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Benefits of honey?

Started by Matthew Rogers3 · · 👁 4 views · 19 replies

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Participants Matthew Rogers3Nathan Collins2restlessdriver87Dennis Taylor9Kevin White5Casey Palmer5swiftscout8slycrane94Roger Smith6ABryan Murphy84
Matthew Rogers3 Matthew Rogers3 NewcomerOP
3 messages
joined May 2004
#1 ·
A colleague of mine is pretty worried after hearing this:

Apparently, if you stir honey into boiling tea, the heat turns it into something carcinogenic. They say it’s better to wait until the tea cools down before adding the honey.

I have to wonder, does this affect memory at all?
Nathan Collins2 Nathan Collins2 Active Member
68 messages
joined Feb 2006
#2 ·
no🙄
restlessdriver87 restlessdriver87 Newcomer
2 messages
joined Jul 2005
#3 ·
I can't say for certain regarding what you're asking, though I suspect adding honey directly to boiling tea might be counterproductive, as the heat likely destroys most of its beneficial properties. Perhaps the tea should be allowed to cool to around 105°F before the honey is introduced. I'm not entirely sure about the exact temperature required, but if one were to purchase locally sourced honey, I imagine there might be some guidance on the label regarding usage.
Dennis Taylor9 Dennis Taylor9 Newcomer
5 messages
joined Feb 2004
#4 ·
You’re spot on, restlessdriver87. It’s the same deal with lemon; you really should add it to warm tea rather than boiling hot tea if you want to preserve those vitamins. That’s especially important when you're trying to fight off a cold.
Kevin White5 Kevin White5 Active Member
96 messages
joined Mar 2006
#5 ·
What kind of nonsense is this?
No offense intended.
Casey Palmer5 Casey Palmer5 Regular
470 messages
joined Jan 2016
#6 ·
So, we had a bit of a messy debate about honey earlier that went slightly off the rails, but that shouldn't stop us from talking about it! I want to know if you guys use honey, what kind you prefer, and if you actually swear by its medicinal benefits.

Quoting swiftscout8:
"The truth is, honey loses all its good stuff if you stir it into hot tea"
"The reality is that 90% of people have no clue that Vitamin C breaks down once it hits 40°C. Isn't that just such an eye-opening, constructive, and useful point? I really think this deserves its own thread."

Anyway, the floor is officially open and I'd love to hear your thoughts...

Unfortunately, I don't get to eat much honey myself since I'm allergic to almost every kind out there, though I absolutely love the taste of acacia honey when I can manage it.
swiftscout8 swiftscout8 Active Member
87 messages
joined Apr 2007
#7 ·
Link1

Link2
swiftscout8 swiftscout8 Active Member
87 messages
joined Apr 2007
#8 ·
Q3. I've heard that improper cooking techniques and poor storage can basically wipe out the vitamin C in our food. Is there actually a way to stop that from happening?

There is. The simplest fix? Eat more of those vitamin C-heavy foods raw.

Luckily, many of the heavy hitters—think oranges, grapefruit, strawberries, tomatoes, and bell peppers—actually taste better without being processed. Even some people swear by raw broccoli or cauliflower.

If you want to keep the nutrients intact in raw produce, don't prep too far ahead. Chop them right before you eat. Slicing everything up hours in advance and letting it sit in the fridge is just asking for nutrient loss.

When you do decide to turn on the stove, try to hit that "tender-crisp" sweet spot rather than turning everything into mush. Use minimal water. Skip the boiling if you can; steaming or using a microwave is a much better bet for preserving what's left. And remember: cook only as much as you need for One meal. Reheating leftovers means you're essentially cooking the food a second time, which further depletes the vitamin C.
Casey Palmer5 Casey Palmer5 Regular
470 messages
joined Jan 2016
#9 ·
I've gone ahead and merged the old honey discussion thread with the new one.
slycrane94 slycrane94 Active Member
58 messages
joined Dec 2002
#10 ·
Zimske Radosti said:A colleague of mine is spiraling because of something they were told:

If you stir honey into boiling tea, the heat supposedly turns the honey into a carcinogen. Apparently, you should wait for the tea to cool down before adding the honey.

Is there any actual science behind this, or is it just nonsense?

That’s impossible. At those temperatures, the only thing happening is protein denaturation—which isn't even an issue since there are no proteins in honey—or the rapid breakdown of Vitamin C. You don't have enough energy at that level to synthesize carcinogens from unburned carbons.

So, there's nothing to worry about. Sure, you might lose some antioxidants, but given how briefly it stays hot, is it really worth the anxiety?
swiftscout8 swiftscout8 Active Member
87 messages
joined Apr 2007
#11 ·
slycrane94 said:Look, don't sweat it. You might lose some antioxidants, but since we’re talking about such a brief window, it’s really not worth losing sleep over.

Unless you're boiling the life out of that veggie. Besides, you can always just eat it raw.

But wait—is it actually true that exposure to air destroys Vitamin C too?
slycrane94 slycrane94 Active Member
58 messages
joined Dec 2002
#12 ·
Overcooking is really just a function of time. (Since the temp stays at a constant 212°F, obviously).

Exposure to air—oxygen—just oxidizes the Vitamin C.
Casey Palmer5 Casey Palmer5 Regular
470 messages
joined Jan 2016
#13 ·
Here’s how a friend of mine broke it down:
The max temperature for a can is definitely right around 212°F. That’s a huge difference compared to when you're working with oil, which can be heated up way higher (I mean, cooking oils have much higher flash points)... When you hit those high levels of energy, it's easy to pull fatty acids and glycerol out of the fat—and since oil actually starts to burn before it even reaches a boil, you end up getting carcinogenic acrolein from that glycerol.
Roger Smith6 Roger Smith6 Member
30 messages
joined Sep 2003
#14 ·
Honey loses its medicinal properties when it hits 104 degrees Fahrenheit. I’m not entirely sure which specific qualities are being neutralized, but I know they disappear. I heard this directly from a professional beekeeper.
A Anonymous Veteran
3.6K messages
joined May 2005
#15 ·
Winter Joys said:A buddy of mine is seriously stressing out because he just got hit with this information:

If you pour honey into boiling hot tea, you’re basically turning it into something potentially carcinogenic. It's much better to let your tea cool down a bit first before stirring in the honey.

I mean, does this actually have anything to do with intelligence?

This isn't exactly what I meant to bring up, but honestly, the whole debate about honey quality is still totally relevant.

Quoting;
Honey heated past 115 degrees isn't exactly medicine anymore—it’s just food. These days, people don't value honey nearly as much as they used to, and you're even starting to hear some claims that it causes stomach aches or heartburn. Honestly, if honey is actually causing those kinds of issues, the problem lies elsewhere. Either it isn't genuine honey produced through natural means, or someone is selling a cheap, processed imitation.
Honey needs to be fully mature. This is where most people mess up—they harvest way too early before the ripening process is actually complete. Just because you've pulled honey from the comb doesn't mean it's ready to go; it’s not shelf-stable if it hasn't finished maturing properly. When you harvest premature honey, you aren't just losing that delicate, signature aroma. It actually starts to ferment, turning sour and eventually spoiling altogether. The real danger, though, is when this low-quality, fermented honey gets mixed in with the good stuff. Once it contaminates a batch, it can easily cause digestive issues for anyone eating it.
There’s a whole spectrum of ways people are faking honey these days.
To bulk up honey, manufacturers toss in all sorts of fillers—we're talking water, carrot juice, rye flour, millet, peas, or even chestnut. They might also pack it with sugar solutions, beet sugar, corn syrup, or even the finest finely ground sand.
......
by Richard Nixon

It’s entirely possible there was just a massive misunderstanding when you talked to your friend. This might not be nearly as dire as being told it’s carcinogenic; it’s more likely just a matter of poor-quality honey causing an upset stomach, especially if it gets overheated during processing.

I’m just taking a wild guess here...
slycrane94 slycrane94 Active Member
58 messages
joined Dec 2002
#16 ·
I don't see how honey would be affected by temperatures over 113°F. There aren't any proteins in there to denature.

I'm actually curious what kind of data Mr. Willard is using to back up his conclusion.
A Anonymous Veteran
3.6K messages
joined May 2005
#17 ·
slycrane94 said:I don't really get what would happen to honey at temperatures over 45°C. There aren't even proteins in it that could denature.

Honestly, I'm curious about what kind of data Mr. Willard (from the quote) is actually basing his conclusion on.

Nothing catastrophic happens to honey if it gets heated above 45°C. It just loses its medicinal properties, and that's about it. 😉

The quote seems to be referring to how unripe honey or various adulterants (fake honey, whatever you want to call it) can cause digestive issues. People then misinterpret those symptoms to mean the honey itself is bad or toxic. 😉

So, I was thinking maybe this is more about that, rather than actual carcinogenicity—basically, that the info the friend got from Zuckerman might have been slightly distorted.

But again, just guessing...
slycrane94 slycrane94 Active Member
58 messages
joined Dec 2002
#18 ·
I don't get it 🙂

I’m just wondering what the actual chemical process is here—what makes honey so incredibly heat-sensitive? From what I understand, proteins are usually the main culprits when it comes to losing their tertiary structure under heat. It seems odd to think there would be significant protein content in honey. Are they adding some kind of protein-based antibiotic or something?
swiftscout8 swiftscout8 Active Member
87 messages
joined Apr 2007
#19 ·
slycrane94, take a look at those links I posted above. They're about enzymes.
Bryan Murphy84 Bryan Murphy84 Member
10 messages
joined Apr 2004
#20 ·
Milky Way said:AxMi, take a look at those links I posted earlier. It’s all about enzymes.

Exactly, we're talking about enzymes. Bees essentially "inject" their own enzymes from their glands while they process nectar. These enzymes can denature when exposed to high heat—which doesn't make the honey carcinogenic, per se, but it definitely alters its properties, and not for the better.
For what it's worth, honey itself doesn't actually contain vitamins. Any vitamins present come from the tiny traces of pollen left behind. That's why any honey that's been highly filtered ends up being devoid of them.

As for how you eat it—it's always best dissolved in liquid. Ideally, the liquid should be lukewarm, about the same temperature you'd use for a baby's bath... 😁

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