I am looking forward to this weekend because it is Easter and I know what that means.  Chocolate bunnies and marshmallow chicks galore!  I can feel my body going into sugar shock mode already; the cravings are getting so bad that I am searching the internet for the best chocolate bunny that money can buy.  While my sister-in-law lusts over the hollow chocolate delicacies, I am more of a solid chocolate lover—I want to get my money’s worth!  However, with all of this sweet talk and consumption I began thinking of my waistline.  Is there really a better alternative; perhaps a more healthy version of sugar that I can feel good about?

As I read more about sugar and its refined and bleached nature, I wondered if there is something more natural that I could be consuming to get the same high as the chocolate bunny.  I have always added honey, rather than sugar cubes to my tea; I have used it to soothe a sore throat and even have purchased lotion with a touch of honey as one of the ingredients.  It was no surprise to me that honey has been used for years and years as a healthy sweetener.  I have to admit, I love me a spoonful of honey!  It’s not odd for me to fill my tea spoon with honey and put it right into my mouth instead of into the tea.  My favorite honey of all time is made from Fireweed, an Alaskan sweet treat that I had the fortunate luck to taste and bring back to Florida to share with my family.

 Instead of following the advice of Mary Poppins and using a spoonful of sugar to help the medicine go down, why not use honey as the medicine?  A medical review that was published in the International Journal of Clinical Practice in October of 2007 looked closely at what honey can do for the body.  With all of the antibiotic resistant viruses and infections, medical researchers are looking toward newer ways to combat this scary trend.  What they found is that honey, which has been around for as long as bees have flown the friendly skies, may be the answer.  The study reports that honey effectively sterilizes infections in wounds and actually speeds up healing.  It was reported to have even been used to reduce amputation rates among diabetes patients.  The lead author of this study pointed out that honey was found in the tomb of King Tutankhamun and was still edible! ( I wonder who was the taste tester on that discovery ) This points to the unique ability for this product not to spoil, making it easier to store and use.

 Documentation of the healing properties of honey were actually reported in the early 20th century, but it was shelved when the advent of antibiotics occurred.  Now, doctors are more open to nature-made, rather than man-made alternatives to infection and disease.  What makes honey so effective is that the high sugar content, low moisture content and gluconic acid create an acidic environment and hydrogen peroxide.  Pretty neat stuff, and just think, it all comes from bees and flowers.  Sweet nectar of the natural world, save me from my chocolate bunny eating ways.  I might be sold on this gooey golden goodness as a natural sweetener, but I am not ready to slather it all over my body.  With anything, it is always good to research what is best for you and your body before jumping into any trend, even if it is as sweet as honey.

Karey Burek Photo Bee gathering nectar

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