Raw honey is one of nature’s most valuable treasures.
As its name states, raw honey is not pasteurized, not filtered, unaltered, unprocessed, and harvested directly from the honeycomb to your pantry, courtesy of nature’s little honeybees.
Besides being delicious, long lasting, and a healthier alternative to sugar or artificial sweeteners, raw honey has a lot of potent medicinal properties. Some of these benefits include antioxidant support, cough reliever, wound healer, and skin and hair health.
Now new research shows that raw honey contains probiotics that boost the immune system.
Previous research has shown that honey’s immune benefits are due to the nectar from flowers containing plant polyphenols and other phytochemicals.
The probiotic in honey uncovered in the new study is called Lactobacillus kunkeei. This probiotic is found in honey, bee pollen, and royal jelly produced in the hive.
To investigate the effects of this honey probiotic, the researchers tested Lactobacillus kunkeei on cells in a laboratory. When the cells were exposed to the probiotic, the immune response in the cells was activated.
The researchers wrote:
Probiotics are microogranisms, often called ‘good bacteria.’ They are found in various fresh and fermented foods. Probiotics are believed to be essential to digestive and gut health because they maintain and balance essential bacteria in the digestive tract. They are well known to have potent digestive, immune system, and weight loss.
The study showing that raw honey contains probiotics that boost the immune system was published in the Journal of Applied Microbiology.
Note: None of the information in our website is intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any illness or disease. The content on our website is for educational purposes only.
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Raw honey: The healing treasure.
For a cough reliever recipe with honey.
Coffee with honey helps treat cough.
REFERENCES:
1. “Raw Honey Contains Probiotic That Boosts Immunity.” GreenMedInfo.com. GreenMedInfo.com, 7 July 2015. Web. 18 July 2015.
2. “Lactobacillus Kunkeei YB38 from Honeybee Products Enhances IgA Production in Healthy Adults.” Wiley Online Library. Journal of Applied Microbiology, n.d. Web. 18 July 2015.
3. “Honeybees and Beehives Are Rich Sources for Fructophilic Lactic Acid Bacteria.” Science Direct. Systematic and Applied Microbiology, Sept. 2013. Web. 18 July 2015.
