A Review on the Protective Effects of Honey against Metabolic Syndrome

Abstract

Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is a cluster of diseases comprising of obesity, diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemia, and hypertension. There are numerous pre-clinical as well as human studies reporting the protective effects of honey against MetS. Honey is a nutritional food low in glycemic index. Honey intake reduces blood sugar levels and prevents excessive weight gain. It also improves lipid metabolism by reducing total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG), low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and increasing high-density lipoprotein (HDL), which leads to decreased risk of atherogenesis. In addition, honey enhances insulin sensitivity that further stabilizes blood glucose levels and protects the pancreas from overstimulation brought on by insulin resistance. Furthermore, antioxidative properties of honey help in reducing oxidative stress, which is one of the central mechanisms in MetS. Lastly, honey protects the vasculature from endothelial dysfunction and remodelling. Therefore, there is a strong potential for honey supplementation to be integrated into the management of MetS, both as preventive as well as adjunct therapeutic agents.

Honey and Its Phenolic Compounds as an Effective Natural Medicine for Cardiovascular Diseases in Humans?

“…Of all the lifestyle factors that play an important role in human health, nutrition is key. Recent clinical and epidemiological studies indicate that honey may act as an important mediator of human health [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9].…”

The Beneficial Effects of Stingless Bee Honey from Heterotrigona itama against Metabolic Changes in Rats Fed with High-Carbohydrate and High-Fat Diet

“…In relation to that, the potential use of natural products for the management and prevention of MetS is actively being studied [9], which include natural honey [10,11]. Studies performed both in vitro and in vivo using several types of honey such as Tualang, Gelam, mad, and honeydew have been reported to exhibit protection against various MetS components attributed by their antioxidative and anti-inflammatory [12]; hypoglycemic and hypolipidemic [13]; pancreatic protective [14]; hepatoprotective [15]; anti-hypertensive [16]; and anti-obesity properties [17,18].…”

Efficacy of traditional Chinese medication Tangminling pill in Chinese patients with type 2 diabetes

“…T2DM is a chronic metabolic disease in which the deterioration of glycemic control is associated with progressive islet β-cell dysfunction, chronic inflammation, oxidation, and lipid metabolic disturbance. Metabolic syndrome is characterized by the presence of abdominal obesity, IR, hyperglycemia, dyslipidemia, and hypertension [64]. Tangminling pill significantly improved pancreatic β-cell function and reduced BMI and WC in T2DM patients in our analyses.…”