Chestnut honey: useful properties and contraindications

Chestnut honey is an unusual but very interesting delicacy with a lot of useful properties. Since many people have not even heard of chestnut nectar honey, it is curious to look at the composition of the product and learn about its valuable properties.

How to get honey from chestnut

The production process of chestnut honey differs little from the production of other honey varieties. The raw material for the product is nectar collected by bees from chestnut tree flowers. In the process of transferring chestnut pollen and inside the hive, the bees process the raw material, ferment it, and get rid of excess moisture. Ultimately, a viscous sweet substance saturated with vitamins, organic acids and biologically active components remains in the sealed combs, after which the beekeepers collect honey and prepare it for sale.

• It is customary to distinguish 2 varieties of chestnut – sowing and horse. If the second species is widely distributed in Our Country, then the sowing chestnut grows only in the southern regions of the country, mainly near Sochi, on the Black Sea coast.
• Sweet honey is made from nectar collected from chestnuts of both varieties. But the delicacy obtained by processing the raw material of the seed chestnut is valued more highly, so the most useful chestnut honey is on the market in small volumes and is quite expensive.
• The difficulty of obtaining honey is that the flowering of the sowing chestnut lasts only 2 weeks. During this time, the bees manage to collect pollen and nectar in a very limited amount – this makes the delicacy even more scarce.

Thus, one of the unique features of chestnut honey is its rarity; you can not find a delicacy in every market or store.

What does chestnut honey taste like?

Another distinctive feature of a healthy delicacy is its specific taste. Chestnut honey is very tart and distinctly bitter, due to which it slightly resembles wood, and its aroma is sharp and unusual.

Although the chestnut delicacy has its fans, due to its unusual taste, most people use it only for treatment and in limited quantities.

How to identify fake chestnut honey

Since chestnut nectar treats are in short supply, it is not uncommon to find low-quality fakes on the market. However, it is quite easy to distinguish a real product from a fake one.

• First of all, chestnut delicacy in Our Country can only be supplied from the Krasnodar Territory or from abroad. If the seller claims that the honey is collected in the middle lane, it is undoubtedly a fake.
• The taste and smell of an unusual product should be noticeably different from traditional varieties and have a pronounced bitterness. But at the same time, after heating above 50 ° C, natural chestnut honey should lose its bitter notes, if this does not happen, it can be argued that the product is fake.
• A characteristic feature of the chestnut delicacy is that it retains a liquid consistency for a long time and does not become candied even after a year of storage.
• In the photo of chestnut honey, you can see that the color of the product is much darker than the delicacies of ordinary varieties, it usually has a dark brown tint.

You can check the product for naturalness with the help of simple home experiments. For example, if, when mixed with a drop of iodine, the delicacy becomes white and gives a dark precipitate, this indicates the presence of starch in the composition of honey. To check the product for sugar impurities, you can put a little honey on a sheet of paper and set it on fire, unlike sugar, a natural chestnut product will not burn.

Benefits of chestnut honey

The unusual delicacy contains a large number of valuable substances – vitamins C and A, riboflavin and thiamine, as well as iron, iodine, magnesium, natural acids and natural enzymes. Due to this, the product has the following properties valuable for the human body:

• anti-inflammatory – to use a chestnut delicacy is useful for colds, diseases of the respiratory system and nasopharynx, for any inflammation of the digestive and genitourinary systems;
• аantiseptic – chestnut nectar product is suitable for external use and for the treatment of wounds, cuts, inflammation and irritation on the skin;
• vascular strengthening – the use of delicacies has a beneficial effect on the state of the cardiac and vascular system, the product improves brain function and prevents the development of dangerous ailments;
• rejuvenating – the treat not only removes all toxins, heavy metals, slags and radioactive substances from the body, but also starts the process of cell renewal, which maintains natural youth;
• immunostimulating – it is useful to use the product for vitamin deficiencies and weakened immunity, as it helps the body recover from past illnesses and infections, and also serves as a prevention of new diseases.

Another useful property of the chestnut product is that it has a beneficial effect on the secretory functions of the body. The treat brings a positive effect with a tendency to constipation and edema, has a choleretic effect and improves the functioning of the excretory system.

Useful properties of chestnut honey for men

Chestnut honey is especially beneficial for men, it has a beneficial effect on the reproductive system. The product accelerates blood circulation, and this improves potency and increases the ability to conceive.

Anti-inflammatory properties of delicacies help fight inflammation of the prostate gland – honey relieves swelling and soothes pain, allows you to quickly cope with an exacerbation. Traditional medicine considers the chestnut product to be a good natural aphrodisiac, especially when combined with walnuts.

Benefits of chestnut honey for women

An unusual delicacy has a good effect on the nervous system of women – it reduces stress, improves sleep, and regulates mood swings. Therefore, it is useful to use chestnut delicacy during menstruation and menopause, the product helps to cope with unpleasant symptoms more easily and improves overall tone.

Also, the chestnut product is highly valued in cosmetology. As part of homemade masks and wraps, the product helps to get rid of cellulite, improves skin condition and helps strengthen weakened hair.

Useful properties of chestnut honey for children

The benefits and harms of chestnut honey for babies are ambiguous. With good tolerance, a natural remedy will effectively strengthen the immune system and allow you to quickly cure a cough or cold. However, for the first time, honey can be offered to a child only after 3 years, the treat often causes allergies and can damage the baby’s body.

In addition, the chestnut product, due to its unusual bitter taste, may simply not be to the liking of the child. In this case, it is better to replace it with other varieties of honey or offer the baby along with drinks that will improve the taste of the product.

What diseases does it help

Traditional medicine recommends using chestnut delicacy for many diseases. The product can improve the condition of the body:

• with gastritis, chronic stomach ulcers and liver diseases – the delicacy has a cleansing effect and also fights inflammatory processes, so it quickly improves well-being;
• with influenza, SARS, sore throat, tonsillitis and cough, the product reduces the temperature and eliminates the symptoms of intoxication of the body, relieves nasal congestion and promotes sputum discharge;
• with bronchitis and pneumonia, honey not only softens irritated airways and reduces pain, but also prevents the development of a bacterial infection;
• with varicose veins, atherosclerosis and thrombophlebitis, the delicacy strengthens the walls of blood vessels and accelerates blood circulation, and also thins the blood;
• in case of disorders of the nervous system, the product helps to cope with fatigue and normalizes sleep, gives vigor and increases physical endurance.

In small doses and with the permission of a doctor, chestnut honey can be beneficial even for diabetes. Despite the fact that it contains a lot of carbohydrates, they mainly consist of fructose, and this substance does not lead to spikes in sugar levels.

How to take chestnut honey

Daily dosages of a chestnut product depend on the purpose for which it is used. For prevention and general strengthening of the body, it is recommended to eat no more than 2 large spoons per day. If honey is used to treat colds or digestive ailments, the dosage can be increased and eaten up to 100 g of honey per day, dividing this amount into 3 doses. It is best to use chestnut honey on an empty stomach, so its beneficial properties are better absorbed.

For children, the rate of consumption of treats should be reduced by 2 times compared with adult dosages. For prevention, a child can be given no more than 1 large spoon of the product per day, and for medicinal purposes – up to 50 g of honey per day.

The use of chestnut honey in cosmetology

The anti-inflammatory and nutritional properties of an unusual product find their application in the cosmetology field. Even when used internally, the chestnut delicacy is of great benefit to the hair and skin. But it can also be used externally – to make masks and healing wraps.

For the skin, the beneficial properties of delicacies are especially in demand with a dry type of epidermis. Chestnut delicacy nourishes the skin with vitamins and organic acids, improves its elasticity and smoothness, helps to eliminate the first wrinkles. It is very useful to make honey masks when the skin is prone to irritation and acne, the product quickly relieves inflammation and makes the skin much cleaner.

As part of wraps, chestnut delicacy activates metabolic processes in tissues in problem areas. The beneficial effect is that fat deposits are quickly reduced, and the skin is tightened and gets rid of unpleasant bumps and bumps.

Vitamins in chestnut treats have a beneficial effect on hair follicles. The use of honey masks helps to stop hair loss, and also makes curls more silky and manageable.

Contraindications to chestnut honey

The benefits and harms of chestnut honey depend on the individual characteristics of the body. You can not use a healing product:

• if you are allergic to pollen or bee products;
• with exacerbation of pancreatitis;
• in severe forms of diabetes.

You need to try the treat for the first time in minimal quantities – this will make sure that there is no negative reaction to the product.

Terms and conditions of storage

Keep chestnut honey in a tightly closed glass jar. Best of all, the delicacy is stored at room temperature up to 20 degrees, while you need to protect it from direct sunlight and from high humidity. The shelf life for the product is about 2 years under proper storage conditions.

Conclusion

Chestnut honey is a valuable and rather rare product with a specific taste. With moderate use, the delicacy helps to relieve the symptoms of a cold, and also helps to cure stomach and vascular diseases.

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