Honey/ja: Difference between revisions

There is no evidence that honey is beneficial for treating [[cancer]], although honey may be useful for controlling [[side effect]]s of [[radiation therapy]] or [[chemotherapy]] used to treat cancer.

Consumption is sometimes advocated as a treatment for [[seasonal allergies]] due to [[pollen]], but scientific evidence to support the claim is inconclusive. Honey is generally considered ineffective for the treatment of [[allergic conjunctivitis]].

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=== Health hazards ===

Honey is generally safe when taken in typical food amounts, but it may have various, potential [[adverse effect]]s or [[drug interaction|interactions]] in combination with excessive consumption, existing [[disease]] conditions, or [[drug]]s. Included among these are mild reactions to high intake, such as [[anxiety (mood)|anxiety]], [[insomnia]], or [[hyperactivity]] in about 10% of children, according to one study. No symptoms of anxiety, insomnia, or hyperactivity were detected with honey consumption compared to [[placebo]], according to another study. Honey consumption may interact adversely with existing [[allergy|allergies]], high [[blood sugar]] levels (as in [[diabetes]]), or [[anticoagulant]]s used to control [[bleeding]], among other [[clinical medicine|clinical]] conditions.

People who have a [[immunocompromised|weakened immune system]] may be at risk of bacterial or fungal infection from eating honey.

==== Botulism ====

Infants can develop botulism after consuming honey contaminated with ''[[Clostridium botulinum]]'' endospores.

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Infantile botulism shows geographical variation. In the UK, only six cases were reported between 1976 and 2006, yet the US has much higher rates: 1.9 per 100,000 live births, 47.2% of which are in California. While the risk honey poses to infant health is small, taking the risk is not recommended until after one year of age, and then giving honey is considered safe.

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==== Toxic honey ====

{{Main|Mad honey|Bees and toxic chemicals#Toxic honey}}

[[Mad honey disease|Mad honey intoxication]] is a result of eating honey containing [[grayanotoxin]]s. Honey produced from flowers of [[rhododendron]]s, [[Kalmia latifolia|mountain laurels]], [[Kalmia angustifolia|sheep laurel]], and [[azalea]]s may cause honey intoxication. Symptoms include dizziness, weakness, excessive perspiration, nausea, and vomiting. Less commonly, low blood pressure, shock, heart rhythm irregularities, and convulsions may occur, with rare cases resulting in death. According to the FDA, honey intoxication is more likely when using "natural" unprocessed honey from farmers who may have a small number of hives because commercial processing, which pools of honey from numerous sources, dilutes the toxins.

Toxic honey may also result when bees are proximate to [[Tutu (plant)|tutu]] bushes (''Coriaria arborea'') and the vine hopper insect (''[[Scolypopa australis]]''). Both are found throughout New Zealand. Bees gather honeydew produced by the vine hopper insects feeding on the tutu plant. This introduces the poison [[Tutin (toxin)|tutin]] into honey. Only a few areas in New Zealand (the [[Coromandel Peninsula]], Eastern [[Bay of Plenty Region]] and the [[Marlborough Sounds]]) frequently produce toxic honey. Symptoms of tutin poisoning include vomiting, delirium, giddiness, increased excitability, stupor, coma, and violent convulsions. To reduce the risk of tutin poisoning, humans should not eat honey taken from feral hives in the risk areas of New Zealand. Since December 2001, New Zealand beekeepers have been required to reduce the risk of producing toxic honey by closely monitoring tutu, vine hopper, and foraging conditions within {{convert|3|km|mi|abbr=on|frac=2}} of their apiary. Intoxication is rarely dangerous.

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=== Folk medicine ===

In [[myth]]s and [[folk medicine]], honey was used both orally and topically to treat various ailments including [[gastric]] disturbances, [[ulcer]]s, [[skin]] [[wound]]s, and skin [[burn]]s by ancient Greeks and Egyptians, and in [[Ayurveda]] and [[traditional Chinese medicine]].

== History ==

[[File:Cueva arana.svg|thumb|upright=0.68|Honey seeker depicted in an 8000-year-old cave painting at [[Cuevas de la Araña en Bicorp|Coves de L'Aranya, Bicorp]] in València]]

Honey collection is an ancient activity, long preceding the honey bee's domestication; this traditional practice is known as [[honey hunting]]. A [[Mesolithic]] rock painting in a cave in [[Valencian Community|Valencia]], Spain, dating back at least 8,000 years, depicts two honey foragers collecting honey and honeycomb from a wild bees' nest. The figures are depicted carrying baskets or gourds, and using a ladder or series of ropes to reach the nest. Humans followed the [[greater honeyguide]] bird to wild beehives; this behavior may have evolved with early hominids. The oldest known honey remains were found in [[Georgia (country)|Georgia]] during the construction of the [[Baku–Tbilisi–Ceyhan pipeline]]: archaeologists found honey remains on the inner surface of clay vessels unearthed in an ancient tomb, dating back between 4,700 and 5,500 years. In ancient Georgia, several types of honey were buried with a person for journeys into the afterlife, including linden, berry, and meadow-flower varieties.

The first written records of beekeeping are from [[ancient Egypt]], where honey was used to sweeten cakes, biscuits, and other foods and as a base for [[unguents]] in Egyptian [[hieroglyphs]]. The dead were often buried in or with honey in Egypt, [[Ancient Mesopotamia|Mesopotamia]] and other regions. Bees were kept at temples to produce honey for temple offerings, mummification and other uses.

In southern [[Illyria]] (present day [[Albania]]), the Iron Age [[Illyrians|Illyrian]] tribe of the [[Abroi]] were known for preparing [[mead]], a wine from honey, as documented by [[Hecataeus of Miletus]] in the 6th century BCE.

In [[ancient Greece]], honey was produced from the [[Archaic Greece|Archaic]] to the [[Hellenistic period]]s. In 594&nbsp;BCE, beekeeping around [[Athens]] was so widespread that [[Solon]] passed a law about it: "He who sets up hives of bees must put them {{convert|300|ft|m|abbr=off|disp=sqbr|sigfig=1}} away from those already installed by another". Greek archaeological excavations of pottery located ancient hives. According to [[Columella]], Greek beekeepers of the Hellenistic period did not hesitate to move their hives over rather long distances to maximize production, taking advantage of the different vegetative cycles in different regions. The spiritual and supposed therapeutic use of honey in [[ancient India]] was documented in both the [[Vedas]] and the [[Ayurveda]] texts.

== Religious significance ==

In [[ancient Greek religion]], the food of [[Zeus]] and the twelve [[Twelve Olympians|Gods of Olympus]] was honey in the form of nectar and [[ambrosia]].

In the [[Hebrew Bible]], the [[Promised Land]] (Canaan, the Land of Israel) is described 16 times as "the [[Exodus 3|land of milk and honey]]" as a metaphor for its bounty. Of the 55 times the word "honey" appears in the Hebrew Bible, 16 are part of the expression "the land of milk and honey", and only twice is "honey" explicitly associated with bees, both being related to wild bees. Modern biblical researchers long considered that the original Hebrew word used in the Bible, (דבש, ''devash)'', refers to the [[Date honey|sweet syrup]] produced from [[fig]]s or [[Phoenix dactylifera|dates]], because the domestication of the honey bee was completely undocumented through archaeology anywhere in the [[ancient Near East]] (excluding Egypt) at the time associated with the earlier biblical narratives (books of [[Book of Exodus|Exodus]], [[Book of Judges|Judges]], [[Books of Kings|Kings]], etc.). In 2005, however, an apiary dating from the 10th century BC was found in [[Tel Rehov]], Israel that contained 100 hives, estimated to produce half a ton of honey annually. This was, as of 2007, the only such finding made by archaeologists in the entire ancient Near East region, and it opens the possibility that biblical honey was indeed bee honey.

[[File:May_you_all_have_a_sweet_year_(365-271)_(6194230350).jpg|thumb|In [[Judaism]], honey symbolizes the sweetness of the New Year, ''[[Rosh Hashanah]]'', and is traditionally eaten with apple slices.]]

In Jewish tradition, honey is a symbol for the new year, ''[[Rosh Hashanah]]''. At the traditional meal for that holiday, apple slices are dipped in honey and eaten to bring a sweet new year. Some ''Rosh Hashanah'' greetings show honey and an apple, symbolizing the feast. In some congregations, small straws of honey are given out to usher in the new year. Pure honey is considered [[Kashrut|kosher]] (permitted to be eaten by religious Jews), though it is produced by a flying insect, a non-kosher creature; eating other products of non-kosher animals is forbidden. It belongs among the ''parve'' (neutral) foods, containing neither meat nor dairy products and allowed to be eaten together with either.

[[Early Christianity|Early Christians]] used honey as a symbol of spiritual perfection in christening ceremonies.

In Islam, an entire chapter ([[Surah]]) in the [[Quran]] is called ''[[an-Nahl]]'' (the Bees). According to his teachings (''[[hadith]]''), [[Muhammad]] strongly recommended [[Prophetic medicine|honey for healing purposes]].The Quran promotes honey as a nutritious and healthy food, saying:

{{blockquote|And thy Lord taught the Bee to build its cells in hills, on trees, and in (men's) habitations; Then to eat of all the produce (of the earth), and find with skill the spacious paths of its Lord: there issues from within their bodies a drink of varying colours, wherein is healing for men: verily in this is a Sign for those who give thought.}}

In Hinduism, honey (''[[Madhu]]'') is one of the five elixirs of life (''[[Panchamrita]]''). In temples, honey is poured over the deities in a ritual called ''Madhu [[abhisheka]]''. The ''Vedas'' and other ancient literature mention the use of honey as a great medicinal and health food.

In Buddhism, honey plays an important role in the festival of ''[[Madhu Purnima]]'', celebrated in India and Bangladesh. The day commemorates [[Gautama Buddha|Buddha's]] making peace among his disciples by retreating into the wilderness. According to legend, while he was there a [[Old World monkey|monkey]] brought him honey to eat. On ''Madhu Purnima'', Buddhists remember this act by giving honey to [[Buddhist monasticism|monks]]. The monkey's gift is frequently depicted in [[Buddhist art]].