If you love honey like me, you're probably eating some every day. But, is that even good for us, and how much potassium does it have?
That's a critical question, not only for those who want to increase their potassium intake, but also for those on a low-potassium diet.
Table of Contents
- Is honey high in potassium?
- How much potassium is in honey?
- Nutrition Facts: Honey, 3.5 oz (100 g)
- Is honey good for you?
- Which has more potassium: honey or maple syrup?
- Which has more potassium: honey or agave syrup?
- Which has more potassium: honey or banana?
- Can you take in too much potassium from honey?
- Can you eat honey on a low-potassium diet?
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Conclusion
Is honey high in potassium?
Honey is very low in potassium because even 3.5 oz (100 g) of honey has only 1% of your recommended daily potassium intake. A tablespoon of honey has even less than that—only 0.2%. For comparison, one small banana contains around 10%.
Can You Check Your Potassium Level at Home?
How much potassium is in honey?
3.5 oz, or 100 grams, of honey contains only 52 mg of potassium, or around 1% of the recommended daily intake. That's incredibly low, considering that no one's eating that much honey anyway.
A more realistic serving would be one to two tablespoons of honey, which has 10 to 22 mg of potassium, still much lower than the 1% daily value.
That's why people on a low-potassium diet can freely eat honey straight from the jar or as an addition or substitute to other sweeteners.
Keep on reading to find out what benefits honey has and if it's actually good for you. Plus, what has more potassium honey or maple and agave syrup.
Nutrition Facts: Honey, 3.5 oz (100 g)
- 304 Calories
- Total Fat: 0 g, 0%
- Saturated fat: 0 g, 0%
- Cholesterol: 0 mg, 0%
- Sodium: 4 mg, 0%
- Potassium: 52 mg, 1%
- Total Carbohydrate: 82 g, 27%
- Dietary fiber: 0.2 g, 0%
- Sugar: 8 g
- Protein: 0.3 g, 0%
- Vitamin C: 0%
- Calcium: 0%
- Iron: 2%
- Vitamin D: 0%
- Vitamin B6: 0%
- Vitamin B12: 0%
- Magnesium: 0%
RELATED: Is Pork Meat High In Potassium?
Is honey good for you?
Honey can come from different flowers and that will affect its color, smell, and taste. It also has many benefits. Here are some of the reasons why honey is so popular and beneficial:
1. Honey is good for the immune system.
The phytonutrients in raw honey are responsible for its antioxidant effects as well as its antibacterial and antifungal ability. They’re also presumed to be the reason that raw honey has demonstrated immune-boosting and anti-cancer advantages.
Other vitamins and minerals that are abundant in honey are also known to benefit the immune system and help protect against inflammation and infectious diseases.
2. Honey is rich in antioxidants.
Honey has many important antioxidants, such as phenolic acids and flavonoids. Phenolic acids are very beneficial because they prevent the damage of cells resulting from free-radical oxidation reactions.
Phenolic acids also promote our anti-inflammatory capacity.
Flavonoids can reduce cholesterol levels and blood pressure and therefore reduce the risk of developing heart disease.
3. Honey helps heal wounds and burns.
26 studies on honey and wound care found that it's most effective at healing partial-thickness burns and wounds that have become infected after surgery.
Which has more potassium: honey or maple syrup?
Generally, maple syrup has four times as much potassium as honey when compared pound-for-pound. A serving of 3.5 oz (100 g) of maple syrup has around 212 mg of potassium, while honey has only 52 mg.
Maple syrup also has more calcium and magnesium than honey.
| 100 g | Honey | Maple Syrup |
| Calories | 304 | 260 |
| Carbohydrates | 82 g | 67 g |
| Protein | 0.3 g | 0 g |
| Fat | 0 g | 0.1 g |
| Fiber | 0.2 g | 0 g |
| Potassium | 52 mg | 212 mg |
| Vitamin C (%DV) | 0% | 0% |
| Vitamin B6 (%DV) | 0% | 0% |
| Calcium (%DV) | 0% | 10% |
| Iron (%DV) | 2% | 0% |
| Magnesium (%DV) | 0% | 0% |
| Vitamin D (%DV) | 0% | 5% |
Which has more potassium: honey or agave syrup?
Agave nectar in syrup form contains virtually no potassium. The same amount of agave syrup, compared to honey, has only 4 mg of potassium per 100 g vs. 52 mg for honey.
| 100 g | Honey | Agave Syrup |
| Calories | 304 | 310 |
| Carbohydrates | 82 g | 76 g |
| Protein | 0.3 g | 0.1 g |
| Fat | 0 g | 0.5 g |
| Fiber | 0.2 g | 0.2 g |
| Potassium | 52 mg | 4 mg |
| Vitamin C (%DV) | 0% | 0% |
| Vitamin B6 (%DV) | 0% | 0% |
| Calcium (%DV) | 0% | 0% |
| Iron (%DV) | 2% | 0% |
| Magnesium (%DV) | 0% | 0% |
| Vitamin D (%DV) | 0% | 0% |
Which has more potassium: honey or banana?
A banana, which is known for its high potassium content, has almost seven times as much potassium as the same amount of honey: 358 mg per 100 g for bananas vs. 52 mg for honey.
| 100 g | Honey | Banana |
| Calories | 304 | 89 |
| Carbohydrates | 82 g | 23 g |
| Protein | 0.3 g | 1.1 g |
| Fat | 0 g | 0.3 g |
| Fiber | 0.2 g | 2.6 g |
| Potassium | 52 mg | 358 mg |
| Vitamin C (%DV) | 0% | 14% |
| Vitamin B6 (%DV) | 0% | 20% |
| Calcium (%DV) | 0% | 0% |
| Iron (%DV) | 2% | 1% |
| Magnesium (%DV) | 0% | 6% |
| Vitamin D (%DV) | 0% | 0% |
Can you take in too much potassium from honey?
Although honey isn't naturally high in potassium, you could be getting too much potassium from honey if you're eating other high-potassium foods, as well.
Two tablespoons of honey have only around 22 mg of potassium. That's only around 0.4% of DV for adults and between 0.7 and 1% for low-potassium diet followers (2,000–3,000 mg per day).
Can you eat honey on a low-potassium diet?
Honey can safely be consumed on a low-potassium, kidney-friendly diet as long as you don't eat too much of it (i.e., a pound ^_^). It's almost impossible to overeat honey because of its overpowering sweet taste.
One would have to eat two pounds of honey to get around 10% of the recommended daily potassium intake.
Frequently Asked Questions
Honey has many benefits, but it also has a lot of calories. It's recommended to eat no more than two tablespoons per day, as more than that would boost the caloric and sugar intake by too much.
Honey isn't keto-friendly due to its high-carb and no-fat content. For that reason, people avoid honey and other sugar substitutes on a keto diet.
Honey typically doesn't go bad if it's stored properly. However, it can be contaminated, have toxic plants in it, or be adulterated. Make sure to buy honey from a reputable source, as there are many shady dealers.
Conclusion
Honey is a popular sugar substitute that is high in calories but healthy at the same time. However, it isn't high in potassium which means it's safe to consume on a low-potassium diet.
That means that those looking for a potassium boost should look at other sweeteners such as maple syrup.
Don't know which foods are high in potassium? Read our article, 15 Best Food Sources of Potassium. We also have a guide to this important mineral: Potassium 101: All You Need To Know About Potassium.
Source: USDA