There are claims that heat-treated honey is toxic and can kill people. Is this information true? If so, why are many people that take honey in a hot cup of tea still alive?

If you are looking for information related to health, it is crucial to visit credible websites for information. Yes, heat-treated honey, such as that used in baking, can lose its nutritional value. However, there is no evidence to prove that heated honey is toxic.

Is Heated Honey Dangerous?

Taking heated honey will not kill you.

Cooking raw honey destabilizes its enzyme levels. However, that does not mean that melted honey will kill you. The idea of heated honey killing people is a misconception. In fact, raw honey has incredible medicinal values.

However, when honey is subjected to extreme temperatures of 95 degrees and above, its enzymes, vitamins, and other minerals are destroyed.

Health Benefits of Honey

Many people consume raw honey nearly every day. For example, you’ve probably consumed honey in hot water instead of sugar.

Heating honey kills some of its beneficial nutrients. However, did you know that it’s possible to heat honey to temperatures of about 96 degrees without damaging its healthy enzymes and nutrients? On the other hand, heating honey beyond 96 degrees will destroy all the beneficial enzymes.

If you prefer raw honey, consider buying it directly from beekeepers. If there are no beekeepers within your locality, look for credible companies that sell honey.

Misconceptions of Baking with Honey

Baking with honey is quite complicated and involves using extremely high temperatures. Moreover, heating honey at high temperatures will neutralize its beneficial nutrients or even destroy the taste.

Remember, the essence of using honey in baking is not only to add flavor but also reap its health benefits. Therefore, it is essential not to subject honey to such harsh conditions.

If you want to use honey when baking, choose natural honey. Unfortunately, most retail shops sell processed honey, which has already been heated. Therefore, using this processed honey in baking will continue to destroy the organic enzymes.

There is a misconception that baking with natural honey is the way to go. However, finding natural honey is almost impossible. Getting organic honey is difficult today because bees depend on plants to produce honey. However, most plants today have already been contaminated with pesticides.

To make matters worse, beekeepers continue spraying beehives with insecticides and other toxic chemicals to keep termites away. These are some of the reasons why it is nearly impossible to find pure organic honey for baking.

However, this does not mean that food cooked with processed honey does not taste good. If you want to use honey when baking, you should know your goals. For example, if you want to improve the taste of your baked goods, add honey in the latter stages of baking. After all, desserts or cookies made with honey provide you the same nutritional value.

Bottom Line

So, does heat destroys enzymes in honey? Well, it all depends on the amount of heat used. Since baking involves high heat levels, the process literally destroys all the nutrients in honey.

You also need to know that raw and organic honey has medicinal values. However, there’s no substantial proof showing that heat-treated honey is life-threatening – that is just a myth.

Besides, due to constant exposure to pesticides and other toxic substances, most beekeepers cannot harvest natural honey. Therefore, it is highly unlikely that you are consuming natural honey, and where you buy your honey won’t make any difference.