Will long-term consumption of honey cause cancer and teratogenesis? Will eating it with onions cause poisoning? Here is the truth...

Experts in this article:

Zhao Aili, PhD candidate in Nutrition and Food, Fujian Medical University

Wang Wenxiang, Doctor of Medicine, Associate Professor of Fujian Medical University, Doctoral Supervisor of Nutrition and Food

Honey is a very common food in daily life and has always been a favorite of many people.

Getting up in the morning and drinking a cup of honey water is so wonderful.

But honey’s popularity also has its own troubles, which is that there are too many rumors circulating online, making it difficult to distinguish between true and false.

Recently, friends have been calling for more information about honey, and the questions are diverse:

Will long-term consumption of honey cause cancer, deformities, and precocious puberty?

Honey and onions cannot be eaten together, will it cause poisoning?

Can drinking honey water really cure constipation?

Message from Science Popularization China (can't see clearly, click to open, click to open)

Today, let’s discuss some scientific knowledge about honey based on these questions.

Will long-term consumption of honey cause cancer and teratogenesis?

Online rumors: "Long-term consumption of honey will cause cancer and malformation? Will it induce premature puberty?"

The most controversial bee products are royal jelly and propolis, because they contain hormones and "estrogen", which are believed to cause breast cancer, precocious puberty in children, etc.

Chinese scientists have tested the sex hormones in royal jelly and found that it contains only a very small amount of sex hormones, far from the dose that can cause breast cancer or aggravate breast diseases. Royal jelly contains fatty acids and proteins that can promote the secretion of growth hormones, which are used to cultivate queen bees and larvae, but usually these substances will be destroyed and lose their activity after being consumed by humans.

The main component of "phytoestrogen" contained in propolis is flavonoids, which usually have more benefits than disadvantages for women. Therefore, the possibility of propolis causing breast disease is very small.

Of course, patients with breast diseases are not recommended to take propolis to improve their condition, because it does not have the effect of treating or improving the disease.

In addition, the estrogen in honey is also very small. Studies have shown that honey is not only non-carcinogenic and non-teratogenic, but also has potential anti-cancer effects, but it cannot replace anti-cancer drugs.

Therefore, long-term consumption of honey does not cause cancer or precocious puberty in children.

It should be noted that infants under one year old cannot eat honey, mainly because honey may contain botulinum toxin, and infants have fragile intestinal flora and low immunity, which can cause greater harm to infants.

Will eating honey and onions together cause poisoning?

There is a rumor that "honey and onions cannot be eaten together, because honey contains organic acids, and onions contain sulfur compounds, and eating the two together will cause poisoning."

In fact, the possibility of poisoning is extremely small. On the one hand, the main components of honey are fructose and glucose, and the content of organic acid is extremely small. On the other hand, even if organic acid and sulfur-containing compounds come into contact, a certain amount of catalyst is required for a chemical reaction to occur. Without a catalyst, it is difficult for the reaction to occur.

Therefore, we cannot discuss toxicity without considering dosage!

In fact, the main reason why honey is not recommended to be eaten with onions is the taste issue. Honey tastes sweet, while onions are spicy and irritating. The taste of the two is too different and they are not suitable to be eaten together.

Can drinking honey water really cure constipation?

Let me first say the conclusion: honey water can indeed help with bowel movements, but it does not work for everyone.

Some people can have a bowel movement after drinking honey water because of "fructose intolerance". People with fructose intolerance cannot completely absorb fructose, which remains in the intestine and is decomposed by intestinal flora, producing gas, thereby promoting intestinal peristalsis and showing a "laxative" effect.

But drinking honey water is not a good idea, as it will affect the balance of intestinal flora.

For most people, the laxative effect of honey water is no different from that of boiled water.

To sum up, if you want to have a bowel movement, it is better to supplement with more dietary fiber, increase your water intake and strengthen physical exercise.

It is okay to drink honey water on a daily basis. There are many kinds of honey on the market, such as acacia honey, multi-flower honey, jujube honey, loquat honey, etc. What are the differences between them?

What are the differences between jujube honey, acacia honey, etc.?

Honey is divided into 1-3 grades according to the source flower type and color, and is divided into 4 levels according to honey concentration (degrees Baume).

Date flower honey is second-grade honey, acacia honey is first-grade honey, and multi-flower honey is made by bees collecting nectar from a variety of flowers.

Jujube flower honey is deep red amber in color, very sweet, with a strong aftertaste, and not easy to crystallize. It is mainly produced in Shaanxi, Shanxi and Henan provinces in my country.

Acacia honey, also known as Robinia honey, is light amber in color and is mainly produced in most areas of Yan'an, Shaanxi, north of the Yangtze River. Multi-flower honey is darker in color.

The taste, color and composition of these three common honeys vary according to the season and origin, and when choosing honey, the nutritional value of lower-grade honey is not necessarily lower than that of higher-grade honey.

Therefore, when choosing honey, it is recommended that you start from your own reality and make your choice based on the effects of honey and your personal taste.

When purchasing honey, give priority to natural mature honey, choose less or no processed honey, and never choose compound honey.

However, it should be noted that studies have shown that due to the high proportion of caustic solitaire in honey, the blood sugar response is lower than that of glucose, but the glycemic index (GI) of honey is 73, which is a high GI food.

Therefore, consuming too much honey will lead to excess energy, causing large fluctuations in blood sugar. Long-term excessive consumption will cause insulin resistance and obesity.

The daily intake of honey should generally not exceed 30-50 grams for children and 50-100 grams for adults.

Does honey need to be refrigerated?

Honey can be stored for a long time in an environment below 18°C ​​without being refrigerated.

It should be protected from moisture and fermentation. The container containing honey must be tightly covered and should be kept away from substances with peculiar smells.

Avoid using metal containers. Honey is a weakly acidic liquid that is corrosive to zinc, iron, aluminum and other containers. It is best to store it in non-metallic containers such as glass bottles and non-toxic plastic bottles.

It is normal for honey to crystallize. At room temperature, honey is viscous and fluid, or partially or completely crystallized. Whether it is easy to crystallize depends on the type of honey and the temperature. 13~14℃ is the best temperature for honey to crystallize.

However, the crystallization of honey does not affect the quality of the honey.

How to distinguish the quality of honey?

1 Check the honey label.

Food name: Be careful to distinguish between "honey" and "honey products". The word "blended" will be included in the product name of "honey products".

Ingredient list: Pure honey has a single ingredient and is labeled with only the same honey as the product. If it contains other ingredients, it means that it has been added and should not be purchased.

2 Check whether the honey is ripe.

Honey that takes more than 7 days to brew is called mature honey. Try to buy mature honey.

3. Look at the production method.

There are many ways to produce honey, such as honeycomb honey, separated honey and concentrated honey. Among them, honeycomb honey has intact nutrition and high edible value, so it should be the first choice.

4 Try not to buy honey that is not common in the market.

For example, honeysuckle honey, rose honey, snow lotus honey, etc. do not exist and are not suitable for purchase.

In addition, you can also identify the quality of honey by looking, smelling, tasting, stirring, etc.

Source: Science Popularization China