Health Benefits of Honey

Updated: 1st April 2020


What are the health benefits of honey? Or are they 'old wives' tales'?

Honey is certainly known to be an excellent, natural energy food, and it has superb, scientifically proven anti-bacterial properties, which is probably one of the reasons why it is used in a range of home remedies. 

However, some benefits are real, whilst others may be somewhat exaggerated!

The short answer is:
There is robust scientific evidence to support some of the claims made about the health benefits of honey, whilst other claims are exaggerated, unproven, or are not backed by robust research. 

At the time of writing, Manuka honey appears to have the largest volume of quality research to support the health claims associated with it, and anti-bacterial and topical healing benefits are the most well-documented. 

However, honey is not healthy for babies, and diabetics should be sensibly cautious about eating it.

Perspectives On The Health Benefits Of Honey - The Detail

A display of honey of different colours and in various types of jars and containers

On various pages of this website, I take an in-depth look at some of the claims made with regard to the health benefits of honey.

In doing so, I look at the scientific data where available, make a number of nutritional comparisons, and provide lots of general information.

My intention is to be balanced and fair.  I'm also pleased to receive new research as and when it becomes available. 

Here is a summary of the main aspects, which are explored in greater detail elsewhere.

Honey and its beneficial anti-bacterial qualities

The anti-bacterial qualities of honey are well documented. 

This characteristic comes from honey's acidic pH, which is low enough to prevent bacterial growth. 

Honey, and especially Manuka honey, has been found to be helpful in treating some bugs and especially MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus). 

However, even Manuka honey was not found to be as effective against all bugs - for example, it was not as good at reducing Pseudomonas infection as MRSA.

Honey and healing

There is much mixed scientific information, and it's important to note that not all studies are of high quality. 

For example, their may be no control group, or the sample size may be extremely small.  In addition, some scientists form conclusion that other scientists disagree with. 

However, an interesting review of the claims looking specifically at burns, discarded all the weaker studies, and interrogated the stronger research. 

It was found that manuka honey was more helpful in healing partial-thickness burns than conventional treatments.

The research concerning the use of honey in general wound care reveals more mixed results.

Honey and nutrition

It is certainly true that honey contains a variety of minerals and enzymes.

It should be noted, however, that honey's nutritional content varies slightly, depending on where the bees have been foraging, because different types of flora create variation in honey composition.

It is also believed that honey contains various anti-oxidants that are good for humans. 

The question is, are these nutritional benefits really significant within the context of human diet, and does the nutritional data support this claim?

One example is to compare honey and sugar since honey is sometimes advocated as a substitute for sugar. 

When we compare the two, we find that although sugar is sweet, it has no nutritional content other than calorie value in the form of carbohydrate. It therefore provides an interesting comparison, and we can clearly see from the data that honey offers greater nutritional benefit that sugar.

However, if we compared honey with other every day foods, such as the humble apple, then the apple performs better than either for vitamins!  This is no surprise. At the end of the day, a good diet is all about balance.  

You can read more about this on my page honey vs sugar.

Honey carbohydrate content
In comparison with table sugar, honey contains high levels of both glucose and fructose.

The combination of these two carbohydrates (sugars) means that both an immediate, and a sustained energy boost are provided by honey, whereas the energy provided by sugar is immediate only. This may be of interest if you are engaging in particular sports.

The combination of carbohydrate types also contributes to the sweetness profile of the honey.

Honey and cinnamon, honey and apple cider vinegar
A variety of claims are made about the use of honey and cinnamon and honey with apple cider vinegar, with a number of home remedies.

I would urge caution with most of them, and advise people to visit a suitable health care practitioner, although some remedies may help, and the data on apple cider vinegar is very interesting with regard to weight loss.

honey dipper on a plate with comb honey and cinnamon stick

Honey is not healthy for everyone

  1. It should be noted that honey is not to be given to young infants – definitely not those under one year old, but seek advice from your health practitioner.

    Honey is a potential source of spores that can cause infant botulism – a rare but serious disease.

  2. Honey offers minimal if any benefit over sugar for diabetics, so if you are a diabetic, please don't substitute sugar for honey in the hope that you can safely consumer more of it. 

    Read about honey and diabetes.


Buying healthy honey

Remember, beekeeping practice varies. For this reason, if you are going to use honey, please source it preferentially from a beekeeper you can trust if possible, preferably local, or if not, purchase organic honey.  

Organic honey is less likely to be contaminated with pesticides or other contaminants (some countries have had problems with imported honey).

What is the point in buying honey for its beneficial ingredients, if what you buy contains toxins?

Organic honey supports farming practices that are ecologically better for the environment, and hence honey bees and other pollinators.






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