Where to buy
Idaho Honey

Allergies -- When unfiltered (natural, unprocessed) honey is consumed, you get pollen into your body without breathing it. This provides the opportunity for your body to build a tolerance for it, preventing allergic reactions when pollen is inhaled. One or two tablespoons of unfiltered natural honey per day will usually accomplish this purpose.

Antibiotic and Antiseptic Properties -- Honey possesses three biological properties which account for its antibiotic nature. These are:

1. Acidity or low pH, honey has a pH of approximately 3.6.
2. Hygroscopic property or the ability to readily absorb moisture from microscopic organisms that come in contact with honey.
3. The production of hydrogen peroxide when honey is diluted.

Honey's antibiotic properties make it an ideal wound dressing because honey absorbs water from surrounding tissues, cleans the wound and protects it against further infection.

Burns -- Because of the antibiotic and antiseptic properties of honey, it is used in many countries to treat burn victims. In these patients, the major cause of death is wound infection, which is also the most common impediment to healing. In a 1991 study, burn patients of a variety of ages were divided into two groups. The burns of patients in the first group were cleaned with saline solution and pure undiluted honey was applied before bandaging and repeated daily. Burns of the second group (control) were cleaned and covered with gauze soaked in 5% silver sulfadiazine and likewise changed daily. Results showed that within 7 days 91% of the wounds treated with honey were free of infection, compared to less than 7% of the silver sulfadiazine treated burns. Within 15 days, 87% of the honey treated wounds were healed, compared to only 10% in the control group.

Medicinal Uses of Honey -- In 1958 Dr. D C Jarvis, a medical doctor, published his book, Folk Medicine, which became a national best seller. Dr Jarvis states that when our body is in good health, it produces urine that is acidic and that when urine turns alkaline (basic) we are more inclined to get common colds, asthma, hay fever, chronic headaches, high blood pressure, and other sicknesses. Dr Jarvis recommends taking two teaspoons of cider vinegar which is acidic and two teaspoons of honey (also acidic) in a glass of water a couple times a day. This beverage will acidify your body.

Honey and Infant Botulism -- Botulism is caused by a rod-shaped bacteria, called Clostridum botulinum, which exists naturally in the ground. As such the bacteria is most likely to be found on vegetables, but can occur other places as well. It requires a pH greater than 4.6 in order to grow and thus to cause a sickness. The spores themselves do not germinate within the adult digestive tract due to its highly acidic environment. However, in infants, botulism can take on a different form as young infants have a digestive system that is far less acidic than an adults. Therefore, ingestion of these spores from any source can result in their growth within the infant. Approximately 98% of infants hospitalized with this disease have been under 35 weeks of age.

It is recommended that honey as well as other foods which could possibly contain this bacteria not be given to infants under 12 months of age.

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