It is a known fact that children under the age of 1 shouldn’t eat honey. This is because honey could contain spores that lead to botulism.
On the other hand the risks associated with eating honey during pregnancy are only theoretical ones.
It is possible for pregnant women to contract botulism as well that it a kind of food poisoning.
Children shouldn’t have honey because their intestines and stomach aren’t well developed enough to break down the spores.
In case of adults there shouldn’t be any risk associated with honey. Nonetheless it is best to avoid having raw honey that isn’t unpasteurized.
Pasteurized honey
The specialists advise pregnant women not to have anything that isn’t pasteurized. This is because foods of this kind could contain organisms that cause health problems.
In the majority of the cases the honey that you buy from supermarkets is pasteurized.
However women should be careful with the honey they get from festivals or fresh market. You should check the label to make sure that the product is pasteurized.
Myths vs. reality
The majority of the doctors tell their patients that it is safe to have honey while being pregnant. There is nothing in the literature that would suggest otherwise. The spores that can be found in honey cannot reach the fetus so honey is supposed to be safe. Some of the people say that since the pasteurization of honey is useful only to avoid the crystallization of honey.
According to this information it is about the same if you eat raw honey or pasteurized honey. There are a lot of women who say that they had honey during their pregnancy and nothing happened to them or the baby. Nonetheless it is up to you to decide whether you want to have honey when being pregnant or not.
