April 24, 2023 | 08:55am GMT+7
I don’t have a habit of eating breakfast. I only drink warm water with honey to help lose weight and cleanse the body. Is this healthy? (Ngoc, 31, Hanoi)
Answer:
Not eating breakfast and only drinking warm water with honey is a habit for many, thanks to the high amount of energy from honey – comparable to other kinds of food. However, this diet is unscientific.
Honey has a large amount of sugar. According to the Vietnamese food composition table, 100 g of honey contain 81.3 g of sugar — which is quickly digested by the body once consumed, creating a sudden spike and subsequent drop in one’s sugar level, signaling a sense of hunger to the body. So you will crave more food, making it easier to gain weight.
Everyone can drink warm water with honey during the morning to protect the stomach and kickstart the digestive system into work, but you still need to eat a proper breakfast. Without something to eat, the body will contain too much sugar, yet still lack many essential nutrients such as gluten, fat, protein, and fiber – which can affect your health.
Moreover, honey is not suitable for people who want to lose weight. It is recommended to drink 5 ml of honey every day and avoid sugary products such as soft drinks and sweets.
Overall, honey is a healthy and versatile food product, good for coughs and beauty treatments. However, it’s recommended to buy only pure honey and mix 5 ml of it with 150 ml of warm water.
Dr. Nguyen Trong Hung
Head of Department of Adult Nutrition Counseling, National Institute of Nutrition
