Honey is a food rich in vitamins and minerals, very beneficial for health and beauty. However, combining honey with the wrong foods can cause users to experience side effects and harm the body. Let’s take a look at this article with AVAKids to know what honey is incompatible with and which foods are absolutely forbidden to use with honey!

1Side Effects of Honey

1.1. Weight Gain

Honey is one of the foods that contains high levels of sugar, carbohydrates, and excess calories. Therefore, if users cannot control the amount of honey they consume each day, they will quickly gain weight, accumulate belly fat, and lead to obesity.

1.2. Allergies

Honey is a very benign food and brings many health benefits to users. However, if pollen is mixed in during the production process, honey can become an allergen and cause users to experience some symptoms such as runny nose, sneezing, rash, hives, etc.

Overdose of honey can cause allergies

1.3. Infant Botulism

Honey is easily contaminated with clostridium botulinum toxins during the incubation and transportation process. This is a dangerous toxin that can cause poisoning if the digestive system is weak or the liver’s detoxification function is poor. Therefore, although it is a nutritious food, honey is still not recommended for infants by doctors.

1.4. Increased Blood Sugar

Honey is a food that contains high levels of glucose and fructose. These are simple sugars that can be absorbed directly into the bloodstream. Therefore, if you use an overdose of honey, it can cause a sudden increase in blood sugar levels and cause many dangerous complications for the nervous system, cardiovascular system, or eyes.

Overdose of honey can cause increased blood sugar

1.5. Diarrhea

Because it contains a lot of fructose, honey can disrupt the small intestine’s ability to absorb nutrients. This is the main reason why people who consume honey regularly or in excess experience abdominal pain and diarrhea. In addition, long-term abuse of honey can also cause the lining of the stomach and esophagus to be easily corroded.

1.6. Food Poisoning

Unprocessed honey may contain residual pollen, beeswax, or small pieces of bee wings. Therefore, if you accidentally eat this type of honey, you can easily get food poisoning. Therefore, to protect health, users should only choose sterilized honey.

Overdose of honey can cause food poisoning

1.7. Tooth Decay

The main ingredient in honey is sugar, so users can experience tooth enamel erosion or yellowing of teeth if they overuse honey regularly. In addition, daily use of honey also increases the activity of acidophilic bacteria and leads to faster tooth decay.

1.8. Inhibition of Blood Clotting

Honey is a food that contains a lot of excess calories and fructose, so it can cause disruption in blood circulation. Therefore, users should not consume too much honey, especially those with hemophilia.

Overdose of honey can inhibit blood clotting

2Foods Incompatible with Honey

To answer the question of what not to eat with honey, let’s take a look at the list of foods, fruits, food and drinks that should not be eaten with honey!

2.1. Carp

Carp is a food that cannot be combined with honey because it can cause poisoning. In particular, eating carp before or after drinking honey can cause high poisoning. Therefore, you should avoid using both of these foods on the same day to best protect your health.

2.2. Tofu, Soy Milk

Tofu or soy milk often contains gypsum. This is the ingredient that, when combined with honey, will create lumps in the stomach, which can cause difficulty breathing or coma. In particular, people with cardiovascular disease who use these two foods at the same time can lead to death.

If you feel unwell after accidentally drinking honey with soy milk or accidentally eating tofu with honey, drink plenty of water, rest and monitor your health. If the condition does not improve, see a doctor for advice and timely support.

Drinking soy milk with honey can cause difficulty breathing or coma

2.3. Onions

The organic acids and enzymes in honey, when encountering sulfur-containing amino acids in onions, will cause a chemical reaction and create harmful substances. These toxins can cause digestive disorders, bloating, and serious stomach damage.

2.4. Chinese Chives

Steaming honey and Chinese chives is a familiar cough remedy for many mothers today. However, this is only a temporary treatment for children with a stable digestive system. Using both of these foods for a long time can cause diarrhea in children.

2.5. Boiling Water

Honey is a food that contains many enzymes, vitamins, and minerals. Therefore, using boiling water to mix honey will destroy the nutrients. At the same time, the natural taste and color of honey cannot be maintained. Therefore, you should only use warm water to mix honey.

Using boiling water to mix honey will destroy the nutrients

2.6. Rice

Rice and honey are two foods you can use every day. However, combining both of these foods at the same time will make users prone to diarrhea. Therefore, you should only eat rice 30 minutes before or after drinking honey for good digestion.

2.7. Sweet Tofu Pudding (Tào phớ)

Sweet tofu pudding is a favorite snack of many people because of its cooling properties. However, sweet tofu pudding combined with honey can cause diarrhea because it is a cold food. In addition, eating sweet tofu pudding with honey also causes many adverse reactions to the user’s health.

Eating sweet tofu pudding with honey can cause diarrhea

2.8. Dill

Dill has many health benefits for users. However, when combining dill with honey, it can easily cause liver damage or red eye swelling and pain. Therefore, you should be careful when using both of these foods on the same day.

2.9. Crab

Crab is a cold seafood, so it is very incompatible with honey. If you accidentally combine these two ingredients, it can irritate the intestines, easily cause diarrhea, and even poisoning.

2.10. Crucian Carp

Crucian carp is in the same family as carp, so it is also a food that is incompatible with honey. Combining these two ingredients at the same time can cause food poisoning such as heavy metal poisoning. Therefore, you should be careful when preparing dishes from crucian carp.

Eating crucian carp with honey can cause food poisoning

2.11. Arrowroot Powder

Arrowroot powder is one of the types of flour that has a cooling effect and has excellent medicinal properties. However, combining arrowroot powder with honey is extremely dangerous. This combination can cause difficulty breathing, coma, or even death.

2.12. Do Not Store Honey in Iron Containers

Honey is a weakly acidic food, so when stored in iron containers, a chemical reaction will occur, separating iron, aluminum, and zinc. This can reduce the quality of honey and make users prone to diarrhea. The best way to preserve honey is to store it in glass or ceramic jars.

Do not store honey in iron containers

2.13. Garlic

You can absolutely use steamed garlic or garlic soaked in honey to help relieve colds and sore throats. But absolutely do not use fresh garlic combined with honey, as they will cause poisoning, even life-threatening.

2.14. Lettuce

Although both honey and lettuce are healthy foods, lettuce when combined with honey can cause diarrhea.

2.15. Plums

Plums are also a food that you should not use with honey. The reason is that honey contains many enzymes, so when plums, honey and food meet, they will create adverse biochemical reactions, harmful to the body.

2.16. Turbot Fish

Besides carp and crucian carp, turbot is another type of fish that you should not combine with honey. If you combine these two ingredients at the same time, it can cause food poisoning.

Combining turbot and honey can cause poisoning

3Who Should Not Use Honey?

3.1. People with Diabetes

People with diabetes have high blood sugar levels, which can lead to serious conditions such as kidney failure, blindness, and effects on the heart and blood vessels. Therefore, they need to limit their consumption of foods high in sugar, such as honey.

3.2. Children Under 1 Year Old

During the preparation, preservation, or transportation of honey, Clostridium botulinum spores can be produced and they can survive at 100 degrees C. Children under 1 year old, especially under 6 months, have not yet fully developed liver functions such as detoxification. Therefore, botulinum can enter the intestinal wall, combine with some substances, and cause poisoning.

Infants can be poisoned if they use honey

3.3. People with Cirrhosis

Although honey is recommended for patients with hepatitis B because the monosaccharides in honey can reduce the burden on the liver, patients with cirrhosis should not drink honey wine. This mixture will aggravate the symptoms of the disease.

3.4. Pregnant Women

Pregnant women are also among the group of people who should not use honey. The reason is that honey can cause adverse effects, stimulate uterine contractions, and affect the normal development of the fetus.

Pregnant women should not drink honey

3.5. People with Low Blood Pressure and Low Blood Sugar

Honey contains a substance similar to acetylcholine, which lowers blood sugar. Therefore, those with low blood pressure and low blood sugar should not use honey.

3.6. People Who Have Just Had Surgery

People who have just had surgery are still weak; if they take too many supplements, it will overload the body, easily cause liver distension, gas blockage, and bleeding from the five senses.

People who have just had surgery should not use honey

3.7. People with Intestinal Dysfunction

Honey is considered a precious medicine, but people with intestinal dysfunction should limit their use of honey. The reason is that honey can cause strong intestinal contractions, causing symptoms such as diarrhea and constipation.

3.8. People Prone to Allergies

If you are allergic to pollen, celery, or other allergies related to bee activity, you should not use honey, as it can cause adverse effects for allergy sufferers.

People prone to allergies should not drink honey

4How to Properly Store Honey

To keep honey’s natural smell and color, users need to store it properly. Here are some tips you can refer to when you want to store honey:

• Only store honey in glass or ceramic bottles.
• Store honey at room temperature, preferably between 21 – 27 degrees C.
• Tightening the lid of the honey bottle is a way to keep the flavor and color of honey better.
• Limit the use of metal utensils to store honey.
• Avoid storing honey in the refrigerator, because then the honey will freeze, making it difficult to use for garnishing dishes.

U Minh Xuan Nguyen Pure Forest Honey mixed with Royal Jelly 500ml

5Notes When Using Honey

• Do not consume more than 100 ml of honey per day.
• Do not use 100 degrees C boiling water to mix honey.
• Do not drink honey close to bedtime as it can cause users to accumulate belly fat and gain weight quickly.
• Drink a glass of warm water 30 minutes to 1 hour before drinking honey in the morning to promote excretion, eliminate toxins, and improve skin.
• Drinking honey water around 3-4 pm will help replenish the body’s energy.
• People with frequent stomachaches, diarrhea, heart failure, asthma, low blood pressure, etc., should limit their daily honey intake.
• Absolutely do not use honey for children under 1 year old as it can cause allergies.
• Pregnant women should not use unprocessed honey because this type of honey contains a lot of bacteria, which is not good for the health of mother and baby.

Xuan Nguyen Tay Nguyen Forest Honey 200ml bottle

6Frequently Asked Questions When Drinking Honey

6.1. How much honey should I use per day?

You should use about 20-50g of pure honey per day and the simplest way to use it is to mix it with warm water, absolutely do not use boiling water because it will change the composition of honey. In addition, you can also use up to 100g, but with such a large dose, it can have a laxative effect.

You should use about 20-50g of pure honey per day

6.2. Should I drink honey every day?

According to a study conducted on mice with metabolic syndrome, using honey daily will help the body receive a healthy amount of sugar. Thereby, it can replace refined sugar in the daily diet.

Xuan Nguyen Pure Fly Honey 160ml

6.3. What happens if I accidentally drink honey with soy milk?

If you accidentally drink honey with soy milk or accidentally eat tofu with honey, it can cause bloating and large intestine stagnation. Soybeans are rich in nutrients such as protein and amino acids; providing fat, carbs, and many vitamins and minerals, but when combined with honey, it will cause biochemical reactions with enzymes, minerals, and plant proteins, causing poisoning and diarrhea. The mixture of soy milk and honey hardens in the stomach, causing difficulty breathing and possibly leading to a coma.

How to detoxify if you accidentally drink honey with soy milk or accidentally eat tofu with honey: If you are poisoned by eating soy with honey before 6 hours, you need to make the poisoned person vomit all the food they have eaten to remove the poisoned food from the body, drink plenty of water, rest and monitor your health. If the condition does not improve, see a doctor for timely support.

6.4. Are lemon and honey incompatible?

Lemon and honey are not incompatible, however, lemon contains tyramine, a natural substance that can cause headaches when the body absorbs too much. Besides, honey contains high levels of sugar, drinking a lot of honey lemon water can cause blood sugar levels to rise suddenly, leading to headaches. Honey lemon water, although a familiar drink, has the potential to cause headaches if drunk too much.

7Where to Buy Reputable, Quality Honey

You should prioritize buying honey at reputable stores and points of purchase to ensure quality. Honey products are currently also being sold at AVAKids store systems nationwide. You can buy directly at the store or order online via the website avakids.com. AVAKids commits to 100% genuine products with extremely affordable prices.

Above are the incompatible foods, how to preserve and notes when using honey that you need to know. If you need more information, please visit the AVAKids website or contact the hotline 1900.866.874 (8:00 – 21:30) for the fastest advice and answers!