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What if scientists created a sweetener that is sweeter per gram than sugar and yet has 25% fewer calories? What if it also had properties that make it useful for cooking and baking? What if it had a distinctive flavor which many people prefer over sugar? What if the scientists also found that the sweetener had antibiotic properties and could actually prevent bacterial growth?
There is such a substance and it was not created in a science lab. It is one of the most common food materials in the world -- honey. Unlike sugar it requires no processing to make it usable. In fact, many people suggest that raw honey is the best.
The use of honey for eating and medicinal treatment has been known for a long time. Men collecting honey are depicted in cave drawings made thousands of years ago. For at least 2700 years honey has been used for topical treatment of wounds. Today it may even be helpful in the battle against drug-resistant strains of bacteria. Honey’s preservative and antibacterial ability is so amazing that small amounts of edible honey have even been found in the tombs of ancient Egyptian pharaohs. In the Bible, John the Baptist survived on a diet of locusts and wild honey.
Each year more than 150 million pounds of honey are produced commercially in the United States alone. Many manufactured food products contain honey. The bees producing the honey pollinate the majority agricultural crops. The result is that one third of the human diet is directly or indirectly benefited by honey and honeybee pollination.
With all of man’s attempts to produce lower calorie, more efficient, more nutritious foods, it is ironic that the oldest natural sweetener still ranks as one of the best, if not the best. Here’s another amazing design from the Designer of nature.
References-
“A Taste of Honey,” Sky magazine, May 1989, pages 32-36.
“honey,” Wikipedia
USDA honey production reports
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