Honey Water Benefits For Weight Loss, Annoying Cough, And Much More!

February 27, 2022 • By Sophia Smith
The estimated reading time is 12 minutes
Honey Water Benefits

It is very usual to wake up groggy for most people and the first thing they do is to get that cup of coffee to increase their mood and boost their brain function! This might be tricky sometimes and can even cause some digestive problems. We offer you a great drink to start every morning, real nectar that is packed with so many minerals, vitamins, and antioxidants that will prolong your life, help you with so many health problems and that will become part of your daily routine without even noticing!  It is a sweet, natural remedy and smells great if you put some cinnamon inside! Yes, you probably have heard about honey water and its benefits! Of course, let us see why you should mix it with cinnamon or if you prefer that acid taste, you can put lemon inside! It doubles its effectiveness and can help you even more!

Honey Benefits

Honey is a golden liquid that is sticky and sweet in taste made by bees. It has been used as a remedy by our grandmothers for centuries and they knew that it is so helpful for varieties of health issues. It was used even in old Egypt as a sweetening agent, and it is found in some pharaoh’s tombs, and it was still edible. Who hasn’t heard the idiomatic expression “land of milk and honey” emphasizing richness and fertility and we wonder why something so rich and fertile can refer to honey?

Well, even people living in the Ancient World were aware of its benefits, so let’s see some of its main benefits for our body:

  1. It is a good cure for a persistent cough
  2. It was even used by old Romans as a treatment for wounds and burns
  3. It boosts your immune system
  4. It can soften your skin, especially if it is dry during the cold months
  5. You can mix it with your shampoo to get a silky hair
  6. Improves your sleep
  7. Promotes weight loss as lowers your appetite
  8. It is an effective treatment against dandruff
  9. It gives you the best energy needed for the day

If you cannot eat it directly, you can add to a cup of hot water, and you will be hydrated as a plus. And we all know that our bodies depend on water to survive.

U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine states that adult men should take about 3.7 liters (15.5 cups)  of fluids to stay hydrated throughout the day. On the other hand, for women, the number is 2.7 liters  (11.5 cups).

And it is recommended to take at least 8 glasses of water per day and some people (people living in humid areas, breast-feeding women, athletes) need even more.

So, now let's see how water is beneficial for our overall health and why it is so essential for us.

Water Benefits

Our body is composed of 70 % of water and we need to keep the body temperature normal, lubricate our joints, hydrate us during the day, and let us stay alert and fresh. Without water, we cannot get rid of the toxins from our bodies, which can cause so many serious problems. (1)

It is the best drink for detoxication as many other beverages, such as sugary drinks, for example, can cause some other problems such as high blood sugar as your body need more water to release them and your body gets dehydrated. They have more calories as well and you can put easily weight if you drink them instead of water.

Water is essential for the working of our kidney system.

Having seen some of the main water and honey benefits, we recommend you take a combination of these two powerful nectars every morning and on an empty stomach to get the best results from their benefits. It is the most common way to take honey.

Let’s see why!

Benefits of honey water on an empty stomach!

These are the benefits of honey with hot water:

  • First of all, it keeps you energized as honey has many vitamins, minerals, and acids and absorbs all the fat, and helps you with weight loss as it boosts the metabolism.
  • Honey has antimicrobial properties and as stated above is rich in many vitamins and minerals which makes him ideal for boosting your immune system (2)
  • It improves the glowing of your skin, and it will look more radiant as this combination releases all the toxins from your body and you will see how it improves in the morning
  • It will lower the soreness and irritation of your throat and cut the cough (3)
  • It will detox your body and improves the metabolism
  • It will keep you hydrated during the day

Is it good to drink honey water every day?

Yes, as it is real ambrosia, a drink that can help your longevity and it has a sweet taste, so it is a great drink to start the day with! And the health benefits from it are numerous.

Note: You should take this drink in moderation if you suffer from diabetes as it contains sugar. Honey should not be given to children under one year of age as it may cause botulism, so be careful when giving this drink to small children. (4)

Can I drink honey water at night?

This healthy drink should be taken in the morning, preferably on an empty stomach so you can get the best results from it.

But, you can take it at any time of the day if you like. Honey also your brain releases melatonin, the hormone that is needed for a good night’s sleep. So, it will calm your nerves and feel you relaxed and improve the quality of your sleep.

Does honey increase weight?

Yes, it can, if you take it without moderation as it is rich in carbohydrates, calories, and sugar. They differ in calories as well and just one teaspoon of honey equals 64 calories compared to that of sugar which contains 49 calories. But, it is easier on the digestive system than plain sugar.

So, it is recommended, for a healthy adult person to take one small spoon a day (10- 12 grams during the day).  Let’s see whether it has some disadvantages.

What are the disadvantages of honey?

Honey has a sweeter and richer taste than sugar and it is a healthier substitute. Still, it is considered a form of sugar and should be taken in moderation. Why?

  • It can raise the blood sugar level of people who suffer from diabetes and increase the glycated hemoglobin(HbA1c) levels, so they should take it in moderation
  • It can increase the side effects of some medications (such as antifungals, antidepressants, anti-seizure medications, blood thinners) and it is recommended to consult your practitioner if you take any of these medications
  • It may increase your allergic symptoms such as sneezing, nausea, vomiting, and even lead to allergic shock as it contains pollen and is made from pollen
  • It can have a negative effect on your teeth as it is a sugar and can lead to teeth decay, so it is advisable to brush your teeth after its consummation

Honey and lemon drink

You can increase even more the benefits of the honey water by putting some lemon juice inside and making some lemon and honey water. Lemon juice is rich in Vitamin C, the vitamin that is essential for our immune system and that promotes healthy digestion.

So one of the main benefits of this drink (besides the ones mentioned above) is that it:

  • Can prevent the formation of kidney stones as it is an alkaline combination
  • Lemon has a diuretic effect, while the honey has an antibacterial one, so the two are great to get rid of all the toxins from your body
  • Purifies the liver and removes the toxins from it as well
  • Has a great diuretic effect and can help you in the production of urine. Too much water in your system may cause hypertension and edema
  • Promotes heart health as vitamin C can reduce the risk of stroke and lower LDL cholesterol
  • Fight anemia as vitamin C from the lemon helps iron absorption from other products rich in iron

How to prepare it?

All you need is:

  • 1 cup water
  • 1 teaspoon of honey
  • Squeezed juice of 1/2 lemon, fresh

Instructions:

  • Warm the water, but do not make it boil
  • Add lemon juice and honey and mix it very well
  • Drink it in the mornings on an empty stomach

Honey and lemon tea

Honey and lemon tea are perfect if you have some cold symptoms. Actually, this is not a real “tea”, but honey in hot water and some lemon inside and it is the drink we are offering. And the honey helps you with the soreness and the lemon helps you if you have congestion, so try this with first cold or flu symptoms.

Cinnamon benefits

One other powerful ingredient that can be combined with honey is cinnamon and this combination is believed to be a universal cure, a cure for every disease! It was a Canadian newspaper that published an article in 1995 about the powerful capabilities of this combination and since then, it has become a real myth.

An interesting fact is that there 2 types of cinnamon:

  • Ceylon (it has a richer smell and is lighter in color and less spicy and expensive)
  • Cassia (darker and mostly used in studies and mostly consumed and found on the market)

As we have seen the honey benefits, let’s have a look at the benefits you can have from cinnamon, a spice so popular in cooking and baking.

  • Cinnamon may lower blood pressure. Still, more trials are needed to confirm this claim (5)
  • It is very often used in Chinese medicine and thanks to the essential oil it contains cinnamaldehyde, which gives that distinctive smell to it, it has some antiviral and antifungal properties
  • It has prebiotic properties, and it is a great support to your digestive health and alleviates any stomach problems (6)
  • It has anti-cancerogenic properties and some animal studies were made that confirmed this claim, but human studies should be made to support this more efficiently (7)
  • It lowers the blood sugar level and controls it. Actually, it controls the amount of glucose in your blood and imitates the blood sugar hormone insulin (8)
  • It has anti-inflammatory properties that can cause serious health problems and there is a study to support this claim (9)

Cinnamon and honey water benefits!

So, we may conclude that cinnamon is one of the healthiest spices in the world, so mixed with honey it even increases its benefits, and it has been used in Ayurvedic and oriental medicines  for centuries to help with:

  • Arthritis pain (One study conducted at Copenhagen University confirmed this claim as 73 out of 200 patients were relieved from pain after a week trial)
  • Reduce cholesterol levels and reduce the risk of heart disease, as honey is rich in antioxidant phenol that is very important for our heart health
  • Boost your fertility and improve the menstruation cycle as they contain minerals and amino acids that enhance the reproductive system. Women who have difficulty conceiving are advised to apply the mix of these two as a paste on their gums and in this way, with the help of saliva, it will enter slowly into your system.
  • As they have antibacterial properties they fight any bacteria and prevent excessive oil secretion, thus preventing the breakout of the acne on your skin
  • They suppress your appetite and help you with weight loss
  • Some studies have shown that this mixture may kill bacteria in the bladder, and it is a great remedy for bladder infection
  • Honey is great for healing wounds and ulcers that come out due to diabetes complications, but some more studies should be made to support the healing capabilities of the cinnamon
  • They are rich in antioxidants, which means they are good for your overall health
  • Regulate the blood sugar levels

Note: You should be careful if taking these two as medicine and daily as the honey is rich in sugar and cinnamon contains a high level of coumarin, which can be toxic.

How can I reduce my stomach fat with a cinnamon and honey combination?

In Ayurvedic medicine, it is believed that honey increases the effectiveness of cinnamon, and it neutralizes a little bit of its strong taste. So, this drink has a rich, woody taste and it can be a little bit spicy.

It speeds up the metabolism and can help you with toxin release and extra fluids.

Note: Please do not take this drink before going to sleep as cinnamon may cause restlessness during the night.

Ingredients:

  • 1 tsp of ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp of honey
  • 1 cup of boing hot water

How to prepare it?

  1. Put the cinnamon in the boiling water and stir it.
  2. Cover it with a lid and leave it for about 20 minutes or even more.
  3. Strain it and add a teaspoon of honey.
  4. Take it first thing in the morning on an empty stomach and wait to see the results after two or three weeks.

This drink can help you as a medicine for the other problems you have and it is very beneficial as it already mentioned in this article for arthritis pain, reducing cholesterol and regulating sugar levels in your body and so much more.

Conclusion

  • Honey water has numerous benefits on your overall health, and it is a perfect drink to start your day with!
  • If you put some lemon inside, you will get a drink that has even more benefits as it helps your digestive system even more and prevents kidney stones formation, purifies the liver and the vitamin C from the lemon fights anemia.
  • If cinnamon is included, it helps even more with cholesterol and blood sugar regulation, and it is a great drink for weight loss and can help with arthritis pain.
  • Honey should be taken in moderation, especially with people with diabetes and allergic to pollen. It shouldn't be given to infants and small babies younger than 1 year of age.
  • Cinnamon is on the other hand very helpful for the treatment of diabetes. Still, cinnamon and honey drinks are advisable to be taken only for adults and not by small children.

Sophia Smith

She is a renowned nutritionist and freelance writer whose topics of interest include healthy living and healthy eating. She is passionate about introducing new and delicious healthy meals while balancing her time between cooking and going to the gym. Her mission is to change the life of as many people as she can and make them the best version of themselves.
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