A Honey History and the Bees Knees on Beauty

You know it. You love it. It’s the perfect addition to your tea, toast, sopapillas, or oatmeal. It’s the only jar in your pantry that looks like a gooey gummy bear and always brings a warm feeling to the pit of your stomach. You even use it as a pet name for your beau. Honey: nature’s natural nectar, a sticky wonderment that continues to maintain its celebrated reputation in today’s culinary world.  However, honey’s age and uses greatly exceed the magnitude of its name.

The cultivation and use of honey dates back as far as 2100 B.C., as discovered through ancient Sumerian and Babylonian cuneiform, as well as in cave art found in Egypt , India and Spain. Used for medicinal remedies, dietary supplements, and even   beauty products, honey has been a vital resource for thousands of years. Additionally, references to honey can be found in Jewish, Buddhist, Christian and Islam religions. Numerous cultures have integrated honey in their religions and mythical texts as an important symbol, or even as an offering to the gods.  Have you heard of the “land of milk and honey?” Or perhaps the belief that Cupid dipped his arrow in honey before shooting it towards an oblivious target for love?

Around 3000 B.C, the Ancient Egyptians used honey to treat wounds, prevent bacteria and even help preserve their favorite Pharaohs during the mummification process. Legend has it that Cleopatra used honey in her bath to keep her skin silky smooth and firm, in the desert heat.

The Romans were actually distinguished as some of history’s best beekeepers and supposedly used honey in almost all of their cuisine, primarily as a sweetener. Like the Egyptians, they also used it as an antiseptic to treat wounds, and also offered it as a gift to the gods.

It doesn’t take much experience with Greek food to know that they were on the honey bandwagon too. Not only did they use it as a sweetener for many of their recipes but also Greek mythology refers to honey as food of the gods. Also, it was believed that honey provided wisdom and eloquence for those who ate it, derived from the knowledge that Plato himself frequently enjoyed eating the stuff.

Heading a little further east, honey has been discovered as being used in China  during the 11^th century as a cure for pain and disease, as well as a special  sweet condiment for royalty.

Coming west, it was said that honey was widely cultivated and used in Mesoamerica, but was not brought to modern western culture until around the 17^th century, during the bulk of European immigration to North America. Beekeeping here was developed more in the 19^th century and now you will notice cultural references to honey as a term of endearment.

Now that you know how Cleopatra and Caesar used their honey, here are a few concoctions that will allow you to beat those winter beauty woes better than your average bear:

To moisturize those scaly knuckles, or any other dry skin you have, Christopher Watt, a well known Hollywood aesthetician, says that you can mix the following for a simple moisturizing cream:

• 2 Tbsp honey
• 2 Tbsp cocoa butter, melted
• 2 drops of bergamont oil (optional)
• 1 drop of lavender oil or tea tree oil (optional)

For a seductive body scrub, combine the ingredients bellow to get rid of that rough wintery skin:

• 2 cups honey
• ½ cup grapeseed oil
• 6 Tbsp unsweetened chocolate, grated (or cocoa powder)
• 2 cups kosher salt

Finally, an article on livestrong.com explains how milk and honey can help polish and restore the moisture in your cold slapped face. Simply wisk together 1 part honey with one part organic, plain, unflavored and unsweetened yogurt. Due to their antimicrobial and antibacterial properties, when combined these ingredients can be used as either a cleanser or a facial mask.

Oh, and honey, keep an eye out for our upcoming video in which a member from our FGN team tries out all three of the remedies above for some skin sweetness!

FeelGoodNow Contributor: Maureen McGuire
Though she loves uncovering cultural and historical factoids behind various wellness topics, there is much more to this gal than meets the virtual eye. Outside the office, this blogging maven is usually painting up a storm, brushing up on her Spanish skills or soaking up Colorado’s 300 days of sunshine.  This native New Mexican loves to travel, and as green chile aficionado, she brings a certain spice to the FGN team.


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