December 2020 is turning out to be a cold old month, with temperatures across the country this morning wavering around 1C. And what comes with wintery weather (apart from glorious snow flurries, mulled wine and yule logs?), the common winter cold. Snotty, sometimes fevery and most definitely tiring – it’s something we’ve all battled in the past.

And we all have unique and individual remedies when it comes to fighting off colds, whether that’s eating a certain variety of soup or sipping a special drink. But there’s one common natural cold reliever that the majority of us agree on: honey. Whether your grandma fed it to you in tea with a squeeze of lemon or you take it by the tablespoon when the sniffles strike, the natural nectar is known for its soothing properties.

Confirming what we’ve long suspected, though, there’s now research which proves taking honey isn’t just a comforting placebo. A study from the University of Oxford showed that it is more effective at beating respiratory tract infections than commonly prescribed medicines.

Can honey relieve the symptoms of a cold?