Honeydew and leafy honeydew honey is one of the most valuable honeys. It has a rich composition and remarkable he alth-promoting properties. It is worth knowing not only how honeydew honey is made, but also what he alth-promoting properties it has, how it works on the body, how to use it and who contributes to the formation of honeydew honey.

Honeydew honey , unlike nectar honey, is not made from the nectar of flowers, but from honeydew, i.e. tree sap processed by insects, both coniferous and deciduous.

This is one of the reasons why honeydew honey has an extraordinary color and deep taste, as well as rich nutritional and he alth-promoting properties.

What is honeydew honey made of?

What is a honeydew? It is a plant sap taken by insects that feed on the leaves, branches and needles of trees. It is processed by them and then excreted in the form of a sweet-tasting liquid (because these insects do not digest sugars, they are content with proteins taken from the juice), and the drops are deposited on the leaves.

Among the insects involved in the honeydew formation process, we distinguish aphids, scots and honeydews. The sweetness of the honeydew attracts bees, which collect it from leaves and branches and transport it to the hive. There, it undergoes further fermentation and turns into the final product - honeydew honey.

Thanks to the fact that this honey is made from trees located in the cleanest forests, you can smell the resin and pine needles. Honeydew honey can be divided into two species. This is called deciduous fall, which most often comes from linden trees, and coniferous fall, usually spruce and fir.

An interesting fact is that bees collect the honeydew only in the least polluted forests.

Types of honeydew honey

Honeydew honeys are not homogeneous. They differ in the origin of the plant juice from which the honeycomb was formed: from coniferous or deciduous trees. Depending on this, they differ from each other in terms of visual features and properties.

In terms of its consistency, honeydew honey is characterized by a significant viscosity and a denser consistency than that of nectar honeys. This, in turn, affects the weight of this type of honey - they are slightly heavier than other types of honey sweets.

Coniferous honeydew honey is milder inflavor, the leafy flavor is very resinous. Both types of honeydew honey have a characteristic scent of resin and pine needles. This aroma is a characteristic feature of honeydew honeys.

Coniferous honeydew honey

Coniferous honeydew honey has a milder taste. It has a characteristic color - dark with a greenish or gray tinge, through brown to black. Most often it is obtained from fir, spruce, pine or larch.

This type of honey is not very sweet and may occasionally have a bitter or sour aftertaste.

Coniferous honeydew honey can be used in the fight against the following diseases and disorders of the body: respiratory diseases, rheumatism, kidney and circulatory system diseases, heart and gastrointestinal diseases and in neuroses.

Consuming coniferous honeydew honey is also recommended for anemics and people working in conditions harmful to he alth. It can also be especially useful - as an adjuvant - for people undergoing a recovery period. Contrary to nectar-derived honey, coniferous honeydew honey is characterized by a high content of invaluable natural antibiotics.

Honeydew honey

Honey obtained from deciduous trees is golden yellow in color. This color darkens on exposure to light and oxygen. The most common fall from deciduous trees is harvested in Poland from linden, maples and oaks. The aroma of this honey is mild, delicate and floral. Its taste, in turn, is quite specific, not everyone will like it.

Like its coniferous counterpart, this type of honey is widely used for medicinal purposes. It is recommended especially for people suffering from respiratory problems, but not only. It is also used in diseases of the urinary system, intestines, bile ducts and liver. It lowers blood pressure and improves circulation.

Honeydew honey from deciduous trees is also extremely useful in all types of skin diseases or wounds, such as burns or frostbites. It speeds up the process of wound healing.

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Honeydew honey nutritional properties

Due to its high content of nutrients and he alth elements, honeydew honey is often referred to as "royal" honey. It is an extremely valuable product for human he alth. It contains 9 times more bioelements than nectar honeys!

Honeydew honey contains:

  • potassium
  • calcium
  • sodium
  • phosphor
  • magnesium
  • manganese
  • glucose
  • fructose
  • silver
  • tin
  • molybdenum
  • vanadium
  • amino acids
  • enzymes
  • vitamin A
  • vitamin B2
  • vitamin B6
  • vitamin C
  • vitamin PP
  • vitamin K
  • guaiacol

The chemical composition of honeydew itself includes, among others: glucose, sucrose, galactose, proteins and numerous amino acids (e.g. glutamic acid, glycine or serine). There are also potassium oxides, calcium, sodium, magnesium, iron and vitamin B. Honeydew is generally not eaten by bees due to the presence of numerous substances that are difficult to digest for these insects.

Healing properties of honeydew honey. What does it help?

Thanks to its he alth properties, honeydew honey is widely used in natural medicine. Just one spoon a day will improve the functioning of the body.

Honeydew honey:

  • reduces the toxic effects of coffee, tea, alcohol and tobacco on the body. Honeydew honey from deciduous trees helps to regulate metabolism.
  • regulates the heart, dilates the coronary vessels, lowers blood pressure, and improves blood circulation.
  • improves kidney function.
  • accelerates the healing of wounds, burns and frostbite.
  • reduces nervous tension and has a calming effect. Additionally, honeydew honey helps in states of anxiety and insomnia.
  • Coniferous honeydew honey has anti-inflammatory, expectorant properties and relieves persistent cough. This property is good for fighting colds as well as more serious diseases, such as pneumonia.
  • is perfect for strengthening immunity and has detoxifying properties (therefore it is recommended for people working in harmful conditions). For this reason, it is given to miners working in uranium mines as it counteracts the effects of irradiation. It is also recommended for people after antibiotic and steroid treatments.
  • is used as a natural anti-cancer agent.
  • has more carbohydrates than sugar and at the same time fewer calories, so it is an excellent alternative to sweetening drinks.
  • is also helpful in treating asthma and kidney stones.
  • The essential oils it contains give it valuable properties in the treatment of cardiac neurosis, as well as prostatitis.
  • is recommended by dentists as it prevents the formation of tartar.

Honeydew honey - crystallization

Honeydew honeys have two crystallizing properties. Those created in the spring period (there are relatively few of them) have a tendencyto the irregular course of this process. As a result, only single, small lumps of crystals are formed. You can recognize them by a lighter color.

In turn, honeydew honeys, produced in summer (most of them), are more easily crystallized. As a result, a solid forms at the bottom of the jar and a liquid layer continues to build up at the top.

Worth knowing

It is intriguing that insects are responsible for the formation of honeydew, which are in fact pests for plants and trees. They use plant juice for their own purposes - primarily they get proteins from it. And what they do not need, i.e. sugars, they excrete, what bees use, and through them, humans.

How much does honeydew honey cost?

Honeydew honey differs from others not only in terms of he alth, but also in terms of price. It is usually more expensive than other types of honey due to the poor availability of honeydew. In some areas of Poland, it is found only once every few years. This affects the uniqueness of this type of honey, and thus also its price.

Fall occurs almost exclusively in summer, and not always in the same place where it has been located before. Why is this happening? Still no answer.

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Category:

Alternative medicine