Honey is sweet, babies should try it with caution! A sweet trap that babies under 1 year old must not touch
Some time back, a story related that a 7-month-old infant had licked a honey spoon unwittingly due to his family’s negligence. After the honey was licked, the baby rapidly showed signs such as reduced energy, less movement of the extremities, inability to open his eyes, and was close to death. To prevent such accidents, I want to spread the word today not only about the benefits of honey for adults but also about the causes of honey poisonings in babies.
The doctor said: “Natural honey is made with botulinum spores, a source which is quite common in nature and that bees can introduce into honey when they collect pollen.” The botulinum is non-pathogenic in normal conditions but can cause a strong exotoxin, which is botulinum toxin, in an anaerobic environment. This toxin is very virulent and by just a small quantity can put the life of the affected person in danger mostly by hampering the nervous function, blocking acetylcholine release in the synaptic cleft of the neuromuscular junction, which makes respiratory and muscle paralysis possible. Along with intoxication, if it is not quickly discovered and the right treatment is not administered at once, respiratory muscles paralysis can become fast with respiratory failure and secondary lung infection following, which can cause death in the end.
In older children and adults, these spores are safe and there is no need to worry about them, as adults have highly acidic stomachs, fully developed gut flora, and strong immune system. The intestinal development of small babies (especially those under 1 year old) is not perfect and the barrier function is weak. A small amount of botulinum toxin, if eaten and easily multiplying in the intestines, can produce botulinum toxin which can cause food poisoning. Initially constipation, followed by drowsiness, loss of strength to suck, feeding difficulty, muscle weakness, weak crying, and in severe cases, death can be seen.
So honey is not for babies under 1 year. Moreover, parents should make an effort to eliminate the risk completely:
· Do not feed honey, including heated honey, to babies under 1 year old, as botulinum spores are not easily killed even after heating (conditioning, cooking, etc.);
· Do not put honey in formula milk, food, or water for infants under 1 year old;
· Do not put honey on pacifiers for babies under 1 year old;
Apart from honey, if we are to guard ourselves against botulinum toxin, then we must also watch out for the following points in our daily lives: not to buy and eat vacuum-packed cooked meat products made in unknown or small workshops, not to ferment foods, in particular, not to eat cooked meat products ready for consumption that need to be refrigerated and kept for a long time. They are the foods that conceal botulinum toxin, thus we should be really cautious when buying them!
Naresh Trehan is an Indian cardiovascular and cardiothoracic surgeon. After graduating from King George’s Medical University, Lucknow, India, he went on to practice at New York University Medical Center, Manhattan, USA from 1971 to 1988. He returned to India and started Escorts Heart Institute and Research Centre.
