Content
- 1 Description of fireweed honey
- 2 The composition of fireweed honey
- 3 The benefits of fireweed honey
- 4 The harm of fireweed honey
- 5 How to use fireweed honey
- 6 The use of honey from fireweed in traditional medicine
- 7 How to distinguish white fireweed honey from a fake
- 8 Contraindications to fireweed honey
- 9 Terms and methods of storage
- 10 Conclusion
- 11 Reviews of fireweed honey
Fireweed honey has been used since ancient times, it is well known to our ancestors. The main part of the chemical composition of the honey plant passes into it. Thanks to this, the beneficial properties of white fireweed honey are unique and make the product a universal remedy for many diseases.
Description of fireweed honey
Fireweed honey differs significantly from other types of bee products in its appearance and taste. Feature - unusual white color.
What does fireweed honey look like?
An almost colorless light creamy mass with a greenish tinge resembles cream with a watery-transparent consistency. It quickly crystallizes in the form of light, almost white grains resembling snowflakes. The buyer, who first saw and tasted fireweed honey, begins to doubt whether he is being offered a fake.
What is fireweed honey made of?
Fireweed honey is obtained from a very special melliferous plant - the herb of ivan tea. It is one of the most useful adaptogenic plants found throughout Russia. In folk medicine, a broth of fireweed was considered a cure for a hundred ailments:
- diseases of the nervous system;
- for the prevention of neuroses;
- in the treatment of gastritis;
- from throat diseases;
- with skin problems;
- to normalize night sleep;
- in the treatment of gastric ulcer;
- as a prevention of the development of prostatitis;
- as a means of increasing potency;
- to strengthen the immune defense.
In addition, fireweed honey copes well with frequent headaches. It also helps to normalize blood pressure indicators.
Where is the fireweed honey collected?
Fireweed honey, as you might guess from the name, is produced by bees from the nectar of flowers and pollen of willow tea (or narrow-leaved fireweed). At the beginning of flowering, beekeepers take out hives to those places where extensive plantations of this plant grow.
Fireweed is an excellent honey plant and easily attracts bees. For this quality, it ranks first among other plants. But experienced beekeepers know that fireweed does not always have the same honey content, which depends on many factors:
- plant age;
- places of growth;
- weather.
The farther north and higher above sea level fireweed grows, the more honey it has. On the territory of our country, most of the fireweed honey is produced in the regions of the Far East, the Urals, Siberia. The maximum "yield" per hectare here reaches one ton, the average - 600 kg. And it is not surprising, since one bee colony can produce up to 6 kg of a useful product per day.
The taste of fireweed honey
Has a mild, delicate taste. The aroma of fireweed honey is delicate, floral, barely perceptible. The honey itself is transparent, liquid.If you beat it well, you get an airy, creamy white mass. It is easy to spread on bread, cookies, the taste is rather unusual and pleasant. Such an amazing dessert is called cream honey.
The composition of fireweed honey
The honey plant ivan tea, from which bees mainly collect pollen, has amazing medicinal properties. Honey adopts all the qualities of its predecessor and repeats the same set of chemical elements in its composition:
- macro- and microelements;
- vitamins (from the B-group, C, E, P, PP);
- natural sugars (glucose, fructose;
- antioxidants;
- organic acids;
- tannins.
The product contains ascorbic acid several times more than citrus fruits. Due to its unique composition, fireweed honey is widely used in folk medicine.
The benefits of fireweed honey
Ivan tea honey has a wide range of applications. Here are just a few of them:
- in case of flu or ARVI, fireweed honey will help relieve symptoms of the disease, improve the condition of the throat and overall well-being;
- with follicular angina;
- in the treatment of long non-healing wounds;
- people who are under the yoke of experiences, stresses, will return a peaceful state of mind and serenity, make a sound sleep;
- with increased acidity of the stomach, gastrointestinal ulcers, it acts as an enveloping and anti-inflammatory agent;
- recommended for use with constipation and chronic pathologies of internal organs;
- stimulates the process of hematopoiesis, is useful for anemia;
- reduces headaches;
- used as an anticonvulsant;
- improves symptoms for men with prostate adenoma and other diseases of this organ;
- for hypertensive patients normalizes blood pressure;
- stimulates the formation of the epithelium;
- useful for nursing mothers and their children.
Fireweed honey can be mixed with fish oil or other beneficial ingredients. The therapeutic and prophylactic effect of this only intensifies.
Useful properties of fireweed honey for women
The product is successfully used in home cosmetology. Many skin problems can be corrected with fireweed honey. On its basis, ointments, face masks are prepared. To improve the condition of the skin, use the product in its pure form, dilute with fat sour cream, egg yolk. A remedy based on fireweed honey is good for removing acne from the face, dermatitis.
After applying a fireweed honey mask on it, the skin of the face acquires firmness, elasticity and silkiness, an even color. During bath procedures, you can smear the whole body with a bee product and then rinse it off. Fireweed honey exhibits antiseptic properties, heals small wounds and microcracks, cleanses and tightens pores. In the cosmetic industry, this bee product is added to the composition of creams, ointments, balms and scrubs.
Useful properties of fireweed honey for men
There is a widespread misconception that fireweed honey helps men restore lost potency. Rather, the fact is that the product has a general strengthening effect on the body, due to which some functions are restored. But fireweed honey in no way has a purposeful effect on the male reproductive system.
Fireweed honey is wrong to be considered a medicine. Rather, it serves as an additional way to strengthen the body. It achieves the greatest efficiency as part of complex therapy. Helps the body survive drug therapy by neutralizing its side effects.
The harm of fireweed honey
The characteristics of fireweed honey are somewhat contradictory. In small quantities, this product manifests itself as a miracle drug, a tasty and healthy treat.But with excessive use, it can harm the body.
First of all, fireweed honey should be treated with caution by children and those people who are prone to food allergies. There may also be an individual intolerance to any component. The first doses of a fireweed product should be the very minimum. This will help to avoid many unpleasant moments associated with the body's overreaction to an unfamiliar substance.
A fireweed product can damage the pathologies of the gastrointestinal tract (pancreatitis, ulcers, gastritis) during an exacerbation, with fevers, stones in the urinary tract and some mental illnesses.
How to use fireweed honey
A healthy person is allowed to consume 100 g of honey product per day, including fireweed. It can be taken orally as part of salads, drinks, smoothies and various dishes, as well as with milk and nuts. But if fireweed honey is used as a traditional medicine, you must strictly follow the treatment regimen and dosages prescribed by your doctor.
For colds and other diseases, a teaspoon of the bee product is added to various decoctions and herbal infusions. In this case, the product enhances the effect of the main components of the drink, enriches it with additional properties and chemical elements. It must be remembered that at temperatures above +40, many useful substances die. The fireweed product must be added to the already cooled tea in order to preserve and increase the benefits of the drink.
The use of honey from fireweed in traditional medicine
Fireweed honey is best used for disease prevention. To do this, every morning on an empty stomach, drink a cup of warm water with a teaspoon of bee product diluted in it.
For those who suffer from insomnia, it is better to drink the honey product together with warm milk at night. This will help you relax and fall asleep safely. This remedy helps very well to restore the nervous system after a busy day.
In the treatment of many diseases, both colds and internal, you can use the following method of taking a fireweed product. Combine in equal amounts with propolis tincture. Separate 10 g from the mixture and put in your mouth. Keep until completely dissolved.
How to distinguish white fireweed honey from a fake
Even at the beginning of the last century, honey was practically not faked. Only with the arrival of collective farms, beekeeping began to gradually decline. The peasants were obliged to give their hives to the state. There was little or no maintenance for them, so the yield was significantly reduced. The situation was aggravated by numerous taxes and bans. Sugar appeared in large quantities on the shelves of markets and shops.
The honey product passed into the category of delicacies, and with the beginning of the Great Patriotic War it became an exotic food product. Although it has been a long time since then, beekeeping has not been able to fully recover itself. Prices for a honey product are still “biting”, and it is still very difficult to find a quality product.
Recently, they began to talk a lot about the benefits of the honey product, as a result, the demand for it has increased, but the number of fakes has also increased. Everything is used:
- flavoring and flavoring additive "honey";
- sugar;
- syrup;
- wide range of dyes.
Of course, with such an arsenal, it is not difficult to mix sugar syrup with a real bee product or prepare it from sugar and water, adjusting it with food additives. Distinguishing an artificial product from a real product is usually very difficult. But nothing is impossible. There are differences, you just need to know them well "by sight":
- the aroma of a real product is always a little spicy, pleasant, the smell of sugar syrup is heavy, annoying, if you smell it for a long time, it is unpleasant;
- natural honey always leaves a slight burning sensation in the mouth;
- you need to buy the goods in the container from which the samples were made, unscrupulous sellers often give a try from one jar, and sell another, where the contents are of a completely different quality;
- it is not necessary to purchase a large amount of product at once, it is enough to bring home a 200 g jar and taste the product, if you wish, you can always return to the same seller for a new portion.
The purchase of a honey product at an apiary does not guarantee that the product is of high quality. Bees are often fed sugar. There is very little benefit from the goods obtained in this way. A storage container cannot be chosen metal, as the process of oxidation and deterioration of the product can occur. Such a product will not be useful. May cause poisoning or other painful reactions in the body to toxic substances.
Contraindications to fireweed honey
Fireweed honey, like any other bee product, is contraindicated for children under the age of three. First, it is caused by the risk of an allergic reaction. Secondly, there is a real danger of contracting such a serious disease as botulism. A bee product may contain minimal amounts of infectious agents that are safe for an adult, but can be critical for babies.
The fireweed product has a higher sugar content than other types. Its use is undesirable for overweight, type 2 diabetes, asthma. In this case, a consultation with an endocrinologist will help determine safe rates and dosages. A contraindication to the use of a fireweed product is an individual intolerance to individual components.
Terms and methods of storage
Due to its strong bactericidal properties, honey can be stored for a very long time, at least ten years. Science knows cases when, during excavations, a bee product was discovered, which, according to the most conservative estimates, was at least 100 years old. It was kept in jugs with holes sealed with wax. The discovered product was perfectly preserved and ready to eat.
It is best to keep it in glass jars with a tightly sealed lid to restrict air access. The dishes must be sterilized first. The bee product attracts moisture and absorbs odors from the environment. Therefore, it is better to store it in a dry place. A product that has absorbed moisture quickly deteriorates and sour, since its bactericidal properties are lost.
The room where honey is located should be cool and well ventilated. Do not store foods with a strong odor nearby, for example, herring, sauerkraut, garlic, as well as paints, gasoline. The bee product is instantly saturated with extraneous aromas. Hardly anyone will be able to sit down even a spoonful of a sweet treat soaked in garlic or herring scent.
The temperature should be low, constantly keep at the same level +5 - +10. Both high and low temperatures are undesirable for a bee product, at which it can lose its valuable qualities. But it is better to deviate towards negative temperatures, as it loses its properties, starting from -35 degrees and below. At room temperature, the bee product is stored for no more than six months.
Conclusion
The beneficial properties of white fireweed honey are unique. But only if the product is of high quality, natural, without sugar and other additives.
