From ancient times the Greeks and many other peoples such as the Egyptians, the Sumerians, the Babylonians, the Romans, had included honey in their diet as an excellent remedy.
The journey from the bee to the jar begins with the nectar collected by the bees from the flowers and the secretions of honeysuckle plants or insects. The enzymes in their saliva break down sucrose into glucose and fructose, which are stored in the honeycombs to nourish the hive during the winter. In the honeycomb the excess water evaporates through the constant ventilation from the bees' wings. The resulting thick, sticky liquid is what we know as honey.
Depending on the plant of origin, honey has a different taste, color, aroma and ratio of ingredients. Due to the rich flora, Greek honey is one of the best in the world in terms of quality and taste. Its main species are thyme, pine honey, flowers, reiko honey, cotton honey, spruce, chestnut, citrus, sunflower and heather.
Its main nutrients are carbohydrates (glucose and fructose), proteins, B vitamins, amino acids, enzymes, trace elements (calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, zinc). In terms of caloric value, a spoon, which is equivalent to about 21 g, gives 64 calories, while the corresponding amount of sugar has 84 calories.
The simplest way to know if a honey is pure is to determine its fluidity by moving the jar. The thicker and thicker the honey, the less moisture it contains, so the better its quality. You can also take a glass of cold water and put in a tablespoon of honey. Because the most common method of distilling honey is with sugar or glucose syrup, which dissolve easily in water, if the honey you bought is adulterated it will dissolve in water. On the contrary, if the honey you bought is pure it will remain intact at the bottom.
