Local Honey helps allergies?

[itself]

I was told by some friends that it is much better to buy local honey, as if you have allergies and such, the a tbsp of honey a day will help. Is this true? So you don't want to buy out of state from what I gather.

Anyone ever heard this?

Lisa

[zoom-zoom]

I've heard this, too, and from some pretty reliable sources, too. I really need to test the theory, myself. We have some beekeepers and great honey very nearby.

[Blueberry]

It didn't work for me. But - I've heard from others that it does. Probably depends on whether you're allergic to what the bees are pollinating.

[OakLeaf]

Never tried it on a sustained basis, but I have to think Blueberry's right - the pollens that are prime allergens are obviously windborne, so the plants don't need to have flowers that are attractive to bees. I don't think I've ever seen a honeybee on a ragweed, grass, pine, oak, maple or plantain flower.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I do know that honeybees visit flowering maple trees for pollen and nectar.
I keep a hive of bees in my backyard, and I plan to multiply them to several hives next year.

Regardless of whether eating local honey can help your allergies or not, there is a different and very compelling reason to buy local honey from an apiary near you-

Honey import laws are somewhat lax and purity inspections are way too few. China exports HUGE quantities of honey to the US, for resale after re-bottling into various labels and brands. Chinese honey has regularly been found to be impure- with corn syrup and sugar syrup filler added, and with higher levels of chemicals and pesticide than US honey. But it's SUPER CHEAP, and importers and distributors are very anxious to sell it for big profit.
They know some people avoid Chinese food products, and the way they get around this is to import Chinese honey into other countries as a stopover, like Argentina or Chile for instance. It's heated and bottled (heating destroys many of honey's health benefits and nutrients) Then the honey gets labeled as "Product of Argentina", etc, and resold in US supermarkets. U.S. beekeepers are trying now to get better laws passed regarding testing for honey purity.

Our US honey bee industry is in big trouble right now. Perhaps you've all heard of Colony Collapse Disease (CCD)- well they are still trying to ascertain the exact cause of this awful killer of many thousands of hive every year. In the end it may actually be caused by a whole series of stresses on the bees- new fungal and intestinal diseases, American and European foulbrood disease, treatment resistant tracheal and varroa mites, the Small Hive Beetle, environnmental pesticide misuse, genetically altered crops, you name it, all taking a terrible toll on our nation's honeybees. Many of these diseases and pests did not exist here in the U.S 20 years ago. Over the last two years the the entire population of America's honeybees has dropped by 1/3.

One thing every person can do to help is to avoid buying supermarket honey and instead seek out a local food market, co-op, health food store or farm stand somewhere near where you live and ask for locally produced honey, or ask where you can find some. Beekeepers are everywhere, even in the cities, working quietly on their rooftops!
The honey you buy from a local beekeeper will likely be way purer and healthier than any honey you can buy cheaply in the supermarket. Plus you'll be supporting local food production, being kinder to our planet, and helping your nearby beekeeper stay in business and multiply their hive numbers!
The other thing we can all do is to think twice before applying pesticides and herbicides to our lawns and gardens- these poisons DO harm honeybees and other benign insects like butterflies and moths in many ways we may not be aware of. We need insects in our world. An insect free planet will be a dead planet.

Pure carefully extracted and bottled honey is a beautiful thing. It's very healthful to eat and is worth every dollar you pay for it. Find out where your local beekeeps sell their beautiful honey!

[OakLeaf]

Hear, hear! And the variations in flavor from season to season, apiary to apiary, are wonderful. Never get that from supermarket honey.