How Much Honey Per Day Is Reasonable? Added Sugar Limits in Teaspoons

Honey counts as added sugar

On a nutrition label, honey that you add to food, or that a manufacturer adds to a product, counts as added sugar. The US Dietary Guidelines advise keeping added sugars below 10 percent of daily calories for people age two and older. The American Heart Association recommends a stricter target: about 6 teaspoons (25 grams, 100 calories) of added sugar a day for most women and about 9 teaspoons (36 grams, 150 calories) for most men.

Those limits cover all added sugars together: the sugar in soda, cereal, sauces and baked goods, plus anything you stir in yourself. So the real answer to how much honey per day depends on what else you eat.

Converting the limits into honey

Here is the catch: honey is denser and sweeter than table sugar. A teaspoon of granulated sugar has about 4 grams of sugar, but a teaspoon of honey weighs about 7 grams and contains about 6 grams of sugar. USDA data lists one tablespoon of honey at 21 grams, 64 calories and about 17 grams of sugars. So 6 teaspoons of sugar is not the same as 6 teaspoons of honey.

What a typical day might look like

If you skip sweetened drinks and most packaged sweets, a teaspoon of honey in morning tea and a drizzle over yogurt in the afternoon fits comfortably inside the AHA guide. If you also drink soda or eat dessert, the same honey pushes you over. Many people find it easier to treat honey as the sweetener they choose on purpose and to cut back on the sugars hidden in processed foods.

• 1 teaspoon in tea: about 6 g sugar
• 1 tablespoon on yogurt or oatmeal: about 17 g sugar
• 1 can of regular cola: about 39 g sugar
• 1 flavored yogurt cup: often 10 to 20 g added sugar

Is a spoonful of honey a day good for you?

Honey contains small amounts of plant compounds, enzymes and minerals, especially in darker raw honeys, and researchers continue to study it. But it is still mostly sugar, and a spoonful a day is best thought of as an enjoyable food that fits within a balanced diet, not as a supplement. If you are curious about the research, our benefits pages summarize studies with links to the original sources and use careful language about what is and is not known.

People managing diabetes or blood sugar should treat honey like any other sugar and follow their care team's advice. Our honey glycemic index guide explains how honey compares with table sugar.

Children and babies

Babies under 12 months should never be given honey in any form, because of the risk of infant botulism. The CDC and the American Academy of Pediatrics are clear on this. For children, the American Heart Association suggests no added sugars before age two and less than 25 grams a day from ages 2 to 18. For a child, that is about 4 teaspoons of honey a day at most, from all sources combined. See why babies can't have honey.

Can you eat too much honey?

Yes. Eating a lot of honey regularly adds up to a lot of sugar and calories, with the same concerns as any high-sugar diet, including weight gain and dental cavities. Large amounts at once can also upset the stomach, since honey is high in fructose. There is nothing special about honey that makes it safe in unlimited amounts.