Local Honey and Allergies

Yesterday we visited Dale Lesser, a friend of Julie’s who operates his farm in Dexter. His farm is fabulous, and he was an excellent tour guide. He raises pigs and cows and grows apples, alfalfa, and corn. He also manages many beehives and sells the honey and wax at places like the People’s Co-op in Kerrytown. While Dale’s whole farm was interesting to me, I was most interested in the honey-making process. It seems to be a big endeavor—but so rewarding! Dale showed us the hives in action. There were only a few active ones because the mites killed a lot of bees this year.

I realized that I didn’t know any of the health properties of honey, so, being the health geek that I am, I hit the web. There are tons of websites concerning the health properties of honey but few solid ones. One thing I found is a claim that local honey helps a person become immune to allergies. This is because the bees collect pollen from some plants that cause allergic reactions.

I have found both sides to this argument. The theory is oral tolerance, which is the idea that humans become accustomed to the things they consume. After searching the library and online, I found several older references of a hopeful but unfinished study by a Dr. T.V. Rajan. He had found success alleviating allergies from his daughter and was studying larger groups. I found one (no doubt newer) source claiming that this study proved the theory wrong. Hopefully more studies will follow!

Whether or not local honey relieves allergies, it is still great to benefit local beekeepers like Dale--not to mention local honey is another food that just tastes better from local sources. Try the allergy test yourself by consuming a couple of tablespoons of local honey a day!

Comments

Hey guys,

I mentioned this at the last GROCS meeting, but my grandpa is a local honey and maple syrup producer. This year there have been some health problems with bees across the USA as you heard from Dale (maybe mites, but apparently the truth is nobody actually knows what's wrong). His honey has been used at the Pacific Rim restaurant in downtown AA, but he doesn't really mass-produce it. The same is true of his maple syrup, which is just now beginning to flow with cold nights/warm days. He would be willing to let you come to his place and see the operation and video things if you wish. Email me if you're interested.

Posted by: jrpowers at March 15, 2007 12:54 PM

Here's a local interview on the subject (see link).

Posted by: jrpowers at May 2, 2007 09:03 PM