Why Raw Honey Lasts Forever
Ever wonder why the raw honey you have in your kitchen can sit in the cupboard for months on end (or even years) without going bad?
It's because of GOx.
GOx is short for glucose oxidase.
Protein With a Punch
Glucose oxidase is an enzyme that oxidizes glucose into glucolactone which converts oxygen into hydrogen peroxide in the process.What this means is: it acts as an antioxidant - or preservative.
In short, GOx is an all natural bactericide – built right into the chemical composition of raw honey.
Aside from keeping honey from going bad, it has scads of other uses. In fact, glucose oxidase is the center of a 5 billion dollar biotech industry.
GOx Rocks
Among many other things, glucose oxidase is used for measuring blood glucose. It works by turning the glucose in blood (which is difficult to measure) into hydrogen peroxide (which is easy to measure). This makes it an ideal biosensor for diabetes.Here's a short-list of some of its other uses.
GOx Uses:
- food preservative
- in baking: helps increase dough consistency and quality
- color stabilizer
- in wine production (lowers alcohol content and adds bactericidal effect)
- antimicrobial agent in oral hygiene products
- acidity regulator in food production
- biofuel cells
- in packaging: removes oxygen from food packaging
Honey on The Skin and Hair
No wonder raw honey is so fabulous for skin. You can use it to wash your face or leave it on as a moisturizing, cleansing mask.If you have time, try leaving a honey mask on the skin (and in the hair) for as long as you please. I've experimented with the leave-on time, and a 2 hour honey mask is a real treat for the skin.
Because honey easily dissolves in water, the mask rinses out like a dream.
Bonus Tip: if you decide to do a lengthy honey mask, don't steam iron anything (so I learned after having to re-wash my freshly ironed, honey-dripped tablecloth)
Links to More Info
wikipedia: glucose oxidaseProtein data bank: glucose oxidase
PubMed: glucose oxidase
PubChem: glucolactone
wikipedia: asperillus niger
Wiley: Antibacterial components of honey (2012)
American Bee Journal: Inhibine and glucose oxidase in honey - a review (1966)
Comments
I have a friend who keeps bees and I use the honey I buy from her on my face as well as in my food.
Thank you for the reminder, after a party last night today was the perfect day to put honey on my face :-)
Tina
Hi MarÃa - That balm sounds fabulous! I have only worked with powdered honey in any of my products, but imagine working with the raw ingredient adds a certain something to the texture. :)
So I have been doing 15-20 minute masks every night since Sunday, that's 5 days including today, and my skin loves it! I have hormonal breakouts on my chin and neck and they take forever to heal but its like they are finally healing so I'm keeping up the challenge and might even extend it :-)
Again, thanks for the reminder Lise! Sometimes the most simple things are the best :-)
I must admit there's been a few nights this week where the honey was almost dripping off my skin due to the heat - I have learned to use a much thinner layer :-)
I still like how the honey seems to keep the breakouts under control.
Thanks
How do you put the honey in the hair? It seems too sticky to distribute properly.