Characteristics and Constituents of Honey

Table 8: Inactivation of enzymes in honey at different temperatures. Temperatures listed below reduce enzyme levels to half in the period stated.
Temperature		Half-Life
°C	°F	Diastase	Invertase
10	50	34 years	26 years
20	68	4 years	2 years
30	86	200 days	83 days
40	104	31 days	10 days
50	122	5 days	1 day
60	140	1 day	5 hours
70	158	5 hours	47 minutes
80	176	1 hour	9 minutes

Table 9: Minerals in U.S. honeys, in order of importance, as identified in an extensive study by Schuette and his colleagues. (I have been unable to locate in the book any other reference to Schuette to determine what the actua l source is.) On the right are trace elements found by various research workers.
Mineral elements	Average in light honey (ppm)	Average in dark honey (ppm)	Trace elements identified in honey
potassium	205	1676	chromium lithium nickel lead tin zinc osmium beryllium vanadium zirconium silver barium gallium bismuth gold germanium strontium
chlorine	52	113
sulfur	58	100
sodium	18	76
calcium	49	51
phosphorous	35	47
magnesium	19	35
silicon (as SiO2)	9	14
iron	2.4	9.4
manganese	0.3	4.1
copper	0.3	0.6

Table 10: Average glucose:water ratio for honeys grouped according to their granulation after 6 months of undisturbed storage at 23-28°C, in ½-lb or 1-lb jars (0.23 or 0.46 kg). The honeys had been pre-treated 'to cl arity, as indicated by the polariscope', i.e. all crystals had been disolved.
Glucose/Water ratio	Granulation after 6 months		# of Samples
1.58	none		96
1.76	few scattered crystals		114
1.79	1.5 - 3mm layer of crystals		67
1.83	6 - 12mm layer of crystals		68
1.86	few clumps of crystals		19
1.99	1/4 of depth granulated		32
1.98	1/2 of depth granulated		19
2.06	3/4 of depth granulated		16
2.16	complete soft granulation		18
2.24	complete hard granulation		28

Table 11: Relative density (specific gravity) and calculated values for the refractive index of honey at water contents from 13% to 21%. Figures are taken from a fuller table in the Comprehensive Survey.
Water content	Relative density		Refractive index
(%)	(20°C)	(60°F)	(20°/20°C)	(60°/60°F)
13.0	1.4457	1.4472	1.5044	1.5053
14.0	1.4404	1.4419	1.5018	1.5027
15.0	1.4350	1.4365	1.4992	1.5002
16.0	1.4295	1.4310	1.4966	1.4976
17.0	1.4237	1.4252	1.4940	1.4951
18.0	1.4171	1.4187	1.4915	1.4925
19.0	1.4101	1.4117	1.4890	1.4900
20.0	1.4027	1.4043	1.4865	1.4875
21.0	1.3950	1.3966	1.4840	1.4850

Table 13: Nutrients in honey. This table is excerpted from Table 8.4/1 of the Comprehensive Survey, and from other data in that book.
Nutrient	Unit	Avg amt in 100g honey
Energy equivalent	kcal	304
Vitamins:
B1 (Thiamin)	mg	0.004 - 0.006
Riboflavin	mg	0.02 - 0.06
Niacin	mg	0.11 - 0.36
B6 (Pyridoxine)	mg	0.008 - 0.32
Pantothenic acid	mg	0.02 - 0.11
B12	µg	0.004 - 0.006
C (Ascorbic acid)	mg	2.2 - 2.4
Minerals:
Calcium	g	0.004 - 0.03
Chlorine	g	0.002 - 0.02
Copper	mg	0.01 - 0.1
Iron	mg	0.1 - 3.4
Magnesium	mg	0.7 - 13.0
Manganese	mg	0.2 - 10.0
Phosphorous	g	0.002 - 0.06
Potasium	g	0.01 - 0.47
Sodium	g	0.0006 - 0.04
Zinc	mg	0.2 - 0.5