Definition and research guide
This page combines a MeSH definition, publication statistics and selected research abstracts. It is a starting point for reading the literature, not a medical textbook or a systematic evidence review.
Content available: 4 complete abstracts (609 words), 10 references. Full article text is not stored or reproduced here; follow the PMID, DOI or PMC links to read the original sources and their access terms.
Definition
A sweet viscous liquid food, produced in the honey sacs of various bees from nectar collected from flowers. The nectar is ripened into honey by inversion of its sucrose sugar into fructose and glucose. It is somewhat acidic and has mild antiseptic properties, being sometimes used in the treatment of burns and lacerations.
Definition: NLM Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) scope note (Public domain (U.S. National Library of Medicine); attribution requested). View the MeSH record.
Also known as: Honeys.
Where it fits in the MeSH classification
- Broader topics
- Food
Research landscape
PubMed indexes 6,064 records tagged with the MeSH heading “Honey” (counts retrieved 2026-10-31). 2,187 of them (36.1%) were published from 2020 onward, and the busiest period so far is 2010-2019 with 2,293 records.
Reviews account for 489 records (8.1%) and meta-analyses for 49. Randomized controlled trials number 206 (3.4%) as a share of all records on the topic.
Show the data
| Period | Records |
|---|---|
| through 1999 | 667 |
| 2000-2009 | 917 |
| 2010-2019 | 2,293 |
| 2020 onward | 2,187 |
Publication-type chart data
| Type | Records | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Reviews | 489 | 8.1% |
| Meta-analyses | 49 | 0.8% |
| Randomized controlled trials | 206 | 3.4% |
Method: PubMed query "Honey"[MeSH Terms] with publication-type and date filters, retrieved 2026-10-31.
Reading the evidence in anatomy and physiology
Anatomy describes how body structures are built and physiology describes how they normally work, so most findings here are descriptive or mechanistic rather than evidence about treatment. Much of what is known comes from dissection, imaging, tissue studies and experiments in animals, and measurements in healthy volunteers can differ from those in people with disease or at different ages. Normal ranges vary between individuals and populations. Check whether a result was measured in people or in another species, the age and health of the participants, and the method used.
Evidence from open-access studies
These open-access studies come from PubMed’s best-match results for this heading (papers whose main topic it is), ranked here by citation count, with one recent addition. Each abstract is reproduced in full under its recorded open licence so that you can read the authors’ own words. They illustrate the literature; they are not a systematic summary of it. Citation counts measure attention, not reliability or clinical benefit.
| Study / authors | Year | Source label / design | Europe PMC citations | Licence / source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Identification of anti-inflammatory vesicle-like nanoparticles in honey | 2021 | Research article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 85 | cc by PMID 33613874 · DOI · PMC7879699 |
| Bee Products: An Emblematic Example of Underutilized Sources of Bioactive Compounds | 2022 | Review article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 84 | cc by PMID 34974697 · DOI · PMC9204823 |
| Role of Honey in Advanced Wound Care | 2021 | Review article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 64 | cc by PMID 34443372 · DOI · PMC8398244 |
| Presence of Emerging Contaminants in UK Honey─Human Pharmaceuticals a Concern for Honeybees? | 2026 | Research article Design not recorded in structured metadata | 3 | cc by PMID 41787959 · DOI · PMC13352592 |
Identification of anti-inflammatory vesicle-like nanoparticles in honey [1]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- Honey has been used as a nutrient, an ointment, and a medicine worldwide for many centuries.
- Closing excerpt
- Together, our studies have identified anti-inflammatory VLNs as a new bioactive agent in honey.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (170 words)
Honey has been used as a nutrient, an ointment, and a medicine worldwide for many centuries. Modern research has demonstrated that honey has many medicinal properties, reflected in its anti-microbial, anti-oxidant, and anti-inflammatory bioactivities. Honey is composed of sugars, water and a myriad of minor components, including minerals, vitamins, proteins and polyphenols. Here, we report a new bioactive component‒vesicle-like nanoparticles‒in honey (H-VLNs). These H-VLNs are membrane-bound nano-scale particles that contain lipids, proteins and small-sized RNAs. The presence of plant-originated plasma transmembrane proteins and plasma membrane-associated proteins suggests the potential vesicle-like nature of these particles. H-VLNs impede the formation and activation of the nucleotide-binding domain and leucine-rich repeat related (NLR) family, pyrin domain containing 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome, which is a crucial inflammatory signalling platform in the innate immune system. Intraperitoneal administration of H-VLNs in mice alleviates inflammation and liver damage in the experimentally induced acute liver injury. miR-4057 in H-VLNs was identified in inhibiting NLRP3 inflammasome activation. Together, our studies have identified anti-inflammatory VLNs as a new bioactive agent in honey.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 33613874 · DOI · PMC7879699
Bee Products: An Emblematic Example of Underutilized Sources of Bioactive Compounds [2]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- Beside honey, honeybees (Apis mellifera L.
- Closing excerpt
- This work aims to update the chemical and phytochemical composition of bee pollen, propolis, bee bread, royal jelly, and beeswax and to summarize the main effects exerted by these byproducts on human health, from the anticancer and immune-modulatory activities to the antidiabetic, hypolipidemic, hypotensive, and anti-allergic properties.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (138 words)
Beside honey, honeybees (Apis mellifera L.) are able to produce many byproducts, including bee pollen, propolis, bee bread, royal jelly, and beeswax. Even if the medicinal properties of these byproducts have been recognized for thousands of years by the ancient civilizations, in the modern era, they have a limited use, essentially as nutritional supplements or health products. However, these natural products are excellent sources of bioactive compounds, macro- and micronutrients, that, in a synergistic way, confer multiple biological activities to these byproducts, such as, for example, antimicrobial, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory properties. This work aims to update the chemical and phytochemical composition of bee pollen, propolis, bee bread, royal jelly, and beeswax and to summarize the main effects exerted by these byproducts on human health, from the anticancer and immune-modulatory activities to the antidiabetic, hypolipidemic, hypotensive, and anti-allergic properties.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 34974697 · DOI · PMC9204823
Role of Honey in Advanced Wound Care [3]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- Honey is a natural product rich in several phenolic compounds, enzymes, and sugars with antioxidant, anticarcinogenic, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial potential.
- Closing excerpt
- The delivery methodology (direct application, incorporated in fibrous membranes and hydrogels) is also presented and discussed.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (148 words)
Honey is a natural product rich in several phenolic compounds, enzymes, and sugars with antioxidant, anticarcinogenic, anti-inflammatory, and antimicrobial potential. Indeed, the development of honey-based adhesives for wound care and other biomedical applications are topics being widely investigated over the years. Some of the advantages of the use of honey for wound-healing solutions are the acceleration of dermal repair and epithelialization, angiogenesis promotion, immune response promotion and the reduction in healing-related infections with pathogenic microorganisms. This paper reviews the main role of honey on the development of wound-healing-based applications, the main compounds responsible for the healing capacity, how the honey origin can influence the healing properties, also highlighting promising results in in vitro and in vivo trials. The challenges in the use of honey for wound healing are also covered and discussed. The delivery methodology (direct application, incorporated in fibrous membranes and hydrogels) is also presented and discussed.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 34443372 · DOI · PMC8398244
Presence of Emerging Contaminants in UK Honey─Human Pharmaceuticals a Concern for Honeybees? [4]
Abstract reading summary — source excerpts
- Opening excerpt
- Emerging contaminants can accumulate in water, soils, and crops; however, little is known about the potential exposure to honeybees.
- Closing excerpt
- Critically, most of these contaminants lack toxicity data for honeybees, making it impossible to assess their acute or chronic risks.
- Interpretation limits
- Verbatim excerpts from the authors’ abstract; the closing excerpt may describe a finding, limitation or recommendation. Design, population, effect size and uncertainty have not been independently extracted or appraised. Read the complete abstract and linked paper before interpreting the findings.
Read complete abstract (153 words)
Emerging contaminants can accumulate in water, soils, and crops; however, little is known about the potential exposure to honeybees. Using samples collected surrounding arable farming in Great Britain and nontarget techniques, we identified 119 suspect chemicals in hives. On average, each hive contained 6.8 (±3.01) active ingredients, these included human pharmaceuticals (64%), industrial chemicals (10%), surfactants (8%), and plasticizers (5%). Elevated concentrations of the anti-inflammatory flurandrenolide (582.3 ± 348.4 ng/g), the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatorydrug aspirin (358.2 ± 390.1 ng/g), the fungicide azoxystrobin (298.5 ± 159.9 ng/g), the antihypertensive methyldopa (123.4 ± 60 ng/g), and the anticonvulsant carbamazepine (79.97 ± 54.2 ng/g) were identified. Elevated concentrations of human-origin contaminants of emerging concern (CECs), and their increased frequency in arable areas, indicate that the reuse of contaminated fertilizers contributes to accumulation in hives across English landscapes. Critically, most of these contaminants lack toxicity data for honeybees, making it impossible to assess their acute or chronic risks.
Abstract reproduced from the open-access article under the recorded cc by licence; © the authors. PMID 41787959 · DOI · PMC13352592
Key reviews and meta-analyses
The most cited review-type papers among PubMed’s best-match results for this heading, listed with bibliographic details only. Follow the links for the full text and access terms.
- Research article Honey: Chemical composition, stability and authenticity [5]
- Research article Honey for nutrition and health: a review [6]
- Research article Honey, Propolis, and Royal Jelly: A Comprehensive Review of Their Biological Actions and Health Benefits [7]
- Research article Functional properties of honey, propolis, and royal jelly [8]
- Research article Honey: its medicinal property and antibacterial activity [9]
- Research article Phenolic Compounds in Honey and Their Associated Health Benefits: A Review [10]
References
- Chen X, Liu B, Li X, An TT, Zhou Y, Li G, et al.. Identification of anti-inflammatory vesicle-like nanoparticles in honey. . 2021. PMID 33613874 · DOI · PMC7879699
- Giampieri F, Quiles JL, Cianciosi D, Forbes-Hernández TY, Orantes-Bermejo FJ, Alvarez-Suarez JM, et al.. Bee Products: An Emblematic Example of Underutilized Sources of Bioactive Compounds. . 2022. PMID 34974697 · DOI · PMC9204823
- Scepankova H, Combarros-Fuertes P, Fresno JM, Tornadijo ME, Dias MS, Pinto CA, et al.. Role of Honey in Advanced Wound Care. . 2021. PMID 34443372 · DOI · PMC8398244
- Nightingale J, Woodcock BA, Garazade N, Pywell RF, Carter LJ. Presence of Emerging Contaminants in UK Honey─Human Pharmaceuticals a Concern for Honeybees?. . 2026. PMID 41787959 · DOI · PMC13352592
- da Silva PM, Gauche C, Gonzaga LV, Costa AC, Fett R. Honey: Chemical composition, stability and authenticity. Food Chem. 2016. PMID 26593496 · DOI
- Bogdanov S, Jurendic T, Sieber R, Gallmann P. Honey for nutrition and health: a review. J Am Coll Nutr. 2008. PMID 19155427 · DOI
- Pasupuleti VR, Sammugam L, Ramesh N, Gan SH. Honey, Propolis, and Royal Jelly: A Comprehensive Review of Their Biological Actions and Health Benefits. Oxid Med Cell Longev. 2017. PMID 28814983 · DOI · PMC5549483
- Viuda-Martos M, Ruiz-Navajas Y, Fernández-López J, Pérez-Alvarez JA. Functional properties of honey, propolis, and royal jelly. J Food Sci. 2008. PMID 19021816 · DOI
- Mandal MD, Mandal S. Honey: its medicinal property and antibacterial activity. Asian Pac J Trop Biomed. 2011. PMID 23569748 · DOI · PMC3609166
- Cianciosi D, Forbes-Hernández TY, Afrin S, Gasparrini M, Reboredo-Rodriguez P, Manna PP, et al.. Phenolic Compounds in Honey and Their Associated Health Benefits: A Review. Molecules. 2018. PMID 30208664 · DOI · PMC6225430
About this article
- Sources
- NLM Medical Subject Headings (definition, synonyms); NCBI PubMed (counts, identifiers); Europe PMC (open-access abstracts and citation counts).
- Verification
- Every reference was resolved against PubMed on 2026-10-31; title, year and DOI matched.
- Review state
- automated source verified; no human expert review has been recorded yet.
- Version
- 1, last updated 2026-10-31.
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Evidence strength
EvidenceHelix's computed view of the study designs behind this topic: how common meta-analyses, randomized trials and reviews are, how recent the literature is, and a plain-language reading. It describes the design mix of the literature. It is not a quality appraisal of any study, and it is not medical advice.