Pure, Raw Honey...Or Not.....?

People talk about honey as so healthy.  "Use it instead of jelly on sandwiches, mix it with other ingredients to add to their health benefits (i.e. cinnamon, or Apple Cider Vinegar)," they tell you.  Well, that is true...to an extent.  Depending on the honey you buy, it can be good, or it can be bad for you.  The honey you buy at your grocery store is NOT good!!!  Here is an example of the process honey usually goes through.  A friend of mine has studied bees/honey, and sent me some information.

"First, What do honey producers feed their bees to make them produce honey faster? They feed them sugar syrup. The other thing they use is a feed supplement which they pour into a box that sit on top of the hive. What is wrong with sugar syrup? Well a honey bee will always go collect its supplies for making honey in the closest, most abundant place. In this case it would be the sugar syrup or the feed supplement that is on top of the hive. So when the a bee makes the honey in the comb it is using sugar syrup as its main supply. This makes the honey in the hive mostly sugar. Yet the honey in the hive does have enzyems in it that are good for you, but wait they still need to process it :) The processing of honey has a step that invloves heating the honey to 130+ degrees F. Heating honey to that temperature keeps it from crystalizing (which is supposedly why they heat it). Alright, so they keep it from crystalizing, what is wrong with that? The other thing that heating honey (to 130+ degrees F) does is that it kills all the enzymes that are good for you (the ones I mentioned before). So what you end up with is plain sugar water. Is “Raw Honey” truly raw? Well since honey producers have no laws governing what the honey should or should not have to be able to be labeled ”raw”. Honey producers can label their honey raw even if it is not raw. So the chances are the honey is not “raw”. Now I am talking about the major honey producers, not the little honeybee farms. To know if they (little honeybee farms) do it or not you would have to talk to them about their processes."

Isn't that sad?  I find it very frustrating.  They also price honey at such high prices...and for what?  Some sugary syrup???  What is even worse, is I have heard - now I don't know for sure - that some honey producers actually add corn syrup/glucose/sugar to the honey.
I find that I can taste a difference in the honey from the grocery store, from the REAL, pure, raw honey.  I know that depending on what the bee eats the honey tastes different, but I think that it has a different taste.
One thing I love is crystallized honey! :)  I don't eat bread because of some wheat problems I've had, but when I did I loved to put butter and/or crystallized honey on my toast!!!  It is so good! :)  If you have never had honey crystallized, you should try it!!!!  The texture is really unique! :)

One other thing is that it is best to buy local honey as it has been produced by bees who have taken the substances they use to make their honey from your area, which contain immune-stimulating properties needed for your body to adapt to it's environment.

Well, I hope at least some of that was helpful.  I really need to study it even more, but it is hard to find the time....and you wouldn't end up reading this post if it was too long!!!  =D

Have a wonderful day!!!