Honey!
Liquid gold made by honeybees from the nectar of flowers, honey has been recognized as a healer since Biblical times, and essentially has no expiration date. Not only is it a natural sweetener, but it's also accessible and available all over the world! Here’s a quick look at some of its amazing benefits:
- Antioxidant properties: protects from oxidative damage caused by free radicals
- Antibacterial & anti-inflammatory: effective in treating minor wounds, burns, and sore throats
- Boosts immunity: stimulates the production of white blood cells
- Improves digestion: contains enzymes that promote growth of beneficial gut bacteria
- Heart health: lowers cholesterol and reduces oxidative stress
And that’s just the tip of the iceberg! Yet somehow it’s often overlooked as a supplement both for human and canine health. Here are some worthwhile varieties:
- Local raw honey: Let’s take a closer look at those first two words: local & raw.
Local: Why does this matter? Honey is known to contain trace amounts of pollen from nearby plants. So the more local the honey you (or your dog) ingests, the more likely you’ll get a gentle exposure to those pollens that might otherwise cause you to sneeze or itch. Try to find as local as you can! Your neighborhood, your district, or your town is ideal. But if you have to, your state or region is better than a national brand. To find local honey, go to your town’s farmer’s market, try a local farmstand or grocer, or ask on your town’s Facebook forum page. You may be surprised that your neighbor down the street is a beekeeper!
Raw: The honey you’ll buy at the big brand stores is likely going to be processed honey. This means it has been pasteurized and finely filtered to make it clearer and smoother. Unfortunately, this process also removes most of the beneficial properties: natural pollen, enzymes, antioxidants, wax, and propolis. Raw honey may appear cloudy or opaque and may crystallize faster. This is perfectly fine! It won’t flow as easily, but it’s going to offer a lot more benefits in its original form!
- Bee pollen: a mixture of flower pollen, nectar, enzymes, honey, wax, and bee secretions that honeybees collect and pack into little pellets to be used as a protein-rich food for the hive. Sold in the form of tiny granules or capsules.
Bee pollen has recently become more popular in both the human and canine nutrition community, due to its high concentration of proteins, dietary fibers, lipids, carbohydrates, and minerals. It is often advertised as a “complete food” due to its strong antioxidant potential and the presence of antioxidant compounds such as polyphenols, flavonoids, carotenoids, and vitamins.
What exactly is it? In short, honeybees visit flowers and collect pollen; using a little nectar and enzymes from its saliva, the bees moisten and compact the pollen into sticky pellets; they return to the hive, they cover the pollen balls with honey and a layer of wax then store it in the honeycomb; during this time, lactic fermentation occurs, making these collections into “bee bread” which becomes a protein-rich food for the hive–especially for the larvae and new generation of workers.
Studies have shown that bee pollen is thus a superfood not only for bees, but for humans as well (and can so be for dogs too)! It has been known to fill nutritional gaps, but this does vary depending on which flowers the bees visited. It can easily be considered as a wonderful supplement for anyone needing an immune boost; and remember, a little goes a long way!
Notice: Bee pollen can be harder to source locally, since small business beekeepers aren’t usually too keen to steal the food source of their bees for the sake of profit!
- Manuka honey: I’m sure you’ve heard of this variety, but what exactly makes it different from other honey?
Thinking back to how honey and bee pollen varies depending on which flowers are being harvested from, manuka honey stands apart because it’s honey made by bees that collect nectar from the Manuka tree, native only to New Zealand.
This honey has unique antibacterial properties, specifically a compound called methylglyoxal (MGO). MGO can damage bacterial cells by interfering with their proteins and DNA, preventing them from growing or surviving. It can even act against bacteria that is known to be resistant to antibiotics. This is what makes manuka honey a considerably supercharged variety of honey.
Because manuka honey is in limited supply and tested for its MGO content, it can be a much more expensive option. But it can be used both internally and topically, and is often used in medical treatments.
As you can see, honey offers many varieties and forms that can add benefits to your and your dog’s health! One should use caution though and always start very small to ensure no allergic reaction occurs.
Honey’s composition is variable depending on its botanical and geographical origin, but always try to source locally, and support small businesses when you can! This way you’re more likely to get a real, raw form of honey that will help combat the local pollen and help you fight back against seasonal allergies! And you’ll be helping to support your community as well.
Citations:
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10346535/
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10045447/
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6613335/