Benefits Of Local Raw Honey
Honey is much more than just a sweetener. It has been used for centuries for healing and rejuvenation. Most of the honey sold in stores has been heated and pasteurized. This processing destroys many of the enzymes and beneficial compounds that make raw honey so nutritious.
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Regular honey often looks clear and syrupy. Raw honey has not been treated with heat it is often more buttery, solid and opaque than pasteurized honey and often contains “cappings,” or small pieces of beeswax. It is completely left in its natural state and therefore contains pollen, enzymes, antioxidants and many other beneficial compounds that researchers are just beginning to learn about. Be sure not to give any honey, either raw or treated, to a child under the age of 12 months.
Trying Bee Pollen As An Alternative
Another great option to reduce the allergy symptoms is pollen. Raw honey is supposed to work for your allergy because it contains traces of pollen. However, you can skip honey and focus only on getting an adequate amount of pollen instead. Be sure to start slow because you can get an allergic reaction. If you do not experience issues like itchiness or redness around the eyes, you may take up to a teaspoon of pollen a day for a month to treat your seasonal allergy.
Is Honey Good For Allergies
Honey hasnt been scientifically proven to be good for allergies.
But the idea isnt far-fetched, though. Many people have used allergy honey treatments as a natural remedy for allergies.
According to anecdotal evidence, raw honey has been observed to help with seasonal allergies. However, these findings have yet to be reproduced in clinical trials.
That said, in clinical trials, honey has been shown to be a good cough suppressant with antibacterial and anti-inflammatory benefits. Honey has been shown to contain traces of flower pollen, which is an allergy trigger.
Repeated exposure to minor amounts of allergens is considered by many as an approach to alleviate allergies.
But for the time being, honey appears to just be a sweet treat with antibacterial, antiviral, and anti-inflammatory benefits. Theres no scientific evidence suggesting that honey is a cure for allergies.
That said, you can try it to see if it works for you.
Just dont give honey to babies under a year because it has an elevated risk of infant botulism, a rare yet dangerous foodborne illness.
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How Honey May Help Treat Allergies
Proponents of giving allergic dogs raw local honey believe that the combination of pollen and honey is what helps the dog achieve a level ofallergy relief. It works like this: Bees visit flowers to collect nectar that they use to make honey. In addition to collecting the nectar, they also collect small amounts of pollens that become part of the honey. If you offer your dog a small amount of local raw honey each week, you will be giving him minute amounts of local pollens to which his system can develop an immunity over time. Once he’s developed the immunity, he should no longer show clinical signs of his allergy.
Although most dogs do not achieve a complete cure by consuming raw honey alone, a weekly dose of honey should help reduce the clinical signs and help your pet feel a little better during allergy season.
Aafa Explains: Can Honey Help My Seasonal Allergies
This post is part of our AAFA Explains series looking at complementary and alternative medicine aimed at asthma and allergies. The Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America wants to guide you as you decide between choices that may be likely safe or potentially unsafe.
There is a common myth that says eating honey helps desensitize your body to pollen and improves your allergy symptoms. Many people believe you need to eat honey found in your local area so it will contain the pollen you are reacting to.
But is this true? Can honey actually relieve pollen allergy symptoms? Lets look at the facts.
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What Can Local Honey Cure
Some people believe raw local honey can cure seasonal allergies through a process called immunotherapy. Many medical treatments, such as allergy injections, are also based on this principle. The general idea is that you can desensitize the immune system to an allergen by exposing the body to small amounts of it over time.
Is honey really effective for allergies?
The idea behind honey treating allergies is similar to a person receiving allergy shots. But while allergy shots have proven effective, honey has not. When a person eats local honey, they are thought to be ingesting local pollen. Over time, a person may become less sensitive to this pollen.
Is honey bad for allergies?
Honey has been anecdotally reported to ease symptoms in people with seasonal allergies. But these results have not been consistently replicated in clinical studies. The idea, however, is not so far-fetched. Honey has been studied as a cough suppressant and may have anti-inflammatory effects.
What Kind Of Honey For Treating Allergies
You need to understand that when you talk about treating allergies with honey and wonder how much honey for allergies can work, you should not be going for those jars of honey you find at the supermarket. You will have to find local, unprocessed honey to treat allergies. Just keep in mind that raw honey can have some nasty stuff in it, including mold spores, bee parts, and even bacteria.
It is therefore a better idea to opt for locally farmed raw honey. However, you should always avoid processed honey because it may not contain enough pollen to create any effect on your allergies. If you cannot find any bee farms in your local area, you can simple get raw honey from somewhere else. Here are a few tips to consider:
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Be sure to visit natural food stores and local farmers markets to see if you can get locally sourced honey. You can also go online to find the nearest bee farm.
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Try to get information about which pollen triggers your allergic reaction, and then you can shop outside your area so long as you know it has been obtained from the same types of plants that grow in your area.
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Search for the bee farm that is closest to your location, especially if you are not too sure about which pollen makes you deal with an allergic reaction.
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Using Immune Memory To Your Allergy Advantage
When your immune system comes across pollen again, your immune cells recognize the pollen from all the pictures it took and posted up the last time they encountered one another. That memory allows your immune system to respond faster and better every time it encounters the familiar threat, because it learned how to best deal with it last time.
This system works great for threats like viruses or bacteria. These threats dont usually happen every day, so the immune system doesnt become desensitized to seeing the same problem repeatedly.
But imagine if the same problem kept happening every day. Most likely, the immune cells would stop responding as aggressively. Eventually, they might even learn to just live with it like a busted ceiling tile in the break room or a tiny leak in the roof whenever it rains.
When this conditioning is done intentionally, its called immunotherapy. These techniques can be used to help train your body to grow comfortable with having particles like pollen around, so your immune system learns to live with its presence and ignore it.
This is how allergy shots work. By giving you a concentrated dose of particle pieces that youre allergic to every few weeks or months, you can train your immune system to desensitize itself to the presence of that allergy-causing substance.
Does Local Honey Have Any Allergy
While some who eat local honey and report an improvement in their allergy symptoms are likely experiencing the placebo effect, Dr. Marks-Cogan says the honey could be helping in other ways. “There is evidence demonstrating that honey is a cough suppressant, and that it may be anti-inflammatory,” she explains. “So, tea with honey may actually help temporarily stop a cough, so it is not being used as a placebo in that case.”
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Potential Risks Of Local Honey As An Allergy Treatment
Using local honey as an allergy remedy comes with risks. Honey may trigger anaphylaxis in people with severe allergies. Also, consuming local honey is not safe for infants, as raw honey can contain spores of the bacterium that causes botulism.
Even processed store-bought honey can contain harmful spores, so the CDC recommends that children under the age of twelve months should not be given honey at all .
Can You Tell Us About The American Lung Associations Mission
The American Lung Association is the leading organization working to save lives by improving lung health and preventing lung disease. Our work is focused on four strategic imperatives: to defeat lung cancer champion clean air for all improve the quality of life for those with lung disease and their families and create a tobacco-free future. Whether its searching for cures to lung diseases, keeping kids off tobacco, or advocating for laws that protect the air we breathe, the work of the American Lung Association helps to save lives every day.
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How Did Aprilaire And The American Lung Association Come To Work Together In The First Place What Does That Relationship Look Like Presently
AprilAire and the American Lung Association forged a new relationship in 2018. We quickly realized how much we had in common. Our partnership was developed as we saw an opportunity to educate and help more consumers improve the air in their homes to create a healthier environment.
Since 2020, AprilAire has been a Proud Partner of the Lung Association with its 4 residential air filters. Additionally, AprilAire joined the Lung Association as our FY20 National Fight For Air Climb Partner For Healthy Air. The company has also supported the Lung Associations Stand Up For Clean Air campaign. As part of this initiative, we are driving conversations around air quality, climate, and health. The Lung Association invited people to share their #MyCleanAirStoryknowing that when people realize climate and air quality are impacting the health of their neighbors, friends, and loved onesthey are more willing to act. AprilAire provided prizes for the #MyCleanAirStory contest, including one grand prize of a whole-home Indoor Air Quality upgrade and nine AprilAire Room Air Purifiers. This year, the company stepped up once again to sponsor the Wisconsin Fight For Air Climb in Milwaukee. Also in 2021, the Lung Association welcomed Dale Philippi, President and CEO of Research Products Corporation, AprilAires parent company, to the Lung Associations Wisconsin Leadership Board of Directors.
How Do Honey Bees Make Honey From Nectar
House bees take the nectar inside the colony and pack it away in hexagon-shaped beeswax honey cells. They then turn the nectar into honey by drying it out using a warm breeze made with their wings. Once the honey has dried out, they put a lid over the honey cell using fresh beeswax kind of like a little honey jar.
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How Does Honey Work On Allergies
In order for it to be effective it must fit these criteria:
Raw The honey needs to say that it is raw or you need to ask your farmer directly. Honey that is raw will still contain all the living enzymes needed to protect your body from a histamine overdose.
Local I have heard all sorts of specific mileages on this. Im not sure where they all come from. The truth is that there isnt a magic number of miles within which you must purchase your honey. Any raw honey that is harvested nearby where the same sort of plants are blooming at roughly the same time can be considered local.
Allergen Appropriate If you have fall allergies, you need to use raw, local honey that is harvested in the fall. If you buy raw, local honey that was harvested in the spring, you will no doubt enjoy some honey and get some health benefits. You will not, however benefit from the allergy prevention because the pollens to which you are allergic will not be found in this honey.
The big drawback here is that raw, local honey only works on pollen allergies. For years I was frustrated that I couldnt help people with other sensitivities. So I developed one of our honey spreads to work on the histamine reaction and to support the liver. The herbs I like best for allergy suffering are:
Is There A Honey Allergy Test
There are honey allergy tests available. Youll have to contact your local lab testing center to get the test administered.
The honey allergy test usually takes no more than 15 minutes, and youll get results back within one to three days.
The honey allergy blood test measures the amount of allergen-specific IgE antibodies in the blood to detect a honey allergy.
Although raw honey has its fair share of health benefits, some people develop an allergy to it. When honey is made by honeybees, it can potentially contain pollen from plants such as:
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Question 2 Of : Can Local Honey Make Allergies Worse
The Real Benefits Of Local Honey
While local honey might not cure you of your seasonal allergies, it can still deliver a lot of benefits: Sore throat remedy Strong source of prebiotics and nutrients Immune booster Sweetener alternative to processed sugar
If you want to give raw honey a try, make sure you source it from a local and trusted producer. This beekeeper will be someone who doesnt use any chemicals or other treatments, has bee hives within 5 miles of where you live, does not feed or move their bees, never filters or heats their honey, and uses wooden frames and natural wax foundation. If you cant find a beekeeper that meets all those criteria, aim for as many as you can to ensure the most beneficial raw/local honey.
*As a reminder, its important to keep in mind that honey is not safe for children under 12 months, as it can lead to a serious condition called botulism.
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Nasa And Air Quality Measurements
States in the Great Lakes region are incorporating high-resolution satellite data from NASA into their efforts to measure ozone levels . The enhanced information gives a more accurate reading than ground observations alone and provides states with more resources to meet federal air quality standards.
Additionally, NASA can provide information on other factors relevant to air quality and the overall environment, like wind, weather, temperature, and soil moisture levels.
One of the main benefits this measurement information provides is giving regulators a clear picture of both current air pollution levels and the results of any mitigation effortsbasically, the before and after pictures for air quality improvement.
Strategies to reduce ground ozone and other air pollutants are essential for peoples health , and are relevant to large-scale climate change efforts.
Question 3 Of : Is Local Honey Dangerous
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Tell Us About The Fight For Air Climb
The American Lung Associations Fight For Air Climb is the nations premier stair climbing challenge. At 38 events nationwide, children and adults of all ages participate in this celebratory stair-climbing adventure. Pre-pandemic, the Fight For Air Climb was held in several of our countrys most iconic skyscrapers. This year, the Lung Association invited participants outdoors for a one-of-a-kind adventure to support healthy lungs and clean air. In fact, Dale was among the companys team of more than 50 employees that climbed the stairs at Milwaukees American Family Field on May 22nd, proving he puts his feet, time, and talent behind causes he supports.
