Honey for Kids – Health Benefits and Precautions

Honey – everyone knows how yummy and beneficial this natural ingredient is. Honey, which is extracted from nectar, is one of nature’s best gifts and can enhance a child’s health in many amazing ways.

Can You Give Honey to Children?

Although honey has amazing medicinal properties that can really help us, it is not meant for babies who are less than a year old. Of course, it is natural and full of good things, but your baby is not yet ready for it. This is mainly because honey has something called dormant endospores of a bacterial species known as Clostridium botulism, which can be toxic and cause problems to an infant.

There are different varieties of honey, such as manuka honey, which is found in New Zealand. Although it has many benefits, it is best to keep all kinds of honey away from children below one year of age.

Nutritional Value of Honey

The nutritional value of honey is high. It has many amazing values, and some of them are listed below.

This list shows all the highly nutritional elements that are found in 339 gms of honey.

Health Benefits of Honey for Kids

Honey has many amazing benefits for growth and development of kids.

1. Vitamins and Minerals

Honey has quite a few minerals that are extremely helpful for children. It can be used in various recipes or also be given to children directly.

2. Protects Liver

Honey has properties that actually help the liver control blood sugar level. (it is good for liver but doesn’t help in controlling sugar levels)

3. Healing Properties

Honey has many amazing healing properties, like it helps cough and cold, blood sugar, and even in healing wounds and burns.

4. Helps Sore Throat

Honey is one of the most common natural medicines for a sore throat. It has been used in ayurveda and other natural medicines in different forms to heal a sore throat. Honey for kids cough is something that is followed in many Indian homes, as it works wonders.

5. Medicine for Stomach Upset

Honey is a great medicine when children suffer from stomach pain or stomach upset. It helps heal the pain and also increases the child’s metabolism during this time.

6. Heals Toothache

Honey, along with a little cinnamon, is a good medicine to heal a toothache. You can make a paste with one tsp. cinnamon and 5 tsp. Honey, and apply the paste directly to the aching teeth. This is a great pain relief when you have a bad toothache.

7. Helps in Digestion

Honey is said to be a natural medicine that helps in digestion. You can make tea with honey when you have indigestion. This will help you instantly, and you will feel a lot more relaxed.

8. Helps Heal Dry Skin

Honey is one of the best moisturisers for the skin. You can make your own moisturiser with honey and lemon, or honey and Aloe Vera or just little-diluted honey and apply it on your child’s skin. You will notice how the dry skin is transforming faster than any ever.

9. Helps Soothe Muscle Pain

Honey helps soothe muscle pain and even growing pains in children. A teaspoon of honey in a glass of warm water will do wonders.

10. Heals Mouth Ulcers

Mouth ulcers can be painful, especially for kids. Apply a little honey with turmeric to the mouth ulcer, as it will help heal the wound faster.

11. Helps Treat Asthma

Honey is a great help when children suffer from asthma, especially when they have an asthmatic attack during the night. Honey has the property to suppress congestion and provides a way for easier breathing.

12. Useful During Chronic Inflammation

Honey has the ability to heal inflammation as well. In fact, it has been used as an anti-inflammatory for many years now.

Ways to Use Honey for Cough and Cold in Children

When children are struggling with a bad cold, cough or fever, honey can help to a great extent. Honey is used in different ways during sickness.

• One way that has really worked and is the most common way of using it is to add honey to warm water and a little tulsi. This mix will soothe the throat and also increase the metabolism of the child.

• Taking a tablespoon of honey consumed as it is can also soothe the throat and help in the healing process.

Tips To Make Kids Consume Honey Easily

Honey is loved by mostly everyone. It is sweet, and children usually enjoy it. However, you can still find children and adults who do not enjoy the taste of honey. If your child is of the latter category, you could use honey in different food items like cookies or tea, or you can even add it in milk. By adding honey to different food items, you can reduce the sweetness in it. This way, your child will eat honey easily.

Precautions to Take While Giving Honey to Your Child

1. Not for Infants

Keep it away from children less than one-year-old, as honey is a toxic food item for babies.

2. Be Aware of Infant Botulism

Clostridium bacteria that can survive in honey can cause infant botulism. It is a bacteria that resides in the soil but can get into food items like honey.

3. Avoid Keeping it Open

Honey should be closed and kept in a cool place. Because of the sticky texture and the sweetness of honey, it can attract dust and ants. Hence, it must always be closed and kept.

4. Avoid Food With Honey for Babies Under a Year Old

Sometimes parents forget to identify food that contains honey, and accidentally feed it to their infants. Always be aware of cookies and other items that contain honey when you have an infant around you.

5. Breathing Problems

Honey can cause breathing difficulty in infants and even children. This could be because of allergic reactions. So, if you identify any such problem, it is important to visit a doctor immediately.

6. Muscle Weakness

If you notice that your child is struggling with muscle weakness, then this could be a reaction to honey. Again, it is important to meet the doctor immediately.

Honey is an amazing natural food that has numerous benefits to it. You can use honey instead of sugar as it is so much healthier and also comes with multiple benefits. Giving honey to your child is a great way to start living healthy.