The nutritional value of honey is self-evident and it is a natural health drink. For the consumer, it plays a very good digestive role and gradually becomes an essential care product in daily life. What substances in honey bring so many benefits to humans?
The main component of honey is sugar, the total content of about 70% -80% of honey, the main sugar is glucose and fructose, in addition to sucrose, maltose and other 20 kinds of sugary substances. Glucose and fructose accounted for 85%-95% of the total sugar. The ratio of fructose to glucose varies with the type of honey plants. Usually, most varieties of honey have more fructose than glucose. There are also a few crystallizable kinds of honey with relatively high glucose content. The higher the fructose content, the stronger the sweetness. Honey also contains sucrose, which is specified in the national standard and must not exceed 5%. The sucrose in honey is derived from the nectar of honey plants, not artificially added. There is a significant proportion of sucrose content in the nectar of plants. The process by which bees make honey is to convert sucrose in nectar to glucose and fructose, so it is common for honey to contain sucrose.
In addition to sugar, the mineral content of honey is generally 0.04% to 0.06%, including iron, copper, potassium, sodium, tungsten, manganese, magnesium, phosphorus, silicon, lead, chromium, nickel, and cobalt, etc. It contains more functional minerals than light honey. Honey also contains a wide range of vitamins, such as B vitamins, as well as vitamin C, niacin, pantothenic acid, biotin, nicotinic acid. According to the relevant experts, the protein content in honey is between 0.29% and 1.69%, with an average of 0.75%. Some flower species are as high as 1% or more than 2%, such as longan honey, litchi honey, honey, milk vetch honey, Vitex honey, rape honey and so on.
Often taking honey can promote digestion and absorption, increase appetite, calm sleep, improve the body’s immune system, and is a good choice for the adjuvant treatment of diseases.
