Study: LDL Cholesterol Increased with Sugar, Not Honey

Effect of Honey on Serum Cholesterol and Lipid Values
J Med Food, 2009 Jun;12(3):624-8

Small studies have suggested that honey benefits patients with high cholesterol concentrations. The present study aimed to confirm this finding in a larger group of subjects.

Sixty volunteers with high cholesterol, stratified according to gender and hydroxymethylglutaryl-coenzyme A reductase inhibitor (statin) treatment (yes/no), were randomized to receive 75 g of honey solution or a honey-comparable sugar solution once daily over a period of 14 days...

Neither solution influenced significantly cholesterol or triglyceride values in the total group; in women, however, the LDL cholesterol value increased in the sugar solution subgroup but not in the women taking honey. Although ingesting honey did not reduce LDL cholesterol values in general, women may benefit from substituting honey for sugar in their diet.

Reducing the BMI lowers the LDL cholesterol value, and psychological interventions also seem important and merit further investigation.