October 11, 2026, 7 a.m. ET
For many of us, a drizzle of honey may seem healthier and more natural than a spoonful of sugar. Most of us know that honey comes from flowers and bees, while table sugar comes to us as crystals in a jar or bag.
But “‘natural’ doesn’t mean neutral when it comes to blood sugar,” says Erin Palinski-Wade, a New Jersey-based dietitian and author of “2-Day Diabetes Diet.” And it doesn’t necessarily mean they’re nutritionally superior, either. Both are concentrated sweeteners, count as added sugars when mixed with tea or baked into cookies, and can raise your glucose levels.
And while honey has some nutritional differences and other distinctive characteristics from sugar, portion size — and the rest of your diet — matters much more than the color or thickness of the sweetener you choose.
What is honey? Is honey good for you?
Honey is flower nectar “that bees turn into a concentrated sweetener,” Palinski-Wade explains. This occurs when bees collect nectar, pass it among themselves to change its composition, and deposit the developing honey into the honeycomb cells. In short, “they add enzymes to break down the sugars, then spread their wings to evaporate the water before storing the honey in the comb,” says Palinski-Wade. From there, beekeepers remove the surrounding comb, extract and filter the honey, and often also heat it to slow crystallization and destroy yeast.
The final product contains trace amounts of vitamins and minerals such as niacin, potassium, and vitamin C, which support energy metabolism, nerve and muscle function, and immune function, respectively, as well as a small amount of protein that the body uses to build and repair tissues. But honey remains a sweetener, “not a multivitamin,” says Palinski-Wade, because all of these nutrients “are present in quantities too small to make a significant nutritional contribution.”
At the same time, “honey offers a variety of antioxidants, although the specific types depend on its floral source,” says Yasi Ansari, a registered dietitian nutritionist and certified sports dietetics specialist based in Los Angeles. These antioxidants include flavonoids and phenolic acids, compounds studied for their potential to limit oxidative damage and influence inflammation. But the results of laboratory studies do not establish that the small amounts in a typical serving of honey produce any significant beneficial effects on people’s health.
Although Palinski-Wade says that while darker honey generally contains more antioxidants and raw honey often retains more heat-sensitive compounds, neither has been proven to be healthier overall.
What is table sugar? Is table sugar good for you?
Table sugar, also called sucrose, “comes from sugar cane or sugar beets, so it starts in plants too,” says Palinski-Wade. Manufacturers produce it by crushing cane or extracting sugar from sliced beets in water, which clarifies the extracted juice, concentrates it into syrup and then crystallizes the sucrose, Ansari says. She adds that this refining process also removes molasses and almost all of the original plant compounds, “although the carbohydrates remain.”
This is important, she explains, because during digestion, the body splits sucrose into glucose and fructose, with glucose providing readily available energy and fructose being largely processed by the liver. In this way, both sugars can provide quick fuel, which is useful during intense, prolonged exercise and may also be useful in the treatment of hypoglycemia.
Table sugar also contains trace amounts of minerals such as calcium and potassium, but not in significant amounts, says Ansari. It can also be helpful for making certain nutritious foods more appealing, like sprinkling a small amount on half a grapefruit or adding brown sugar to oatmeal.
Is it healthier to eat honey instead of sugar?
Neither sweetener is necessarily better than the other for your overall health, and both have other distinct pros and cons to consider.
Honey adds a distinct flavor and aroma and may taste sweeter than table sugar. “And I love that you don’t need as much honey as table sugar to sweeten what you eat or drink,” adds Ansari. Honey also helps retain moisture when baking, which can be helpful in foods like muffins and moist cakes, although replacing it may require adjusting the other ingredients in a recipe.
Honey may also have a lower glycemic index than table sugar, meaning some varieties may raise blood sugar more slowly compared to equivalent amounts of carbohydrates. Palinski-Wade points out that responses vary widely depending on the type of honey, the amount consumed, and individual factors such as insulin sensitivity.
“What we eat in combination with sugar-containing foods can also make a big difference in how quickly blood sugar rises and falls,” adds Ansari. For example, adding honey to plain Greek yogurt with nuts may produce a more gradual increase than eating the same amount on white bread, because yogurt and nuts provide protein and fat, while bread adds more easily digestible carbohydrates.
Tablespoon for tablespoon, “honey actually has more calories,” says Palinski-Wade: about 64 compared to 49 for sugar. And “because an infant’s gut microbiome is still developing,” says Ansari, you should never give honey to a baby younger than one year old. the infant’s intestines.
Ansari notes that sugar is more affordable, easier to measure and more convenient to store. It also has a more neutral taste and distinct baking benefits, such as giving structure, browning and crispness to baked goods.
But table sugar provides calories without the appreciable protein, antioxidants or micronutrients of honey. Its glucose component can also quickly raise blood sugar levels, which can make diabetes management more difficult, especially when portions are large.
Either sweetener can replace more nutrient-dense foods, make it easier to eat excess calories, and contribute to tooth decay.
All of these factors are part of why the American Heart Association recommends limiting added sugars to about 25 grams per day for most women and 36 grams for men, which is equivalent to about six and nine teaspoons of table sugar, respectively.
Ansari says “personal preference” should probably dictate your choice, rather than minor nutritional differences between the two. “You can choose honey because of its aroma or floral taste,” she says, or opt for sugar instead because you prefer its neutral flavor or the texture it creates in your favorite recipe.
“Although honey may provide some antioxidants,” says Palinski-Wade, “research has not established any clear health benefits over sugar.”
Gn Health
