Australian Honey, Choose Them Wisely!

Honey from Australia are often difficult to choose due to its great variety of brands and different sources from all parts of Australia (New South Wales and Tasmania being more well-known among them).

Eating well on a daily basis is an important way to keep us healthy.  It is therefore important to choose wisely the honey or food you consume in every meal.

It is a myth to say "just eat in moderation".  You will not consume poison "in moderation", will you?

10 Ways to Choose Your Food for Healthier Living

1. Read the Label
2. Choose Foods with Good Fats
3. Look at Protein Content
4. Different Kinds of Carbohydrates
5. Look at Fibre Content
6. Avoid Added Sugars
7. Check Sodium Content
8. Look for Foods High in Potassium
9. Meet Your Mineral and Vitamin Needs
10. Watch Out for Cholesterol

Photo by Brooke Lark on Unsplash

• Read the Label (e.g. for Australian Honey Brands)

When one is choosing any of the Australian honey brands, it is a good practice to read the label to make sure it indeed authentic honey from Australia.

• Choose Foods with Good Fats

What matters most is the types of fat you eat.  Newer research shows that healthy fats are necessary and beneficial for health.

It’s more important to focus on eating beneficial “good” fats and avoiding harmful “bad” fats. Fat is an important part of a healthy diet.  Hence, it is important to choose foods with “good” unsaturated fats, limit foods high in saturated fat, and avoid “bad” trans fat.

• Look at Protein Content (Traces are Found in Honey from Australia)

While you may watch your calories, sugar and salt intake, you should also make sure you are ingesting enough protein. This is because protein plays a key role in the creation and maintenance of every cell in our bodies. It fuels our cells and powers our bodies.  Authentic Australian honey contains traces of protein.

“It is important for individuals to consume protein every day. Daily protein intake plays a role in keeping your cells in good shape and should be part of your daily health maintenance plan.”

Protein is made up of amino acids, commonly known as building blocks, because they are attached in long chains. It is also a “macronutrient,” meaning that you need relatively large amounts of it to stay healthy.

• Different Kinds of Carbohydrates (in Australian Honey)

Food contains three types of carbohydrates: sugar, starches and fiber. Carbohydrates are either simple or complex, depending on the food’s chemical structure. The type of carbohydrates that you eat makes a difference – Foods that contain high amounts of simple sugars, especially fructose raise triglyceride levels. Triglycerides (or blood fats) are an important barometer of metabolic health; high levels creates coronary heart diseases, diabetes and fatty liver.

Simple Carbohydrates

Simple carbohydrates send immediate bursts of glucose (energy) into the blood stream. That's why you may feel a rush of energy when you eat a dessert, only to be followed by a crash of fatigue when that sudden burst of energy is depleted.  Added sugars (including refined sugars) provide calories, but lack vitamins, minerals and fiber and can lead to weight gain. 

But not all simple sugars are alike. There are also simple sugars in more nutritious foods, like honey, fruit and milk. These are "naturally occurring" sugars and, unlike refined sugars, these sugars often come with vitamins, minerals, and fiber that our bodies need.  Many consumers had found honey from Australia to contain easily digestible simple sugars because they often feel that they can rejuvenate their energy after honey consumption pretty quickly.

Complex Carbohydrates

Complex carbohydrates supply a lower but more steady release of glucose into the blood stream. As with simple sugars, some complex carbohydrate foods are better choices than others.

White flour and rice are also konwn as refine grains.  This is because food processes remove a lot of fibre and nutrients from them.  By contrast, unrefined whole grains retain many of these vital nutrients and are rich in fiber, which helps your digestive system work well.  Fiber helps you feel full, so you are less likely to overeat these foods.  That explains why you will feel full longer after eating a bowl of oatmeal compared to the same amount of calories of sugary candy. 

Photo by Sigmund on Unsplash 

•  Look at Fibre Content

Dietary fiber is an essential part of a healthful diet. It is crucial for keeping the gut healthy and reducing the risk of chronic health conditions.

Protection against heart disease

• Avoid Added Sugars

Natural and Added Sugars

• Check Sodium Content

• Look for Foods High in Potassium 

Potassium is an essential mineral for all tissues in the body. It is also an electrolyte because it carries a small electrical charge that activates various cell and nerve functions. Potassium is naturally in many foods and as a supplement.  Its main role in the body is to help maintain normal levels of fluid inside our cells. Sodium, its counterpart, maintains normal fluid levels outside of cells. Potassium also helps muscles to contract and supports normal blood pressure.

Photo by Eiliv-Sonas Aceron on Unsplash

• Meet Your Mineral and Vitamin Needs (Get Some Vit C from Australian Honey)

Vitamins are organic substances that are generally classified as either fat soluble or water soluble. Fat-soluble vitamins (vitamin A, vitamin D, vitamin E, and vitamin K) dissolve in fat and tend to accumulate in the body. Water-soluble vitamins (vitamin C and the B-complex vitamins, such as vitamin B6, vitamin B12, and folate) must dissolve in water before they can be absorbed by the body, and therefore cannot be stored. Any water-soluble vitamins unused by the body is primarily lost through urine.

Almost all honey from Australia contains Vitamin C.  Raw Australian honey is a daily health supplement to boost overall health.

Minerals are inorganic elements present in soil and water.  Plants and animals absorb them.  While you’re likely familiar with calcium, sodium, and potassium, there is a range of other minerals, including trace minerals (e.g. copper, iodine, and zinc) needed in very small amounts.

What about multivitamins?

• Watch Out for Cholesterol

Cholesterol is a waxy type of fat, or lipid, which moves throughout your body in your blood. Lipids are substances that do not dissolve in water, so they do not come apart in blood. Your body makes cholesterol, but you can also get it from foods. Cholesterol is only found in foods that come from animals.

Cholesterol moves throughout the body carried by lipoproteins in the blood. These lipoproteins include:

• Low-density lipoprotein (LDL) is one of the two main lipoproteins. LDL is often called “the bad cholesterol.”
• High-density lipoprotein (HDL) is the other main lipoprotein. HDL is often called “the good cholesterol.”
• Very-low-density lipoproteins (VLDL) are particles in the blood that carry triglycerides.

LDL (Low Density Lipoprotein)

HDL (High Density Lipoprotein)