Honey For Your Pollen Allergies

Filed in archive Allergy: Diagnostics and Treatment , Hay Fever , Living with Allergies on June 12, 2006

A lot of people attest to the power of honey in preventing spring allergies. I personally cannot vouch for its efficacy, but there is a sound scientific basis to it. During spring (May-June), bees flit from flower to flower and collect nectar, inadvertently collecting pollen from the flowers they've visited along the way. The honey that they produce will therefore contain some of these pollen and depending on how the honey is processed after collection, eating this pollen-containing honey will help build a person's resistance.

There are three things to keep in mind, however, for this approach to take effect.

First, commecially produced honey most likely WON'T contain pollen as these are filtered prior to bottling. Honey from small backyard producers are your best bet.

Next, the honey must be locally produced, such that the honey will contain pollen that are common in your area, and are therefore those which you'll have to build your resistance to.

Lastly, you'll probably have to eat the honey all winter long, to build enough resistance for the coming spring. Yeah, sorry, it's too late now, but hey, you can start preparing for next year's bouts of allergies!

Here's a story of a local beekeeper in Connecticut who swears eating honey works against pollen allergies. It might not work 100% of the time, but I think it's worth a try. Am sure you'll find lots of ways to incorporate honey into your breakfasts and desserts!