September is National Honey Month in the USA
The National Honey Board launched the idea of September being National Honey Month all the way back in 1989 to showcase American beekeeping and promote honey as the most awesome natural sweetener in the world.
Bees are the only insects that makes a substance that we, as humans, eat and digest.
Honey is one of the most precious commodities in the world, so even the higher priced raw unfiltered natural honeys are a bargain when you consider what they go through before they arrive on your local store shelf.
According to the National Honey Board, it takes 22,700 bees to make one jar of honey, since a worker bee only lives long enough to make 1/12 of a teaspoon of honey in her entire short little life. She works tirelessly until she drops dead from exhaustion.
For every pound of honey, honeybees collect nectar from over 2 million flowers.
Imagine a world without honeybees and honey…
No sweet little buzzers foraging on the wild flowers…
No wild flowers to forage since there are few if any bees to pollinate them.
No honey on your table and a scarce selection of fruits and vegetables because they too are under-pollinated by other pollinating insects.
Even your cup of coffee is now a rare super expensive treat because there are no more bees…
This is a nightmare scenario we can only hope will never happen. But bees, especially honeybees, are under many forms of pressure just for their very survival these days. Just look through our previous blog titles and you’ll see many of the hazards facing honeybees every day.
Many people never think of bees from one end of the year to the other, but bees are still there, busily making honey, day in and day out.
As far back as 2000 BCE the ancient Chinese recognized and valued the medicinal powers of honey and used it as a form of medicine. Even today, the World Health Organization (WHO) reports that honey soothes throat irritation. It relieves coughs and is even known to help heal canker sores and soften dry, rough skin. Local honey can bring great relief to those suffering from seasonal allergies.
The rise in popularity over the past decade of Manuka Honey from New Zealand on the natural market is nothing short of meteoric. This potent honey is antibacterial, antimicrobial, antiviral and antioxidant and it was approved by the US FDA in 2007 for wound treatment. It has been marketed in the relief of acne due to its antimicrobial activity.
Honey helps the insomniac, and there are many tea blends of chamomile, honey, lavender and vanilla that stimulate melatonin and guide you one step closer to a sweet and peaceful dream world.
What do bees and natural honey mean to you? Would it bother you if there was no more honey and the buzz of bees carried on the breeze no more?
Honey is under attack in a different way of late. Check out our blog post from yesterday about tainted honey on the world market and educate yourself so you know you are buying real honey.
Let us know over on Facebook what honey means to you, and what sorts of honeys are most popular in your area.
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Katy - Bee Missionary
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