Honey –  Manna of the forest – The nectar of the gods

Honey… honey … cheruthen,wild honey….No added preservatives,no added flavorings and no added coloring…. its really quite simple.
Honey gets its start as flower nectar, which is collected by bees, naturally broken down into simple sugars and stored in honeycombs. The unique design of the honeycomb, coupled with constant fanning by the bees’ wings, causes evaporation to take place, creating the thick, sweet liquid we know as honey.

What’s in a bottle of honey?  How honey is made ? What is the colour of honey ? What are the different forms  of honey….

Bees make honey from the nectar that they collect from flowers, other plant saps and honeydew are used to a minor extent. The colour, aroma and consistency of honey all depend upon which flowers the bees have been foraging. Forager honeybees are always female worker bees. The queen bee and drone bees never forage for food.

The color and flavor of honey varies from hive to hive based on the type of flower nectar collected by the bees. For example, honey made from Orange Blossom nectar might be light in color, whereas honey from Avocado or Wildflowers might have a dark amber color.  The color of honey varies from almost clear to dark brown. In general, lighter colored honeys are milder.  The factors of aroma and flavour of honey are subjective, and honey is often judged according to its colour. Usually dark-coloured honeys have a strong flavour while pale honeys have a more delicate flavour. It is impossible to give a comparable value to the subjective values of flavour and aroma: the relative popularity of dark and light coloured honey varies from country to country. Colour can sometimes be a useful indicator of quality because honey becomes darker during storage, and heating will darken honey. However, many perfectly fresh, unheated and uncontaminated honeys can be very dark.

Honey – Nature’s sweetener – Honey (Then) categories

• Comb Honey (honeycomb) :Direct from the hive honey-filled beeswax comb as stored naturally by the bees.
• Liquid Honey (extracted) : Prepared by cutting off the wax cappings and whirling the comb in a honey extractor, where centrifugal force moves the honey out of the cells.
• Creamed Honey (granulated) :Made by blending one part finely granulated honey with nine parts liquid honey. The mixture is stored at about 57 degrees until it becomes firm.
• Chunk Honey : Comb honey in a jar with liquid honey poured around it.
• Strained honey is honey obtained by straining honeycombs, to separate the honey from the beeswax.
• Pressed honey is extracted by pressing honeycombs with or without the application of moderate heat.

Honey uses – Cheruthen – stingless bee honey – wild honey – Medicinal uses -Health benefits

As food for humans – Stingless bee honey – Natural medicine with a sweet taste

Honey is a useful source of high-carbohydrate food, and usually contains a rich diversity of minor constituents (minerals, proteins, vitamins and others), adding nutritional variety to human diets

As a medicine or tonic –  Honey – The Sweetest Health Tonic From Nature

Honey is regarded more as a medicine or special tonic, rather than as an every-day food. Honey does have medicinal properties that are acknowledged increasingly by modern medicine. Honey is widely used as a source of sugars for making honey wines and beers, and in the manufacture of many secondary products: breakfast cereals, bakery goods, and a multitude of other value-added products.

Honey – Unique uses 

• Burn Remedy
• Cancer and Heart Disease Prevention
• Antibacterial Solution
• Energy Booster
• Colon Damage Prevention
• Dry Elbow Softener
• Antiseptic
• Blood Flow Improver
• Diabetic Ulcer Remedy
• Vitamin A Enhancement

Facial Scrub -Soften your skin with honey. It is excellent for skin exfoliation. Mix in some ground almonds and lemon juice to create a killer homemade facial scrub.
Hair Conditioner– In the shower, after you wash your hair, coat the ends with a bit of honey. Let it sit for a few minutes before rinsing out and you’ll find that your hair is less frizzy and extra conditioned
Lip Balm – Mix almond oil, beeswax, and honey to a consistency you prefer
Parasite Remover – Honey, when mixed with vinegar and water, can remove worms and other parasites from your body.

How can you tell if honey is pure ? What to look when you are a buying 

Honey ………….Most of what is sold in supermarkets is cultivated honey .Fake  honey devoid of all health and medicinal benefits?

Examining the honey before it purchasing ,checks the label.. Try to purchase branded honey /established stores or local markets