Duplin agent touts virtues of bees' product
By Bonnie Edwards
Published in News on October 17, 2004 2:04 AM
FAISON -- Honey and mankind go back tens of thousands of years, and people are still finding ways to use it.
Trudy Smith, family and consumer education agent with the Duplin Cooperative Extension Service, told seniors gathered Friday at the nutrition site in the Faison Community Building that embalmers used honey to preserve the pharaohs' mummies.
In India, Greece, Germany and Israel, honey was considered the best first nourishment for babies.
Hazel Davis, who was filling in as the nutrition site manager, said she knows a woman who puts a teaspoon of honey into a cup of hot water and says it's good for blood pressure.
"She'd take it after breakfast," said Ms. Davis. She said the woman uses it for her diet, and the woman is small.
Donnie Kennedy of Calypso said she uses honey instead of syrup on her French toast.
Hazel Robinson of Faison said she knows a man who take it for his arthritis.
It's full of vitamins, minerals, enzymes antioxidants and some undiscovered things that researchers don't know how to identify, said Ms. Smith.
"The most elaborate chemical analysis cannot fully explain the amazing properties of honey," she said.
Honey is an effective antimicrobial agent, inhibiting the growth of certain bacteria, yeast and molds. Honey's high sugar content, its relatively high acidity and its low protein content are factors that make it inhibit bacterial growth.
Traditionally honey has been part of remedies for respiratory tract afflictions such as coughs, colds, bronchitis and asthma. It is best to use honey that is produced in one's geographical location for greater effectiveness.
She said this is because the bees in the region have gone through a process of detoxifyiing the honey.
Honey is twice as sweet as sugar, she said, and it should be used sparingly.
Ms. Smith is spreading the word about honey all over the county this month. She will be at the Warsaw Senior Nutrition Site on Oct. 19, in Kenansville on Oct. 20, in Wallace on Oct. 21 and Beulaville on Oct. 28.