Properties and description of honeydew honey, its benefits and harm to humans

Bees are able to produce nectar not only from flower pollen, but also use honeydew, which is called honeydew, for this. Insects collect this substance when there is insufficient flowering of honey plants. As a result, it is possible to obtain a honeydew variety of honey. It has unique taste, unusual color and smell. The product contains many valuable components, each of which brings great benefits to the body.

Description and difference of honeydew honey

To understand what honeydew honey is, it is worth familiarizing yourself with its origin. In the absence of a sufficient number of honey plants, bees collect honeydew - a sweet secretion. They are plant and animal.

In the first case, we are talking about the secretions of insects that feed on plant sap, in the second – about honeydew, which is a sweet plant product. Such discharge often appears on coniferous trees. These substances may also be present on linden, oak, aspen or willow.

Depending on the source, honeydew honey is divided into the following varieties:

1. Animal. Ants protect aphids for good reason. It feeds on plant juices and produces by-products with a high sugar content. In hot weather, when many honey plants stop flowering, bees collect sweet coating from the leaves and use it to make honey. However, honeydew product is rarely found in its pure form. In most cases, mixed collections are made. In this case, the honeydew combines with part of the pollen.
2. Vegetable. This product includes carbohydrate secretions from a number of trees. They are actively produced in hot weather. This helps the bees wait out unfavorable conditions without stopping their work.

To distinguish honeydew honey from other varieties, it is important to focus on its key characteristics:

1. Color. The honeydew product looks different - it all depends on the source of the raw material. Honeydew collected from deciduous trees gives the honey a rich brown hue. If the bees collected honeydew from coniferous plants, the nectar will be light in color with greenish notes. Animal honeydew makes the product dark, almost black. Mixing honeydew with pollen produces a light golden hue.
2. Aroma. This type of honey has a light aroma.Some varieties of the product do not smell at all.
3. Taste. The product has a pleasant sweet taste with a slight bitterness.
4. Consistency and crystallization process. A distinctive feature of this honey is its thick and viscous consistency. When pollen is added to the composition, the texture becomes more liquid. Honeydew honey is characterized by very slow crystallization. Many types of product do not crystallize at all - they separate or form a soap mass, which has an opaque consistency.

Composition and calorie content of the product

The energy value of 100 grams of the product is 316 kilocalories. The substance does not contain proteins or pollen grains. It contains 80 grams of carbohydrates and 0.1 grams of fat.

The content of other components depends on the type of honeydew that the bees used to make honey. For example, nectar from pine needles contains 5-6 times less phosphorus than mass from ash honeydew. The same applies to potassium content.

Honeydew honey contains many phytoncides, which are considered natural antibiotics. It also contains a large amount of mineral salts - phosphorus, manganese, cobalt, iron. According to these parameters, the honeydew variety is superior to the flower variety, and therefore has a high value for people.

This type of honey contains a large amount of polysaccharides. In addition, it contains sucrose, fructose, glucose and other sugars. The product also contains many free amino acids.

Beneficial features

Honeydew honey has great benefits for humans:

1. High potassium content has a beneficial effect on the state of the cardiovascular system. The substance strengthens blood vessels and normalizes blood circulation.
2. A large amount of B vitamins helps prevent insomnia and increased tension. These substances also improve the functioning of the nervous system.
3. The combination of proteins, enzymes and amino acids in animal honeydew helps get rid of pathologies of the liver, digestive system, gallbladder and pancreas.
4. The antioxidant properties of the product ensure the removal of toxins and other harmful substances from the body.
5. The combination of valuable microelements has a beneficial effect on intestinal motility.
6. The high content of phosphorus, calcium and potassium strengthens bones.
7. The product activates the body's defenses. It promotes recovery from traumatic injuries.
8. Adding honeydew honey to face masks improves skin saturation with nutrients, copes with wrinkles and reduces puffiness.
9. The use of wraps with this type of bee nectar eliminates the appearance of cellulite and makes scars and stretch marks less noticeable.

For what diseases is it used?

The beneficial properties of honeydew honey allow it to be used for a variety of pathologies. The main indications for its use include the following:

• cough, bronchitis, pneumonia;
• tonsillitis and colds;
• anemia;
• tuberculosis;
• heat;
• arthritis;
• loss of strength and decreased immunity;
• disturbances in the functioning of the digestive system;
• insomnia and depression;
• nervous overexcitation;
• dermatitis and skin pathologies.

Use in cosmetology

Honeydew honey is often used in cosmetology. It has many beneficial effects:

• eliminates skin damage;
• relieves dryness and flaking of the dermis;
• smoothes wrinkles;
• strengthens hair.

In its pure form, the product can be applied to the skin to heal wounds, eliminate inflammation, and treat acne. It is also often included in various cosmetics - decoctions, tinctures, masks.

How to distinguish from a fake

To determine the naturalness of honey, you need to pay attention to a number of criteria. The easiest way to do this is by color. The honeydew product is significantly darker than ordinary flower varieties. In addition, this type of nectar does not have a characteristic sweetness, but rather contains a slight bitterness in the taste.

To distinguish a honeydew product from a flower product, you can resort to various methods. To do this, it is recommended to mix the nectar with distilled water and ethyl alcohol with a concentration of 96%. This must be done in a ratio of 1:1:6. If the solution acquires a cloudy consistency, this indicates the presence of honeydew in it.

You can also use another method. First, the nectar must be mixed in equal parts with distilled water. Then add 2 parts of lime water to it. The finished solution must be brought to a boil and observed carefully. If flakes and sediment appear on the surface when heated, it means that the nectar was made from honeydew.

Storage conditions

This type of honey is stored rather poorly. This is due to its chemical composition and high degree of hygroscopicity. In order for the product to retain its properties for as long as possible, it is important to provide it with suitable temperature conditions and optimal humidity. For short-term storage, honey can be kept at a temperature of +15 degrees. If you need to preserve its properties for a long time, a temperature of +7 degrees is suitable. Humidity should be 60%.

Contraindications and possible harm

This type of honey has a minimum number of contraindications. It can cause harm in the following cases:

• individual intolerance;
• exacerbation of any pathologies;
• uncontrolled use.

Doctors do not recommend giving honey to young children and people with allergies. The product should be used with great caution for diabetes and excess weight. The same applies to pregnant and lactating women.

Honeydew honey is a very healthy product that contains a large number of unique components. Thanks to this, bee nectar can be used to treat a variety of pathologies. It is also often used in cosmetology. To ensure that the product does not cause harm to your health, you should definitely study the contraindications before using it.