# When is it OK to give raw honey?



## aniT (Jun 16, 2004)

I know they say not to give it to children younger than 12 months, but what makes 12 months the magic age? DD is almost 15 months old and I am wondering when she can have honey. My uncle is a bee keeper and makes honey so I know this honey is as organic as it can be. (I was told you can’t guarantee the bees pollinate organic crops.) Thanks for your advice.


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## tayndrewsmama (May 25, 2004)

I always wondered the same thing! I gave my kids honey by 15 months. It wasn't raw though. I only recently got raw honey and the kids are now 3 1/2 and 19 months. Curious to know what others think.


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## Destinye (Aug 27, 2003)

me too, DD is 14 mo but have been nervous to give raw honey I have.


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## missi66 (Mar 25, 2005)

I just bought some raw for the first time.It says not under 1 on the bottle. I would think that if the child is over 1 and has a healthy immune system it would be ok. I really think that the good immune system is the important thing.


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## tboroson (Nov 19, 2002)

It's not an immune system issue, nor a chemical issue (i.e. the organic vs. non-organic thing). It's a matter of maturity of the digestive system. Honey is extremely anti-microbial. Nothing lives in it. However, spores of botulism can exist in it because they're biologically inert. These spores will bloom in the gut, but an adult gut is able to handle a small amount of botulism effectively. A baby's gut isn't there yet. One year is an approximation for when a baby's gut is ready, based on how long a baby has been eating solid food and thus practicing the whole digestion process. I would estimate that a baby who took readily to solid foods early would probably be safe at an earlier age than a baby who rejected solid foods until really late (like my girls). I would guess that 12 months is a really safe estimate - that is, most babies are ready much earlier, but the powers-that-be won't trust us to make an educated estimate for individual babies so they tell us 12 months to be safe. I'd guess 15 months would be safe for almost any baby (unless, perhaps, a baby with chronic digestion trouble).

Personally, my older daughter wasn't interested in any food until she was about 11 months (and my younger daughter is on the same trajectory so far, very uninterested in solid food). So, she was getting pretty basic stuff still at 15 months, fruit and vegetables and a little meat. The only sweetener she'd had at all at that age was some cake on her first birthday - and that she mostly played with rather than ate. So, I guess I'm wondering why you're feeling the need to give a 15 month old sweetener in any case?


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## aniT (Jun 16, 2004)

I was looking at it like a sweatner. I believe my youngest DD has allergies. She often has asthma like symtoms that come and go. We went on a vaccation for a few days and she cleared right up. Came home and her nose was running before bedtime.

I have heard that eating local honey helps you become immune to local allergens. I thought giving dd honey would help with her allergies. Maybe a little bit on toast or something.


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## tayndrewsmama (May 25, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *aniT*
I have heard that eating local honey helps you become immune to local allergens. I thought giving dd honey would help with her allergies. Maybe a little bit on toast or something.


That's true, I have heard the same thing. The only thing I don't know is how much/often do you need to use it for results to appear. Hopefully some with the answer will see this.


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## aniT (Jun 16, 2004)

Just thought I would let anyone who is interested know, that I took DD to our naturpath doctor today. I asked her about the honey and she said that she personally feels it is better to hold off until a baby is closer to two years old.

She said that while it will help with allergies, a baby who has been sick might not have the holes in their gut closed, (I am picturing the soft spot on the skull that closes after time) and to be safe you should wait until later. A baby who has never been sick a day in his/her life might be ok to have honey at 12 months however. Thanks for the advice everyone.


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## tayndrewsmama (May 25, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *aniT*
Just thought I would let anyone who is interested know, that I took DD to our naturpath doctor today. I asked her about the honey and she said that she personally feels it is better to hold off until a baby is closer to two years old.

She said that while it will help with allergies, a baby who has been sick might not have the holes in their gut closed, (I am picturing the soft spot on the skull that closes after time) and to be safe you should wait until later. A baby who has never been sick a day in his/her life might be ok to have honey at 12 months however. Thanks for the advice everyone.

Do you suppose 19 months would be ok, since ds has only had one cold ever as far as being sick?


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## aniT (Jun 16, 2004)

I dunno, that is only halfway between one and two. Does your ds have allergies? I was given a natural allergy medicine for dd. She has some gunk in her lungs right now and we want to clear this up before we figure out what allergies might be causing it. She was also given a homeopathic remedy in the office and some decongest to rub on her chest.

I guess whether you should give it to your ds or not would be a judgment call between you and your doctor.


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## tboroson (Nov 19, 2002)

Holes in their gut? I'm sorry, but I'm dubious on this one. Babies don't develop gaping holes in their intestines from a cold. If she's referring to "leaky gut", that's where the walls of the gut aren't sturdy enough to prevent proteins from leaking through, which is partly implicated in allergies - proteins that normally wouldn't make it through the gut are able to sneak through. But, bacteria and their toxins are far larger than a simple protein, and there are no mechanisms for allowing their transfer. And, again, the point of holding off until a year has to do with allowing the gut to develop a level of acidity that will deter botulism.

I must respectfully disagree with this naturopath.


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## aniT (Jun 16, 2004)

Quote:


Originally Posted by *tboroson*
Holes in their gut? I'm sorry, but I'm dubious on this one. Babies don't develop gaping holes in their intestines from a cold. If she's referring to "leaky gut", that's where the walls of the gut aren't sturdy enough to prevent proteins from leaking through, which is partly implicated in allergies - proteins that normally wouldn't make it through the gut are able to sneak through. But, bacteria and their toxins are far larger than a simple protein, and there are no mechanisms for allowing their transfer. And, again, the point of holding off until a year has to do with allowing the gut to develop a level of acidity that will deter botulism.

I must respectfully disagree with this naturopath.

My understanding was that they were born with holes that close up over time. Like the soft spot on their skull. She said if you feel solids too early then some of the food could make it out of these little holes and into the blood stream which sometimes causes allergies. The main reason why you should not feed solids too early.

If a child has been ill there may be some of these little holes still open and because of this you should hold off on the honey.

Maybe I totally missunderstood what she said, but that is what I got out of it.


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