For those of you who dread seeing those first spring blooms because of seasonal allergies, there may be some relief in sight..local honey. Local honey is believed to prevent the symptoms of seasonal allergies, also known as hay fever. Drinking local honey may work much like an allergy shot in that it exposes you to small amounts of allergens to help your body build immunity to the allergens. When bees pollinate to make honey, they bring back allergens from the flowers, trees, and other plants. This leaves small traces of those allergens in their honey. Just like the doctor gives you small amounts of allergens when he or she gives you an allergy shot.

It is best to find raw honey that is as close to home as possible because it is far more likely to contain the same allergens that you are exposed to on a daily basis. You should also start drinking the honey in very small doses, just in case of an allergic reaction to the pollen that is in the raw honey. Gradually work your way up to about two teaspoons a day. This regimen should begin several months before the onset of allergy season. The honey should be raw, unpasteurized, and unheated for best results. However, babies under the age of one should never consume raw honey due to the risk of botulism.

There are many other health benefits to drinking raw honey. It has been proven that raw honey has many antibiotic properties. For years, people have consumed it for nausea and gastritis. It is also known to prevent the formation of ulcers, and certain kinds of cancer. So, as you can see, trying raw local honey to treat your allergies certainly would not hurt, in fact, it could help you with a number of other ailments. The best part, there are virtually no side effects, unless you are allergic.

To find the most local honey, you may contact a local bee keeper or go to the next farmers market. Try to get the local honey that is closest to home. Immunizing yourself to allergens that you are never exposed to carries no benefits. It is also recommended that you don’t plant any plants that you know you are allergic to. To build immunity, you must be exposed in small doses. Large doses of allergens will only increase your likelihood of developing worse allergies to them.

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An astonishing amount of people (50 million people in the U.S.) suffer from seasonal allergies.  These people are suffering from seasonal allergies with symptoms of runny nose, nasal congestion, itchy nose, itchy eyes, or tearing eyes.  The lost of productivity is actually costing United States up to $4.6 billion annually!

Numerous medications such as Claritin® have been invented to cure allergies.  Unfortunately, many people are still suffering from these seasonal allergies even after digesting these medications.  Luckily, an all natural alternative to relieving your seasonal allergies might actually be coming from your backyard.  Many people already have used raw local honey to treat seasonal allergy symptoms and so can you!

Think about this.  Honey bees in your neighborhood travel from flowers to flowers collecting nectar from the same plants that are giving you allergy symptoms.  The raw honeys collected by these bees contain bits and pieces of the same pollens from these plants.  So, by eating these very same raw honey made by the bees from your area, the raw honey will often act as an immune system booster to reduce your allergy symptoms to local flowering plants.

It is great idea to source raw honey that is raised as close as possible to where you live to rip the most benefit.  Once you obtain your raw local honey, start taking 2 to 3 spoonfuls each day for several months prior to pollen season.  You will likely see big difference in your body to cope with allergies.

Besides reducing seasonal allergies, raw honey has many other health benefits as well.  Raw honey can help ease digestion, relieve constipation, and may even reduce cancer.  Raw honey is also great in relieving morning sickness and great for sore throats.

With all of these benefits of raw honey to your health, why not try adding few doses of local raw honey to your regular diet?

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Many wonder whether the health benefits will degrade after granulation.  Good news is that after crystallized, the taste and the health benefits actually do not change.  Honeys that have been granulated for several years still tasted fine.

The commercial honeys you buy from supermarkets usually will not crystallize.  These honeys have been filtered and strained to eliminate extraneous particles.  This is why most commercial honeys have a golden clearer color than pure raw local honey.  This filtering process also reduces the likelihood of crystallization.  However, the raw local honey you find will be unheated and unfiltered honey.

Some raw honeys tend to crystalize faster than others depending on their flower sources.  Sage and tupelo honey are quite resistant to granulation but canola and blue curl honey tend to crystallized within few days.

In fact, it is pretty easy to turn granulated honey back to liquefied state just simply by heating.  Placing  your honey jar in a pan of warm water is the easiest and most natural.  Placing the honey jar directly in microwave will work as well , but extra precaution will be needed.  

Storage of honey at cooler temperatures is highly recommended to keep its quality.  Storing honey in dark places or opaque jars are the best to reduce harmful effects lights may have on it.

Next time you see crystallization of your raw local honey, try heating the honey jar in a pan and put it in a cool dark place!

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Many people have questioned about how local these honeys have to be to get the most allergy relief.  It is great idea to consume raw local honeys that are about 50 mile radius from where you live and work.  These are the area where the vegetations are releasing the pollens in to the air that are giving you allergies.

When purchasing these raw local honeys, make sure that these raw local honeys are also seasonally-correct.  You want to build-up immunity to these same pollens that are airborne right now.  You may want to consume raw honeys that are harvested during the season that it is now in to rip the most benefit.

Start adding few teaspoons of all natural raw local honey to your diet to have a healthier life.

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