Tyrone beekeeper sweet on health benefits of honey

FOR thousands of years, bees and honey have played an essential role in human survival.

Having been used historically to treat wounds, scientists are now using honey in a search for alternatives to antimicrobial drugs.

This is in response to the fact that over 1.2 million people died globally in 2019 from infections caused by bacteria resistant to antibiotics.

Now, experts at Cardiff University have stated that we need to something innovative, otherwise we may face a scenario in which we return to the pre-antibiotic age. Also a good source of antioxidants, it is believed that honey can help with digestive issues, sore throats and combating seasonal flu, allergies, and may even contribute to preventing several types of cancer.

good for health

Tyrone beekeeper Packy Carty, a member of The Low Country Native Irish Honeybee Association (also known as Bogbees), is fully aware of how honey is good for our health.

“The problem is that much of the honey coming into Ireland and the UK, and being sold on the shelves here, is saturated with cheap sugar syrup,” he told the TyroneHerald.

“If you’re to get the goodness out of honey, then you need to buy the real thing and the only place you can be guaranteed that is from local beekeepers.

However, real local honey commands a premium price reflective of the efforts and costs involved in the local honeybee husbandry and honey harvesting.

“Eight ounces of real local honey should cost anywhere between £5-£7 a jar and will contain honey from naturally sourced nectar, .

“This will have been subjected to very little processing unlike the cheap supermarket alternatives.”

Indeed, if you are seeking honey for taste or health purposes, Packy says there is “no comparison” between locally-produced honey and that produced for the mass market.

He stated, “I’d encourage anyone wishing to utilise honey for its health-giving properties to ensure they get the best possible product, and that means avoiding the supermarkets and getting it straight from your local beekeeper as there is simply no comparison.”