This varies according to the honey source, but all varieties are nutrient rich. All Honeys contain:

Simple Sugars: glucose and fructose (monosaccharides), which can pass directly into the blood stream without being processed by the body.

 

Vitamins: A, beta-carotene, B-complex, C, D, E, and K.

 

Mineral Salts: Magnesium, sulfur, phosphorus, iron, calcium, chlorine, potassium, iodine, sodium, copper, and manganese.

 

Also in Honey are: water (15-18%), live enzymes, proteins, carbohydrates, organic acids, hormones, and anti-microbial and anti-biotic factors.

 

Honey versus Sugar

 

Honey is a naturally rich, highly nutritious food as well as being a sweetly delicious one, which is gently metabolised by the body. Because of this, it provides energy easily and naturally for the body to use. It has as many as 80 different substances that are important in human nutrition. The monosaccharides in honey do not need to be processed to be able to pass into the blood stream because the body easily assimilates them.

 

In comparison, sugar is a non-nutrient sweet, which offers empty calories, no flavour, and foreign disaccharides, which need to be broken down in the small intestine before they are able to pass into the blood stream. When the body processes refined sugar, it hits hard by rushing to the blood stream, jolting the pancreas into action in the process. As the body tries to stabilize the blood-sugar, a flood of insulin is pumped out to neutralise it. When excess sugar is effectively neutralized, the blood-sugar level drops…fast! This is one reason why so often we see children and adults alike getting 'hypo' after eating sugary sweet things. They get a quick boost of energy that lasts a while then drops as quickly as it came.

 

To equal the sweetness of other sweeteners such as sugar or golden syrup, one tablespoon of honey is required to one and a half tablespoons of the other sweeteners, so even though honey is initially slightly more expensive, it is still a cost effective sweetener with the need for one-third less honey to achieve the same sweetness as other sweeteners.

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