[Nika2003 (OP)]

When you make a cup of hot tea, do you reach honey or sugar? Although both can add sweetness to your drink, their nutritional benefits are different.
Honey and sugar are carbohydrates, consisting mainly of glucose and fructose. They are used as ingredients in many finished products and recipes. Both can lead to weight gain when used excessively.
The reputation of honey in order to be more healthy can have some basis, but honey is not considered healthy food. So it's healthier?
Sugar consists of a combination of glucose and fructose, which combine with the formation of sucrose. It does not add vitamins or nutrients.
Of the most diverse types of sugar, white, brown and raw sugar are the most common.
Brown sugar is a combination of white sugar and molasses and can contain several nutrients. It is used mainly for baking.
Raw sugar is a less refined version of white sugar. It is light brown in color and contains larger crystals. Raw sugar does not change from white sugar.
What are the benefits of sugar?
Are there any drawbacks in sugar?

[chris]

As you say, both contain sugars and hence energy, so both will contribute to weight gain and dental decay. Honey also contains other flavours, so it will "colour" the taste profile of a beverage more than plain white sugar.

Personally, I don't think the health benefits of honey are sufficiently strong to justify the added cost of using it as an everyday sweetener on the grounds of good health. I think if being health-conscious is the goal, then giving up sugar in drinks is probably a better approach.

[Bored chemist]

White sugar is cheaper than honey- which allows you to sweeten your tea and leave more money for things that actually matter.

[wolfekeeper]

Honey is just a concentrated solution of sugars with extra bee spit. The honeycombs are made of bee sweat.

[Colin2B]

The reputation of honey in order to be more healthy can have some basis, but honey is not considered healthy food. So it's healthier?

Honey is about 83% sugars - mainly the monosaccharides fructose and glucose, but a small amount of maltose - rest is water. It does have a small amount of potassium (50mg/100g) but hopefully noone eats enough for this to be a significant dietary source. Sucrose gets broken down in the body into fructose & glucose and proportions are similar to honey, so no real difference.
There are some claims that the pollens in local honey help reduce the effects of hayfever. I’ve always been sceptical but we get a lot of people asking if they can have some of our honey and claim it really works. I’m still somewhat sceptical.

Overall, as @chris said, it’s not worth changing for health reasons, but if you prefer the taste that’s ok. I certainly prefer honey to sugar on toast, and I use it for cooking where I want that taste.

Overall, I avoid sweetened foods.

[Bored chemist]

Oh, I forgot to mention the only case where it's likely to matter
"Honey is a known dietary reservoir of C. botulinum spores and has been linked to infant botulism. For this reason honey is not recommended for infants less than one year of age"
from
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Botulism#Infant_botulism

[Colin2B]

We put a label on our honey jars advising people not to give honey to children under 1.
It’s also a good reason to stop infants eating soil which is another source!

[Bill S]

https://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/manuka-honey-medicinal-uses#1-2

Science or "snake oil"?

[Colin2B]

https://www.webmd.com/a-to-z-guides/manuka-honey-medicinal-uses#1-2

Science or "snake oil"?

Honey is often used in wound healing, but the reality can often be distorted by belief and marketing.
The healing property of honey is due to the fact that it offers antibacterial activity, maintains a moist wound condition, and its high viscosity helps provide a protective barrier to prevent infection. The antimicrobial activity in most honeys is due to the bees’ enzymatic production of hydrogen peroxide, also the low pH level of honey and its high sugar content (high osmolarity) hinder the growth of microbes - the osmotic effect sucks the water out of bacteria.
Manuka honey is thought (no great proof) to have antibacterial properties through methylglyoxal (MG) and there is no reason to believe this is more antibacterial than ordinary honey.. Some sceptics say that as the honey tastes so bad, it is good fortune that the marketers found a ‘reason to buy’.
The problem with transferring the wound healing properties of honey to other bacterial situations eg sore throat, is that the properties are concentration dependant and diluting the honey (eg honey & lemon drink) changes that. On the other hand it does have a soothing effect on the throat, even as a dilute coating.

[Bored chemist]

Methylglyoxal  is not without problems as an antibacterial.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methylglyoxal#Natural_occurrence

[Bill S]

Thanks Colin & BC. Some interesting stuff there.  May have answered some questions I have had for a while. Hope to come back to it when I have had time to look better at BC's link.

[Bill S]

My particular interest in Manuka Honey involves Donette (my Wife) and the quality of her sleep.

My ILD causes a considerable build-up of phlegm. Neither my GP, nor Consultant has been able to reduce this significantly.  It didn’t seriously detract from my ability to sleep, but it did make me noisy, which kept Donette awake.  She bought a jar of Manuka Honey and suggested I try taking some at night.  My concern outweighed my natural scepticism and I gave it a go.  It worked, I’m much quieter.

Placebo effect?  Possibly, but don’t you have to believe it will work for that to be the case?

Then, I followed BC’s link and found that Methylglyoxal, as found in manuka honey, may help to prevent the formation of biofilms.  Could the phlegm be a biofilm and if so, might BC have found the answer?

[Colin2B]

Could the phlegm be a biofilm and if so, might BC have found the answer?

No, plegm works against biofilms in the trachea. You might find this interesting. http://sitn.hms.harvard.edu/flash/2018/mucus-keeps-us-healthy/

As I said, honey does sooth the throat, maybe it suppresses the biofilm and hence decreases need for phlegm. Did you take it neat? Most people dilute it which reduces any effectiveness. Have you tried ordinary honey? There is no doubt that honey is antibiotic, question is, is Manuka more so?

[Bill S]

maybe it suppresses the biofilm and hence decreases need for phlegm

That seems very reasonable, but why are things always more complicated than I think?

I take the honey neat - I don't object to the taste. I know I've ingested worse things than a bit of bee spit in my time.  I have not tried other honeys yet.  "Scientific" testing is complicated by the fact that I don't observe the results directly.  I have to rely on Donette's feedback and she could, possibly, be biased.