Honeydew honey

Honeydew honey differs from nectar honey for the raw material used by bees to produce honey. In nectar honey in fact the bees use, as its name suggests, the nectar of the flowers that is then transformed with bees’ enzymes in honey. But in wooded areas there are not always flowers to get nectar from, hence the solution is given by honeydew, captured by bees and then converted into honey. The honeydew is secreted by the plants themselves or by insects that feed on the sap of trees such as silver fir, linden, oak and larch. Honeydew honey, compared to honey produced from nectar, is much darker and thicker and has a less sweet taste. Moreover, honeydew honey is rich in mineral salts, especially iron, calcium, magnesium and potassium and is characterized by important antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties demonstrated by scientific studies (Sawazaki et al, Wounds, 2018 or Majtan et al, Phytother Res, 2011). Honeydew honey is also a powerful source of antioxidants. In particular, based on a scientific study presented in 2011 during the Current state and perspectives of food industry and catering development conference, Russia, honeydew honey is more antioxidant, and even more antibacterial, than acacia honey. Given these characteristics honeydew honey is indicated as a tonic after illnesses or during periods of stress, but also as a breakfast or snack for sporty people, children and students and is useful for the health of the respiratory tract like bronchitis and cough. Finally, honeydew honey, if applied locally, also shows a healing action and is able to promote the healing of wounds and ulcers, to reduce the extent of the affected area and to soothe the pain (Martinotti et al, Mol Cell Biochem, 2017 or also Mayer et al, J Tissue Viability, 2014).