The Wonders of Honey

It’s pretty common knowledge that honey is made by bees.  But, my question is, HOW honey is made by bees, and is there anything in this process that makes honey so special?  Honey has been such a healing property in my life that I tell everyone I know about it. 

After doing some research, I don’t know that the process of how honey is made has anything to do with its incredible healing properties, but I found it fascinating.  Honey is made by several different species of bees or in some cases wasps, but the type that we humans tend to consume is that of the honey bee, or the genus Apis.  Essentially, a worker bee goes out and drinks liquid nectar from a flower and stores it within the honey stomach, which is different than the regular stomach.  (Thank goodness, because otherwise… ew!)  The bee will go to multiple flowers until the honey stomach is full.  The honey stomach has enzymes that break down the complex sugars of the nectar into simple sugars.  Once the bee get back to the hive the honey stomach has already broken down the nectar and the bee will regurgitate this new substance into a honeycomb.  The bees will fan their wings in order to make the water within the substance evaporate, making the sugars thicken into honey.  The hive bees then cap the honeycomb and it’s stored within the hive until it’s needed for consumption by the bees when times are lean.

Nature is so fascinating, isn’t it?  It blows my mind that these insects can actually make their own food.  Unlike us humans, who have to either grow our food or purchase it from a store.  And, the fact they all work together to get this done!  There are worker bees that gather the nectar and hive bees that make the wax honeycombs to store the honey.  As a society, we have become much too independent for our own good.  We need each other people!  But, that’s a lesson for another day.

What I want to focus on today is why honey is so good for your skin.  But, before I do, please be advised that you should never give honey to an infant.  There’s a risk of botulism.  There are spores found in dust and soil that make their way into honey, and babies do not have a developed immune system to defend against infection.

On to skin!  Anyone who knows me, knows that I have suffered from acne since the third grade.  I even remember the name of the boy that leaned over and told me I had my first official zit on my nose.  So embarrassing!  I figured I would just grow out of it.  Unfortunately, I did not.  I can’t pinpoint yet, what causes this issue with my skin, but I can tell you that picking at any type of blemish and constantly touching my face doesn’t help.  I have tried what seems like every type of topical and oral treatment out there.  Some things worked for awhile, but the problem never really went away.  

Over the last several years I’ve developed more of a holistic mentality, and am looking for more natural remedies as opposed to constantly turning to prescriptions.  If you do any type of Googling or Pinterest searching for a mask to aid with acne, honey is a pretty common ingredient.  At first it seemed so strange to put honey on your face.  Why would I want to essentially put sugar on my face?  That surely would make me break out and just make things worse, right?  The fear of not knowing how my skin would react to putting honey on my face made me fear even trying it.  But, at some point I did.  And, I’ve never looked back.  On occasion when I’m feeling adventurous I’ll concoct something a little bit more complicated, but when I have the time, I’ll just spread a light layer of honey all over my face and let it sit for at least 20 minutes.  Then, wash it off and proceed with my day or nighttime routine as usual.

So, why is honey so good for the skin?

Antibacterial Properties: It’s been tested, and proven that bacteria cannot grow in honey.  The reason is because honey is fairly acidic and has a sugar content that is too high for the bacteria to grow.  There is also very little water in honey.  In fact, it has less water than bacteria or fungi, therefore, not supporting bacteria growth.

Natural Moisturizer: I can attest that after I use a honey mask, my skin is definitely smoother.  Honey is a natural humectant, and draws moisture from the air to your skin.   

Antioxidants: There are antioxidants within honey that provide anti-aging effects, and also apparently protect skin from UV damage. 

Overall, I can tell you that I have found that using honey has cleared up and reduced the inflammation in my skin, blemishes heal faster, and it leaves my face feeling incredibly soft after a mask treatment.