You’ll be very pleased to know that yes, you can eat honeycomb! It can make for a very delicious treat, and there are even lots of benefits that it can bring to your health.
Honeycomb is a very sweet, chewy food that contains beeswax and raw honey, which is made by bees as a way to store honey and pollen. Some people can worry about the fact that honeycomb contains wax and think this makes it unsafe to eat. However, there is no need to be concerned. Bees make honeycomb and it is completely safe to enjoy the delicious sweet delicacy. Whilst you can eat honeycomb, there are some potential risks. For example, sometimes honeycomb can be infected with the bacteria Clostridium botulinum. If this gets into your body it can lead to unpleasant symptoms including impaired vision, slurred speech and difficulty in breathing.
The main way to ensure that your honeycomb is completely safe to eat is to make sure you get it from a reliable source, store it properly and that you don’t leave it for too long without eating it.
In general, honeycomb should be completely safe to eat, however it is recommended that pregnant women and children under 12 years old should avoid it in case it has been contaminated.
Furthermore, there is the risk that honeycomb can lead to stomach issues if too much of it is eaten. Therefore, you should try and make sure that you only eat small amounts of honeycomb at a time and that you don’t over-indulge on it.
Some people can actually experience allergic reactions to honeycomb, especially if they have other allergies such as to pollen or bee venom. If you have any of these allergies, or think you are at risk of them, then it is best that you avoid eating honeycomb.
Another concern people have is over whether or not it is safe to eat beeswax. When found in honeycomb, beeswax is completely safe to consume. It’s a substance naturally secreted by bees and it can even help to bring some health benefits which will be mentioned later on in this article.
Benefits of Honeycomb
- Protect Against Infections
Our bodies can be vulnerable to infection by certain fungi and bacteria such as salmonella or E. coli.
Honeycomb contains antimicrobial properties that make it effective at helping to fight some of these infections, and therefore protect your body from some unpleasant symptoms.
- Rich in Nutrients
Honeycomb contains some essential nutrients which can help to bring great benefits to your health. For example, it contains antioxidants which help to protect your body and cells from oxidative stress. Antioxidants also help to reduce your risk of inflammation, which can in turn protect you from a range of diseases such as arthritis.
Whilst the majority of honeycomb contains water and sugar, it also contains very small amounts of important minerals and vitamins. For example, honeycomb contains calcium and magnesium. Calcium promotes good bone health and has also shown links to helping to reduce blood pressure. Magnesium can bring about this same effect on magnesium and has also been shown to help reduce people’s risk of getting type 2 diabetes.
- Antibacterial
Another benefit of honeycomb is that it contains useful enzymes such as glucose oxidase, which give honeycomb some antibacterial and antimicrobial properties. This is because glucose oxidase is able to produce natural hydrogen peroxide, which in turn kills or prevents further growth of any bacteria or other pathogens that might invade your body.
- Sugar Alternative for Diabetics
Something many people who have diabetes struggle with is that they can’t eat sugar. Well, diabetics will be pleased to know that honeycomb is a sugary food item that they can eat! This is because the honey in honeycomb is naturally very sweet, and so only a small amount of sugar is needed. So, whilst honeycomb can still raise blood sugar levels, it doesn’t raise it as much as other sugary foods.
Furthermore, one of the causes of type 2 diabetes is insulin resistance, which is where your body can’t recognize or respond to the hormone properly, and so can’t use it to reduce blood sugar levels. However, honeycomb has actually been shown in studies to help reduce insulin resistance. This can then in turn help to reduce blood sugar levels, which can help prevent people from getting type 2 diabetes or can help alleviate some of the symptoms that those with the condition deal with.
- Promote Good Heart Health
Another great benefit of honeycomb is that it can help to promote good heart health. Having high cholesterol is something which has been proven to be a leading cause of heart disease. Well, beeswax, which is found in honeycomb, contains certain long-chain fatty acids which have been shown in studies to reduce the cholesterol levels in blood. Therefore, it can in turn help to lower your risk of any heart disease and promote overall heart health.
- Honeycomb vs Honey
There is no overruling benefit to eating honey rather than honeycomb or vise versa, and which one you prefer to eat is mainly down to personal preference. However, lots of people tend to prefer honeycomb because it has beeswax, something that plain honey does not, which can add a nice bit of chewiness.
How to eat Honeycomb
There are a few ways you can eat honeycomb so that you can fully enjoy the sweet treat.
- Use it as a Spread
One way you can have honeycomb is by using it on a spread, for example on toast. A
- Use it in Your Baking
You can also bake honeycomb and make some lovely desserts. For example, why not make some honeycomb cookies!
- Add it to Yoghurt or Oatmeal
You can also use honeycomb to naturally sweeten your morning porridge or yoghurt. All you need to do is put some honeycomb on top and allow it to melt.
- Eat it Out of the Tub
One of the easiest ways you can eat honeycomb is to just grab a tub of it and dig in with a spoon! Just make sure to not eat too much in one go.
Whilst honeycomb is safe to eat, like any food it’s important to eat it in moderation. It contains a lot of sugar and so too much of it can bring potential negative side effects. However, it can be an extremely tasty treat that can help to give you some great health benefits including protection against microbial infections and is an amazing alternative to sugar for those with diabetes.