Challenging nutritionist perception: honey can improve key indicators of cardiometabolic health

According to a new study by researchers at the University of Toronto, consuming raw honey from a single floral source may have significant benefits
for cardiometabolic health.
In a systematic review and meta-analysis of clinical trials, researchers found that honey consumption was associated with
lower fasting blood sugar, total and LDL cholesterol ("bad" cholesterol), triglycerides, and markers of fatty liver disease.
In addition, honey consumption has been linked
to higher levels of HDL cholesterol ("good" cholesterol) and some inflammatory markers.

"These results are surprising because honey contains about 80 percent sugar," said
Tauseef Khan, senior researcher on the study and a nutritional science research assistant.
"But honey is also a complex component
of common and rare sugars, proteins, organic acids and other bioactive compounds that are likely to have health benefits.
" We're not saying that if you don't eat sugar at the moment, you should start eating honey
.
More important substitution – if you're using sucrose, syrup, or other sweeteners, swapping those sugars for honey may reduce cardiometabolic risk
.
”

Previous studies have shown that honey can improve cardiometabolic health, especially in vitro and in
animal experiments.
The current study is the most comprehensive clinical trial review to date and includes the most detailed data
on processed and floral sources.
The findings were recently published in
the journal Nutrition Reviews.

John Sievenpiper, principal investigator, associate professor of nutritional sciences and medicine at the University of Toronto, and clinical scientist at the Toronto Centre for Allied Health, said: "Public health and nutrition experts have long said that 'sugar is sugar'
.
These results indicate that this is not the case and that the designation of honey as free of added or added sugar
in the Dietary Guidelines should be suspended.
”

Sievenpiper and Khan emphasize that the context of the findings is crucial: In clinical trials, participants followed a healthy eating pattern with added sugars accounting for 10 percent or less
of their daily calorie intake.

The researchers included 18 controlled trials and more than 1100 participants
in their analysis.
They assessed the quality of these trials using the GRADE system and found that the certainty of evidence from most studies was low, but honey consistently produced neutral or beneficial effects, depending on processing, flower source and quantity
.

In the trial, the median daily dose of honey was 40 grams or about two tablespoons
.
The median duration of the trials was eight weeks
.
In studies, raw honey produced a number of beneficial effects, as did
honey from monofloral sources such as Robinia (also known as acacia honey) — a type of honey from the fake acacia or black locust tree — and honey from clover, which is common in North America.

Khan says that while processed honey noticeably loses many of its health effects after pasteurization (typically at least 10 minutes at 65 degrees Celsius), the effects of hot drinks on raw honey depend on several factors and may not destroy all of its beneficial properties
.

He also mentioned other ways to consume unheated honey, such as yogurt, sauces, and salad dressings
.

Khan said future research should focus on unprocessed honey and come from a single source of flowers
.
Their goal is to provide higher-quality evidence to better understand the many compounds
in honey that have miraculous effects on health.
"We needed a stable product
that would provide ongoing health benefits," Khan said.
Then the market will follow
.
”

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