Honey is a substance produced by bees from the nectar of plants. It is commonly used as a sweetener in food. It may also be used as a medicine.Honey can become contaminated with germs from plants, bees, and dust during production,collection, and processing. Fortunately, there are characteristics of honey that prevent these germs from remaining alive or reproducing.
However,some bacteria that reproduce using spores, such as the type that causes botulism, can remain. This explains why botulism has been reported in infants given honey by mouth.
To solve this problem, medical-grade honey (Medihoney, for example) is irradiated to inactivate the bacterial spores. Medical-grade honey is also standardized to have consistent germ-fighting activity.
Some experts also suggest that medical-grade honey should be collected from hives that are free from germs and not treated with antibiotics, and that the nectar should be from plants that have not been treated with pesticides.
