and 2 slices of fresh lemon (antiseptic). Drink twice a day for 2-3 days (seek professional advice before taking herbal remedies if you are suffering with a medical problem or are pregnant).

Arthritis and rheumatism
Apparently, the beekeepers of old who were frequently stung, rarely suffered with arthritis or rheumatism. In Russia, bee venom is used to treat these conditions and research is ongoing. However, purposely getting stung by bees is not recommended!

Royal Jelly
Royal jelly is a creamy, white food which is produced by young bees in small quantities and fed to queen bee larvae. Rich in proteins and fatty acids, it is a popular health product which claims to have numerous health benefits including promoting youthfulness and hormonal balance. However, bear in mind that most products containing it will have less than 2% royal jelly, so it may be wise to be somewhat sceptical about the claims made by some products.

Bees are extremely important to the natural cycle of life as they not only produce honey and royal jelly, but pollinate all of our crops. There has been a serious decline in the bee population over the last few years, due to loss of habitat, disease and viruses. You can help bees by planting nectar rich plants in your garden and leaving areas wild. Bee loving plants include white clover, blackberry, dandelions, flowering herbs, hollyhocks, pansies, sunflowers, foxgloves and all scented flowers.

Article by Julie Burke for Third Age.
SPA.ITEC.CThA.Cert.Ed.   
www.merrymeetcottage.weebly.com

Information
Organic & Fairtrade Honey:
www.SumaMarket.coop/OrganicHoney

Honey Products:
www.honeycosmetics.co.uk

British Beekeepers Association UK:
www.britishbee.org.uk