Effects of honey on exercise performance and health components: A systematic review (original) (raw)
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Role of Honey for Enhancing Performance in Endurance Sports
2020
Endurance events are becoming popular globally and at the same time demands higher energy levels to sustain the performance in the form of carbohydrates. Different carbohydrate loading at various stages like pre-competition, and during the exercise has been prescribed for athletes depending upon the nutritional demands of that particular sport. Honey is a natural source of energy rich in carbohydrates and other minerals and vitamins. Carbohydrates like fructose and glucose present in honey and low glycemic index makes it eligible for consumption for endurance athletes. There are limited studies that show the honey improves the physical performance among endurance athletes and it seems promising to be ingested as an alternate health drink for such athletes.
Effect of Honey on Measurable Sport
2020
For more than 5000 years, people have used honey to improve the physical attributes of the musculoskeletal system as well as for health reasons. Honey is mainly composed of carbohydrate (CHO), minerals, and vitamins which are properties that are proved to be able to improve sports performance and general health. Honey has the potential to improve aerobic exercise performance. Meanwhile, honey in combination with exercise improves bone health, boosts the immune system, and improves performance in sports. It is believed that Carbohydrate (CHO) and honey constituents play an important role during training in providing the benefits of improving sports performance on cycling, and running. Honey is a source of carbohydrates that contain flavonoid compounds which act as antioxidants and have ergogenic properties. The natural nutrition and biochemical properties of honey make it an energy food status. Carbohydrate (CHO) make up the largest portion of honey's nutritional composition (95-...
International Journal of Sports Science, 2019
Background: Honey, royal jelly, and bee-pollen are promoted as nutraceuticals that have numerous nutritional and therapeutic properties with a capability of endurance athletic performance enhancement. Objective: The study aimed to evaluate the effect of honey supplementation formula on runners' performance and fatigue parameters. Subjects: Fifty male runners, members of the Egyptian Athletic Federation (EAF), were recruited to perform two study groups; one with intervention with the honey drink for one week before and after running and the second group was running without using the honey drink (placebo). Systolic and diastolic blood pressures, pulse rate, blood glucose, blood lactic acid concentration, creatine kinase-muscle/brain (CK-MB), and Lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) were measured before and after running. Results: No significant baseline intergroup differences were observed while there were significant changes were detected in both groups in all parameters investigated according to the pre-and post-exercise intragroup comparison. Blood lactic acid concentration was higher among the honey group than the placebo (19.50 ± 3.78 vs 11.0 ± 3.83 mmol/L, respectively) as well as LDH (311.30 ± 55.40 vs 242.0 ± 20.98 U/L, respectively). However, it can be explained by the insignificant faster race finishing time of the honey group than the placebo group (5.01 ± 0.24 vs 5.16 ± 0.11 minutes, respectively, (p = 0.221). The blood glucose was enormously higher among the athletes who ingested honey than who took placebo only (139.68 ± 37.76 vs 81.40 ± 7.43 mg/dl, respectively). While, there was no statistical difference in the blood pressure, either systolic or diastolic, and CK-MB between both groups. Conclusions: Acute ingestion of honey drink mixed with royal jelly and bee-pollen before running is ergogenic and plays a beneficial role in enhancing running performance.
Diabetes, Metabolic Syndrome and Obesity: Targets and Therapy, 2021
Metabolic syndrome (MetS) refers to the simultaneous presence of hypertension, hyperglycemia, dyslipidemia and/or visceral obesity, which predisposes a person to cardiovascular diseases and diabetes. Evidence suggesting the presence of direct and indirect associations between MetS and osteoporosis is growing. Many studies have reported the beneficial effects of polyphenols in alleviating MetS in in vivo and in vitro models through their antioxidant and anti-inflammation actions. This review aims to summarize the effects of honey (based on unifloral and multi-floral nectar sources) on bone metabolism and each component of MetS. A literature search was performed using the PubMed and Scopus databases using specific search strings. Original studies related to components of MetS and bone, and the effects of honey on components of MetS and bone were included. Honey polyphenols could act synergistically in alleviating MetS by preventing oxidative damage and inflammation. Honey intake is shown to reduce blood glucose levels and prevent excessive weight gain. It also improves lipid metabolism by reducing total cholesterol, triglycerides and low-density lipoprotein, as well as increasing high-density lipoprotein. Honey can prevent bone loss by reducing the adverse effects of MetS on bone homeostasis, apart from its direct action on the skeletal system. In conclusion, honey supplementation could be integrated into the management of MetS and MetS-induced bone loss as a preventive and adjunct therapeutic agent.
Asian Journal of Sports Medicine, 2015
Background: Glycogen depletion and hypoglycemia have been associated with fatigue and decrement of performance during prolonged exercise Objectives: This study investigated the effectiveness of Acacia honey drink as a post-exercise recovery aid on glucose metabolism and subsequent running performance in the heat. Patients and Methods: Ten subjects participated in this randomized cross-over study. All subjects performed 2 trials. In each trial, all subjects went through a glycogen depletion phase (Run-1), 2-hour rehydration phase and time trial running phase (Run-2). In Run-1, subjects were required to run on a treadmill at 65% VO 2max in the heat (31°C, 70% relative humidity) for 60 min. During 2-hour rehydration phase, subjects drank either plain water (PW) or honey drink (HD) with amount equivalent to 150% of body weight loss in 3 boluses (60%, 50% and 40% subsequently) at 0, 30 and 60 min. In Run-2, the longest distance covered in 20 min was recorded for determining running performance. Two-way repeated measured ANOVA and paired t-test were used for analysis. Results: Running distance in Run-2 covered by the subjects in the honey drink HD trial (3420 ± 350 m) was significantly (P < 0.01) longer compared to plain water PW trial (3120 ± 340 m). In general, plasma glucose, serum insulin and osmolality were significantly (P < 0.05) higher in HD compared to PW during the rehydration phase and Run-2. Conclusions: These findings indicate that rehydration with honey drink improves running performance and glucose metabolism compared to plain water in the heat. Thus, honey drink can be recommended for rehydration purpose for athletes who compete in the heat.
A Review of Potential Beneficial Effects of Honey on Bone Health
Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 2019
Bone remodelling is a complex and tightly regulated process. Disruption of bone remodelling skewing towards resorption will cause osteoporosis and increase the risk of fragility fracture. Honey is a natural product containing various bioactive ingredients with health benefits, especially polyphenols. Therefore, honey may be a novel dietary supplement to prevent osteoporosis. This review aims to summarize the current evidence on the effects of honey on bone health. The evidence reported so far indicates a skeletal-beneficial effect of honey in animal models of osteoporosis. However, the number of studies on humans is limited. Honey can protect the bone via its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, primarily through its polyphenol content that acts upon several signalling pathways, leading to bone anabolic and antiresorptive effects. In conclusion, honey is a potential functional food for bone health, but the dose and the bioactive contents of honey need to be verified prior t...
Complementary Therapies in Medicine, 2018
To investigate the long-term effects of Tualang Honey versus Honey Cocktail (mixture of honey, bee bread, and royal jelly) on cardiovascular markers and anthropometric measurements of postmenopausal women. Methods: We conducted a randomised, double blinded, two-armed parallel study comparing 20 g/day of Tualang Honey versus 20 g/day Honey Cocktail among postmenopausal women aged 45-65 years. The cardiovascular parameters and anthropometrics measurements were assessed at baseline, 6 months, and 12 months of the intervention. Results: 100 subjects were successfully randomised into the groups. There was a significant decrease in the diastolic blood pressure from 77.92 mmHg at baseline to 73.45 mmHg at 12 months (F-statistic = 2.55, pvalue = 0.047) in the Tualang Honey group compared to Honey Cocktail. There was also a significant decrease in the fasting blood sugar from 6.11 mmol/L at baseline to 5.71 mmol/L at 12 months (F-statistic = 4.03, pvalue = 0.021) in the Tualang Honey group compared to the Honey Cocktail group. The body mass index remained unchanged at 27 kg/m2 (F-statistic = 1.60, p-value = 0.010) throughout 12 months of the intervention in the Honey Cocktail group. Conclusion: Subjects who received Honey Cocktail showed remarkable effects on body mass index. However, Tualang Honey supplementation showed superior effect in lowering diastolic blood pressure and fasting blood sugar compared to Honey Cocktail. Further studies are required to ascertain the underlying mechanism(s) of Tualang Honey and Honey Cocktail on each observed parameter.
Many specialists advise athletes to have vitamins, minerals and nutrition compounds to enhance sports performance. Honey is one of the best sources of sugar that provides the body with energy quickly without side effects and for prolonged periods of time. Two thirds of the human body consists of water. So, it is considered as a nutrient. The human body loses 1.5 liters of water each day through the skin, lungs, intestines and kidneys (as urine). During training, a wrestler loses huge amounts of water through the skin, due to the high intensity training load. This affects the vital functions of internal body systems as the body loses water and body temperature increases accordingly. Also, heavy sweat lost during training and the increase of internal and external body temperature affects the ability of the wrestler to continue training and competition. The current study tries to decrease the skin temperature and maintaining blood glucose using a compound of honey and water. The researchers used the quasi-experimental approach (one experimental group and pre and post-measurements) on a sample of 7 wrestlers from Baladiat Al-Mahalla Sports Club. Results indicated that the recommended honey and water compound had a significant effect on blood glucose and decreasing skin temperature during training. The recommended compound did not affect internal body temperature
Role of Honey in Obesity Management: A Systematic Review
Frontiers in Nutrition
Obesity is a metabolic disorder that has become critically prevalent throughout the world. Obesity has been linked to other chronic diseases such as diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular diseases and cancer. Natural products such as honey have been investigated for their potential effect on obesity. Hence, this study systematically reviewed the recent literature concerning the effects of honey on obesity in obese animal models and in people with obesity. The Ovid MEDLINE, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science and Google Scholar electronic databases were searched for relevant articles. A total of 130 relevant articles were obtained from the initial search. Following a thorough screening, nine articles were selected for data extraction, including six animal studies and three clinical trials. In most of the animal studies, honey demonstrated an anti-obesity effect by reducing body weight, body fat composition and adipocyte size, among others. However, supplementation of honey in clinical trials s...
Pakistan J. Zool, 2011
The effects of natural honey on body weight and blood lipid profile in both sexes of normal weight and obese adults have been investigated. Body mass index (BMI), total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c) and low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c) were used as parameters of comparison of normal and obese adults. A non significant reduction in BMI was observed in all ethnic groups in both genders of obese as well as normal weight subjects. Honey intake significantly reduced TC in obese subjects of both genders of Baloch and Punjabi and Hazara females, in contrast to reduction in both genders of Baloch and males of Pathan normal weight control subjects. Triglycerides were lowered in obese subjects of all the ethnic groups of both the sexes except females of Hazara; comparably reduction was noticed in normal weight control males of Baloch and females of Punjabi only. The significant increases in HDL-c in obese of both the genders of Baloch and Pathan and males of Hazars, were observed and in normal weight controls similar response was shown in males of Pathan and Punjabi only. Significant decreases in the level of low density lipoprotein (LDL-c) cholesterol in obese subjects of all ethnic groups except females of Hazara and Punjabi were found compared to none of the significantly affected batch in the normal weight control group. Honey demonstrated prominent reducing effect on TC, LDL-c & TG and HDL cholesterol enhancing ability in the obesity of most of the ethnic groups in both the genders. Comparably lowering of TC, TG and increasing of HDL-c with honey is also observed in normal weight subjects, however, imperceptibly in very few ethnic groups. Thus honey consumption had shown exceedingly improving effect on lipid profile in obesity compared to normal weight status.