With the new flowers and plants soon beginning to bloom as we head into April, for many this means seasonal allergies. If you’re someone who struggles with allergies this time of the year, honey may help lessen the effects of seasonal allergies.
How it Works
The reason that you may get those sneezing fits or itchy eyes is because the pollen that is released from plants is mistakenly identified by your immune system as a harmful intruder. To combat this misidentification, eating raw local honey may help desensitize your body to pollen. This is because honeybees make honey by collecting nectar and pollen from flowers, and then process it through various methods to create honey. Every time you eat honey, you’re digesting some of that pollen that was collected and teaching your immune system that pollen is not an enemy.
Raw Honey
There are a couple of conditions to this though. For one, the honey should be raw to get the maximum amount of pollen. Raw honey is essentially kept in its most natural state without any pasteurization or extreme filtering, both of which can eliminate its beneficial properties. The honey our bees produce is harvested from our own hives and strained only to remove debris or bits of beeswax. Aside from helping allergies, raw honey may also be considered beneficial as it maintains all of the enzymes and antioxidants naturally found in honey. If you are looking for an even greater amount of pollen, our Raw Ontario Bee Pollen makes a great addition to smoothies, oatmeal, and salads.
Local Honey
In addition to being raw, the honey should also be local to have an effect on your seasonal allergies. Every flower produces different pollen, and it is important that the honey you consume contains the pollen local to your area. Unfortunately any honey that you’ve purchased that is produced from outside of Canada, or even out of province, is unlikely to do your seasonal allergies any good. Your best bet is to purchase honey that is as local to you as possible. If you live in Ontario, we produce honey harvested from our hives in Markham, Etobicoke, North York, Rouge Valley, Don Valley, and throughout Headwaters.
If you’re looking for a natural way to reduce your seasonal allergy symptoms you may try incorporating local raw honey into your daily routine. Even just replacing the sugar in your morning coffee or tea with honey might make a difference.
Please note: The information provided in this blog post is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice. Please speak to your healthcare professional regarding your personal situation.
