By Zahid Ikram

The Female Honey Bee and Benefits of Honey

 

سُوۡرَةُ النّحل
بِسۡمِ ٱللهِ ٱلرَّحۡمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ

 وَأَوۡحَىٰ رَبُّكَ إِلَى ٱلنَّحۡلِ أَنِ ٱتَّخِذِى مِنَ ٱلۡجِبَالِ بُيُوتً۬ا وَمِنَ ٱلشَّجَرِ وَمِمَّا يَعۡرِشُونَ (٦٨) ثُمَّ كُلِى مِن كُلِّ ٱلثَّمَرَٲتِ فَٱسۡلُكِى سُبُلَ رَبِّكِ ذُلُلاً۬‌ۚ يَخۡرُجُ مِنۢ بُطُونِهَا شَرَابٌ۬ مُّخۡتَلِفٌ أَلۡوَٲنُهُ ۥ فِيهِ شِفَآءٌ۬ لِّلنَّاسِ‌ۗ إِنَّ فِى ذَٲلِكَ لَأَيَةً۬ لِّقَوۡمٍ۬ يَتَفَكَّرُونَ (٦٩)

[016:068-069] Your Lord revealed to the bees: "Build dwellings in the mountains and the trees, and also in the structures which men erect. Then eat from every kind of fruit and travel the paths of your Lord, which have been made easy for you to follow." From inside them comes a drink of varying colours, containing healing for mankind. There is certainly a Sign in that for people who reflect.

اور تمہارے پروردگار نے شہد کی مکھیوں کو ارشاد فرمایا کہ پہاڑوں میں اور درختوں میں اور اونچی اونچی چھتریوں میں جو لوگ بناتے ہیں گھر بنا (۶۸) اور ہر قسم کے میوے کھا۔ اور اپنے پروردگار کے صاف رستوں پر چلی جا۔ اس کے پیٹ سے پینے کی چیز نکلتی ہے جس کے مختلف رنگ ہوتے ہیں اس میں لوگوں (کے کئی امراض) کی شفا ہے۔ بےشک سوچنے والوں کے لیے اس میں بھی نشانی ہے (۶۹)

 

 

 

In the honey bee colonies where each of the many bees is assigned a specific task, the only exception is the male honey bee. The males do not contribute to the defence of the hive or its cleaning, to gathering food, or making of the honeycomb and honey. The only function of the male bees in the hive is to inseminate the queen bee.

[Hayvanlar Ansiklopedisi-Böcekler (Encyclopedia of Animals—Insects) (Istanbul: C.B.P.C. Publishing Ltd./Phoesbus Publishing Company: 1979), 97]

Apart from reproductive organs, the males possess almost none of the features possessed by the other bees and it is therefore impossible for them to do anything but fertilise the queen.

 

The worker bees carry the entire load of the colony. Although they are females like the queen, their ovaries have no maturity. This renders them sterile. They have several duties: cleaning the hive, maintaining the larvae and the young, feeding the queen bee and the males, producing honey, constructing the honeycomb and repairing it, ventilating the hive and safeguarding it, gathering supplies like nectar, pollen, water and resin, and storing these in the hive.

 

In Arabic, there are two different usages of verbs. By means of the usage, it is possible to determine whether the subject is a female or a male. As a matter of fact, the verbs (italic words) used for the honey bee in the verses are used in the format of the verb for females. Through this, the Qur'an indicates that the honey bees that work in the making of the honey are females. [Kazi, 130 Evident Miracles in the Qur'an, 68-69]

 

Amazing Benefits of Honey

 

Nature’s Energy Booster

The benefits of honey go beyond its great taste. A great natural source of carbohydrates which provide strength and energy to our bodies, honey is known for its effectiveness in instantly boosting the performance, endurance and reduce muscle fatigue of athletes. Its natural fruit sugars play an important role in preventing fatigue during exercise. The glucose in honey is absorbed by the body quickly and gives an immediate energy boost, while the fructose is absorbed more slowly providing sustained energy. It is known that honey has also been found to keep levels of blood sugar fairly constant compared to other types of sugar. So, to experience these health benefits of honey, here are a few tips for you:

1. Next time before you go for a workout, take a spoon of honey to enable you to go for the extra mile.

2. If you are feeling low and lethargic in the morning, instead of reaching out for a can of carbonated energy drink , try honey. Spread it on hot toast or replace the sugar in your tea with it for a refreshing surge of energy.

3. If your kids are finding hard to cope with the physical strain from the buzzing activities at school, prepare them some sandwiches with honey, butter and ham to make sure they have enough energy to sustain through the day. My kids are delighted when they see me prepare warm honey water in their bottles. They couldn't care a bit about the health benefits of honey, but simply love the taste of it!


Immunity System Builder
Amongst the many health benefits of honey, what is most impressive to me – it can be a powerful immune system booster. Honey’s antioxidant and anti-bacterial properties can help improve digestive system and help you stay healthy and fight disease. Start every brand new day with this cleansing tonic if you want to see this health benefit of honey: before breakfast, mix a spoonful of honey and lemon juice from half a lemon into a cup of warm water and drink it.

Honey Remedy for Ailments

FOR CUTS AND BURNS:
For thousands of years, honey has been recognized as one of the most natural home remedies to treat a wide range of ailments and complaints including yeast infection , athlete foot , and arthritis pain. Its antiseptic properties inhibits the growth of certain bacteria and helps keep external wounds clean and free from infection. Honey has been used as a natural cure in first aid treatment for wounds, burns and cuts as it is able to absorb moisture from the air and promote healing. Its antibacterial properties prevent infection and functions as an anti-inflammatory agent, reducing both swelling and pain, and even scarring. 

FOR HANGOVERS:
When you get a hangover from drinking too much alcohol, combat its effects by applying honey remedy. Honey is gentle on the stomach and contains a mix of natural sugars such fructose which is known to speed up the oxidation of alcohol by the liver, acting as a 'sobering' agent. Follow this recipe: 15ml of liquid honey with 80ml of orange juice and 70ml of natural yogurt. Blend them together until smooth.

FOR SORE THROATS:
One of the better known health benefits of honey is that it is able to help treat sore throats. Thanks to its antimicrobial properties, honey not only soothes throats but can also kill certain bacteria that causes the infection. Professional singers commonly use honey to soothe their throats before performances. The Chinese believe that excess "heatiness" in the body causes sore throat and taking honey drink can be helpful. Direction: Take a spoonful of honey to soothe the inflammation or gargle with a mixture of two tablespoons of honey, four tablespoons of lemon juice and a pinch of salt. Personally, whenever I have a sore throat or cough, I especially like to take warm water mixed with Manuka UMF honey which is well-known for its anti-bacterial healing properties.

For SLEEPLESSNESS:
Unable to sleep? Use the famous Milk and Honey Remedy. Take a glass of hot milk with a teaspoon of honey to calm the soul and induce sleep. Or, add 1 or 2 teaspoons of honey to a cup of chamomile tea and sip.

[ http://www.benefits-of-honey.com/health-benefits-of-honey.html ]

 

It can easily be seen from this information that honey has great "healing" properties. This is undoubtedly one of the miracles of the Quran Allah, Who is Exalted in Power, has revealed.

 

Nutritional Values Average amount in a portion Average amount in 100 g Water 3.6 gr 17.1 gr Total carbohydrates 17.3 gr 82.4 gr Fructose 8.1 gr 38.5 gr Glucose 6.5 gr 31.0 gr Maltose 1.5 gr 7.2 gr Sucrose 0.3 gr 1.5 gr

Nutritional Contents     Total calories (kilocalories) 64 304 Total calories (kilocalories) (as fat) 0 0 Total fat 0 0 Saturated fat 0 0 Cholesterol 0 0 Sodium 0.6 mg 2.85 mg Total carbohydrate 17 gr 81 gr Sugar 16 gr 76 gr Diet fibres 0 0 Protein 0.15 mg 0.7 mg

Vitamins     B1 (Thiamine) < 0.002 mg < 0.01 mg B2 (Riboflavin) < 0.06 mg < 0.3 mg Nicotinic acid < 0.06 mg < 0.3 mg Pantothenic acid < 0.05 mg < 0.25 mg Vitamin B6 < 0.005 mg < 0.02 mg Folic acid < 0.002 mg < 0.01 mg Vitamin C 0.1 mg < 0.5 mg

Minerals     Calcium 1.0 mg 4.8 mg Iron 0.05 mg 0.25 mg Zinc 0.03 mg 0.15 mg Potassium 11.0 mg 50.0 mg Phosphorus 1.0 mg 5.0 mg Magnesium 0.4 mg 2.0 mg Selenium 0.002 mg 0.01 mg Copper 0.01 mg 0.05 mg Chromium 0.005 mg 0.02 mg Manganese 0.03 mg 0.15 mg ASH 0.04 mg 0.2 gr

The “First World Wound Healing Congress,” held in Melbourne on September 10-13, 2000, discussed the use of honey in wound treatment. The comments made during the congress were along these lines: Many natural antibacterial substances are being evaluated to find a treatment for wounds infected with bacteria with multiple resistance to antibiotics, the "superbugs", as this becomes a major clinical problem. But most of these natural substances have no proven effectiveness on infected wounds, nor is it known if they have any adverse effects on wound tissues. Honey is different, as it has an excellent "track record" over 4,000 years of usage as a wound dressing... Honey has a potent antibacterial activity and is very effective in clearing infection in wounds and protecting wounds from becoming infected. http://bio.waikato.ac.nz/pdfs/honeyresearch/potential.pdf