Who doesn’t love honey? Typically, it’s a healthy alternative to heavily processed sugars and can be used in a variety of foods and beverages. Whether you add it to a sandwich or use it to sweeten your tea, honey is a great addition to your kitchen pantry.
While honey may be better for you than sugar, all types of honey aren’t created equal. In fact, many commercial brands of honey have very little nutritional value after it’s gone through their heating and filtration process. If you love the taste of honey, you should consider buying it locally. Here are five benefits of purchasing local honey.
Local honey reduces seasonal allergies.
Oftentimes, allergy sufferers deal with pollen-related allergies. Because locally-raised honey usually has a percentage of the pollen that causes the allergic reaction, regularly consuming local honey should reduce your symptoms. Usually, people take allergy shots that contain a small amount of the trigger so the patient builds an immunity to the allergen. Over time, this natural remedy has the same effect as a prescribed injection.
It helps the environment.
Bees are responsible for more than the production of honey. From broccoli to apples and strawberries, we need bees to pollinate a large variety of our produce. When people locally source honey, they farm-raise bees, which are an endangered species. These bees have a greater chance of survival and can even reproduce to help us get the ecosystem running properly.
Local honey has more health benefits.
Honey is one of the first ingredients used as a natural remedy for a number of ailments. One of the best remedies for a sore throat is raw honey. Raw honey also is a great topical ingredient for cuts and inflammatory conditions like acne.
Honey in its natural form has antiviral and antibacterial properties. You can even find some raw honey with the honeycomb, which also can be consumed. So, buying it in it’s natural form is key to reaping the essential nutrients to maintain a healthy lifestyle and boost your immune system. By building your immune system with natural ingredients makes it harder for you to get sick or drastically improves your healing time.
It helps promote a digestive system.
Did you know that a number of our health ailments occur due to our inability to eliminate waste properly? In fact, our bodies can store additional weight from a buildup of unreleased bowels. Regularly consuming raw honey improves gut health and aids digestion.
Most people have heard of probiotics, which are healthy gut bacteria that regulate our bowels. However, many people are unaware that we also need to consume prebiotics, which is what probiotics eat to perform at an optimal level. Consuming two to three tablespoons of raw honey can help alleviate some digestive issues.
It helps your local economy.
In addition to helping the environment and improving our overall health, buying locally sourced honey helps with the economy. Store-bought honey supports big businesses. However, supporting the local farmers who dedicate their lives to providing healthy honey need as much financial support as they can get. It’s especially important to support local businesses during this time of financial uncertainty. If possible, visit your local farmers market to buy your raw honey or order online from websites like localhivehoney.com/
If you’re one of the many people who use honey instead of sugar, why not buy it locally? Not only does it have more of the nutrients than big brand honey, it also helps sustain your environment and local economy.