Like most kids, I was obsessed with Winnie the Pooh. My giddy sense of fun, adventure and whimsy led me to be nicknamed tigger by quite a few friends back in my late school and early college days. Well I’ve recently developed an obsession with honey that equals anything my favourite Pooh Bear could muster. My honey obsession is costing me in excess of 15 euro a week. (that’s 20 dollars to my american readers). The reason is Manuka Honey. Manuka honey hails from New Zealand where bees gather pollen from the flowers of the Manuka Bush. The honey making process is enriched by the pollution free environment of New Zealand, and certain types of Manuka Honey have been observed to have some very special properties indeed. Active Manuka honey has the Unique Manuka Factor or UMF. Such honey has a strong and observable antibacterial quality that is useful in treating skin infections.
All honey has some level of the antibacterial chemical hydrogen peroxide, which is produced by enzymes in the honey. These enzymes are easily destroyed by exposure to heat and light and also by contact with body fluids. It is now understood that some rare honeys have an antibacterial action that is separate to the peroxide effect, resulting in a much more persistent and stable antibacterial action. Such valuable honeys are resistant to losing their antibacterial activity when used in wound treatment and even have strong activity when heavily diluted by body fluids in a wound dressing. Furthermore, such honeys are now known to have a synergistic antibacterial effect with the hydrogen peroxide activity, producing a very powerful weapon against bacterial conditions.
The potency of the antibacterial effect is defined as the UMF. As someone who suffers from acne, I’ve noticed that drinking green tea with manuka honey has generally reduced the number of acne outbreaks, speeds healing and also gives me an enormous sense of well-being 😀 A wide range of healing effects have been noted when the honey is used as a wound dressing:
- It promotes a hydrated healing environment
- It rapidly clears bacteria from colonised and infected wounds
- It has been observed to be effective against antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria
- It creates a protective barrier to prevent cross-infection of wounds
- It removes malodour from wounds
- It has an anti-inflammatory action resulting in reduced oedema and improved blood flow along with a reduction in pain
- It prevents scarring leading to good cosmetic results
- Treatment cost is reduced due to the honey’s affordability and speed of action
- Honey does not stick to wound tissue, preventing tearing of newly formed tissue in the wound site when dressings are changed
- Honey residue is easily rinsed from the wound with water
It enables patients to handle their own on-going wound care due to the elimination of the need for debriding
More importantly, Manuka honey is absolutely delicious, I’d eat it with everything if I could. So where’s the catch. The honey costs around 25 euro per 500g jar. It’s so yummy that I’m guzzling my way through 300 g per week/ mimimum. Hhhmm, time for another honey hit…
