I was a little embarrassed when I realized I was out of sugar after offering a cup of coffee to a visiting friend.  ‘Got any honey?’ my friend asked.  Honey instead of sugar?  In coffee???  Didn't sound right.  Fortunately I did have honey and put some in her coffee and handed it to her. 

As she sipped her coffee, my friend told me that honey was actually better for us than sugar.  I looked over to her and smile in agreement (thinking all the while – yeah right.) 

But, curiosity got the better of me and I tried a little in my coffee and ya know it wasn't half bad.  But I chalked it up to me enjoying my visit with my friend and not really focusing on the taste of the coffee.

When she left, while cleaning up, my mind went back to my friend’s statement about honey being better for me than sugar.

I wondered if it were really true or just a personal preference.  So, I went to work looking into the pros and cons of both honey and sugar. 

I found that both have glucose and fructose (whoo hoo huh?).  Okay like that means anything to me either?   I continued on.  During the process in manufacturing sugar from the canes all the “good” stuff is destroyed by the heat whereas honey is only subjected to a minimal of heat.  Again, woop-dee-do. 

‘Which one’s gonna make my butt bigger?” I thought.   Let’s see, one tablespoon of table sugar contains about 46 calories.  One tablespoon of natural sweetener honey has about 64 calories.  ‘Ah, ha!  That’s it!’  ‘Honey is better for you but makes you fatter quicker.’  Then I read on.  Oops, it appears you actually use less with honey because it’s sweeter than sugar.  ‘Okay so one for honey.’

Next I learned that when we eat sugar our stomach has to use its own enzymes to separate the molecules apart before we can use the sugar's energy.  With honey the bees have added a special enzyme to the nectar that divides the sucrose into glucose and fructose for our bodies can absorb directly.  Well bless those little bees’ pea-pickin’ hearts.

What all this means is, honey has a slower absorption and infusion of sugars into the bloodstream and therefore we have a more gradual and healthier digestion process.  Okay, two for honey.

Sugar, lacks minerals and vitamins is at times referred to as empty calories.  It actually relies on the body’s nutrients to metabolize into the system. So, when these nutrients are all used up, metabolizing cholesterol and fatty acid is obstructed contributing to higher cholesterol and promoting obesity due to higher fatty acid on the organs and tissues. And what THAT means?  It can make us fat!

Bottom line?  Honey wins.

Okay ... but what else is honey good for then? 

Well, we already know that honey is nature’s energy booster.  But it is seems it is also a great immunity system builder (helps the body attack bad germy things) and, is a natural remedy for some ailments. 

Note: raw/natural honey should never be fed to infants under the age of two due to botulism toxin.  Infants unable to break down and metabolize the botulism toxin.  As adults we all have resistance to botulism toxin due to long term slow small quantity exposure to the toxin. This goes for immuno-compromised young children and adults as well.

Honey - man's oldest sweetener! 

Er …eh, or should I say women’s new best friend!

- Survivor Jane

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