Immunity booster or buster?

What makes honey special and why honey adulterated with sugar is bad

Honey is sugar but a special one, full of nature’s goodness

We are consuming more honey to build immunity against the COVID-19 infection

Overweight people are more at risk to COVID-19

So consuming honey that is sugar will make us more vulnerable; more ill

THE QUESTION for us as consumers is simple: does it make a difference if the honey we are consuming is actually sugar? For this, we need to understand the following. What are the honey’s special properties that differentiate it from sugar? What will it do to our health if we have sugar, instead of honey? Does it have implications, particularly in this time of covid-19?

What we know today also is that honey brands are “selling” their products as immunity boosters, good for us to beat covid-19. We also know that we are consuming more honey—market analysts Nielsen reported in March 2020, that sales of this goodness product were booming. Honey sales were up by 35 per cent. Since then, it is expected that many more of us are consuming honey because of its goodness, so essential when we know we need protection from the virus.

WHAT MAKES HONEY DIFFERENT

Honey is sugar, but it is special. One tablespoon of honey (21 grams) contains slightly higher calories than sugar. It mainly comprises sugar carbohydrates, which are glucose and fructose.