Manuka Honey in Green Tea: Does It Add Anything?

Manuka honey does taste good in green tea, but it doesn’t turn the cup into a remedy. The research behind manuka honey comes from lab dishes and wound dressings. We found no trial of it stirred into a hot drink.

What makes manuka honey different?

Manuka honey comes from the nectar of Leptospermum plants native to New Zealand and Australia, such as Leptospermum scoparium. A 2016 review in Frontiers in Microbiology explains why researchers single it out.

Many honeys make hydrogen peroxide, which adds to their antibacterial activity. Manuka honey makes relatively little, yet its activity remains. Researchers traced much of it to methylglyoxal (MGO), which forms from a compound called dihydroxyacetone found in the nectar of these plants.

It varies a lot. The review says MGO levels in Leptospermum honeys ranged from about 100 to more than 1,200 ppm, and not every Leptospermum honey is active. Worth knowing: one of the review’s authors works for Comvita, which sells medical-grade manuka honey, and three others reported grants and donated honey from honey companies.

Does heat or a teaspoon in tea make it medicine?

No. Three things stand in the way.

The evidence isn’t about tea. The review describes lab tests against bacteria and medical-grade honeys registered as wound care products. We found no trial of manuka honey taken in a hot drink.

A teaspoon is a small dose. In the review’s lab table, manuka honey stopped bacterial growth at about 1% to 50% honey by volume, depending on the bacterium and the honey. Most results were above 2%. A teaspoon is about 5 mL and a mug holds about 240 mL, so your tea is about 2% honey, near the bottom of that range (our math). A dish in a lab isn’t a body, so don’t read it as a prediction.

Heat may change it. A lab study heated manuka honey at 90°C and found that methylglyoxal and another signature compound dropped. Its authors said heating could reduce the signature molecules in honey. The abstract doesn’t say how long the honey was heated, and we found no study of honey in a cup of green tea. Green tea is brewed cooler anyway, at 170°F to 180°F, and letting the cup cool a bit before you stir in honey is an easy habit.

Does manuka honey add benefits to green tea?

Each ingredient has its own evidence, and the two haven’t been tested together.

Ingredient	What the evidence shows
Green tea	The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) says no safety concerns have been reported for green tea as a drink in adults, but firm conclusions can’t be reached for most uses
Manuka honey	Lab and wound-care research. Not tested in tea

For honey and coughs, and for the sugar numbers, see our page on ginger and honey green tea. That evidence is about honey in general, not manuka.

How to make green tea with manuka honey

This makes one mug of about 8 oz.

1. Heat water to 170°F to 180°F.
2. Add one green tea bag or 1 teaspoon of loose green tea. Steep for 2 to 3 minutes.
3. Remove the tea and let the cup cool for a minute or two.
4. Stir in 1 teaspoon of manuka honey. Taste, then add more if you want.

Amounts are starting points. Want a different flavor? Try orange green tea or green tea with mint. More ideas are in our green tea blends guide.

Is manuka honey still sugar?

Yes. USDA data lists about 82 g of sugars per 100 g of honey. A teaspoon weighs about 7 g, so it adds roughly 6 g of sugar (our math). Jar grades don’t change that. We couldn’t open New Zealand’s official manuka definition, so we don’t explain those grades here.

Who should be careful?

• Babies under 1: never give honey, including manuka honey and including honey stirred into tea. MedlinePlus says honey can contain Clostridium botulinum spores and shouldn’t be fed to infants under 1 year old. The NHS gives the same advice, as honey can contain bacteria that produce toxins in a baby’s intestines and lead to infant botulism.
• Caffeine: Mayo Clinic lists about 29 mg for 8 oz of brewed green tea. NCCIH says to keep caffeine moderate in pregnancy and to ask your provider.
• Medication: green tea at high doses can lower levels of the blood pressure drug nadolol. Ask your pharmacist if you take regular medicine.