The Many Uses & Benefits of Honey and Beeswax

[BYH Project Manager]

Many beekeepers embark on this enthralling journey in order to harvest honey and beeswax for their many uses. With the abundance of honey and beeswax you have at your disposal, let's look at all the wonderful things you can do with them.

5 Common Uses of Honey​

Honey can be used for almost anything as a beekeeper, and as luck would have it, the list of honey uses keeps growing. Honey has a variety of uses; here's a quick list:

1. Sweetener​

Most people use it for this purpose. Throughout history, honey has been used as a sweetener for food, teas, coffee, toast, and even as a craving cure for thousands of years. Sweet tooth cravings can be satisfied with just a dollop of honey.

2. Hair Conditioner​

There's nothing wrong with cringing when you think about applying thick, sticky honey to your hair. Despite this common application, consider the benefits before you shake your head at it. Adding honey to your mane will restore its shine and moisture. You can wash your hair as often as you like, but even if it leaves a sticky mess, I'm sure it will smell and shine great after you've rinsed it.

3. Baths​

For thousands of years, milk and honey baths have been enjoyed by many. Over time, traditional milk baths have been enriched with ingredients such as honey and oatmeal. Honey has a soothing aroma, which alone makes it a great bath additive. Aside from being a great moisturizer, honey is also known to soothe dry skin. For a naturally soothing soak, try adding some milk and honey to your bath during your next spa day.

4. For the Flu​

When flu season hits, honey can act as a soothing agent by coating the throat lining. The Mayo Clinic reports that honey works just as well as dextromethorphan, a commonly prescribed cough suppressant. Honey is widely available and low-cost, so it may be worth trying.

Although honey is constantly being studied as a medicinal compound, the verdict appears to be in regarding its use in treating sore throats and suppressing coughs.

5. Allergies​

Bees harvest pollen from flowers to create honey, as you know. It would seem logical that exposure to honey derived from a plant that is an allergen might increase immunity. As a matter of fact, that is how allergy shots generally work.

However, the Mayo Clinic says this hypothesis hasn't been consistently proven in laboratory studies, yet it hasn't ruled out the possibility that honey could help those with allergies overcome some of their symptoms. At the very least, it suppresses coughs.

6 Top Uses for Beeswax​

If you were the first person to taste honey, what would it be like? I'm sure they were blown away by it! Adding to that, when the usefulness of beeswax became known, the appreciation for honeybees and beekeeping grew exponentially!

Here are a few popular uses of beeswax:

1. Cheese Wax​

Would you like to know if the wax that coats the outsides of aged cheeses is edible? If it's beeswax it's fine! That's not to say you'd want to eat it, but you will be fine if you get a few stray pieces down your throat.

The cheese is coated with beeswax throughout the aging process to keep it fresh and moist, and to prevent mold growth. Beeswax adds flavor to cheese while keeping it fresh.

2. Candles​

In the evenings before electricity, candles were used to light the way. Torches were used before candles. It was the Egyptian civilization that invented candles by dipping wicks in melted beeswax.

Honeybee wax is still used to make clean, natural, long-lasting candles to this day by crafters and beeswax enthusiasts. It doesn't matter if you aren't crafty, someone else could use some beeswax from your collection.

3. Balms & Salves​

Beeswax is an excellent sealant, so when things dry out, it keeps moisture in. A variety of beauty products containing beeswax are available, and some companies make their entire business model around selling beeswax-based chapsticks, lotions, and salves.

4. Waterproofing​

The use of beeswax doesn't just apply to lips and hands, it also prevents moisture from getting into things such as fabric and wood. Also, beeswax is often used as a leather conditioner or shoe polish to keep leather from drying out or becoming wet. Furthermore, it adds a special shine to shoes.

5. Polishing​

In addition to giving furniture a gleaming shine, beeswax adds a layer of protection from scratches and damage caused by water glasses & other surface elements.

6. Crayons​

Crayons have evolved over the years, and some brands even contain unsavory ingredients. In order to ensure safe products for children, beeswax crayons have become increasingly popular. Furthermore, when a young child decides to eat a crayon, parents can rest assured that it contains only beeswax without any harsh chemicals.

Do you keep bees in your backyard? Share your experiences and thoughts below.

 

[Blue Sky]

Learned from this post. Thanks.

 

[soarwitheagles]

Me too! I learned a lot. Thank you for posting!

 

[HomeOnTheRange]

We sell all sorts of products in our Bee Shop made with wax. We sell raw wax to a large number of people who make a lot of the things mentioned above. Also note, that there is a different honey for each season. Spring, summer and fall/winter all have different types of honey based on your region. Ask you local bee keeper which honey would be best for each season in your area.