From: Arlene 
Subject: [illusions] The Amazing Healing Properties of Honey
Date: 2 Aug 2000 18:30:51 -0400
To: illusions@beyond-the-illusion.com

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BEE BANDAGES
Beyond 2000
Wednesday, August 2, 2000

http://www.beyond2000.com/news/Aug_00/story_714.html

Licking your wounds may soon take on a whole new meaning. It could even
be a
pleasant and tasty experience! Groups of researchers around the world are
piling up the evidence that the best thing for healing human wounds is not
some advanced pharmaceutical concoction, but rather the sticky spread made
by our friend the humble bumblebee.

According to the latest study, by Sydney University's Shona Blair, honey has
first-rate anti-bacterial properties, assists wound healing and is
anti-inflammatory. What's more, just as we're beginning to run out of
weapons with which to combat developing strains of 'super-bugs', Blair has
found that honey is a sure-fire killer; the bacteria Staphylococcus aureus,
or golden staph, which is resistant to many antibiotics and a major problem
in hospitals, was quickly neutralised by a smear of the 'bee juice'.

However, despite its beneficial properties and widespread use in the ancient
world, honey is still seen as an alternative medicine by the contemporary
medical authorities. Researchers like Blair hope to change that and return
the once commonplace remedy to mainstream, twenty-first century
respectability. She is hoping to conduct a trial soon comparing the use of
honey on ulcers or burns with conventional treatment, with the aim that her
work may lead to it becoming standard hospital practice.

A spoonful of sugarS

In her recently-completed research, Blair compared two different solutions
for their ability to stop the growth of golden staph. One combined honey
with a growth medium – a soup of basic nutrients – while the second
substituted plain sugar for the honey.

"I found honey diluted to one per cent inhibits the growth of drug resistant
Staphylococcus aureus for approximately three hours," reported Blair. "A two
per cent honey solution inhibits growth for five hours, three per cent for
10 hours, and there was no detectable growth (of the bacteria) in four per
cent honey solution over a 24-hour period."

"You need at least six times more of the sugar solutions to achieve similar
results." 

Although the exact reason why honey has such healing properties is unknown,
an enzyme called glucose oxidase is thought to be partially responsible.
When it reacts with the natural water in a wound, the enzyme acts like a
mild bleach, killing any microbes.

Blair explains that another reason for honey's anti-bacterial nature is its
high sugar content. "Bacteria need moisture to grow. In honey, because there
are so many sugar molecules, any water molecules present become so tightly
bound to the sugar (that) the water's not available for the bacteria to
use." 

Honey has been shown in many studies to be very good for treating burns and
in curing chronic ulcers and abscesses where usual antiseptic and antibiotic
treatment have failed. It not only sterilises the wound, but also speeds up
healing and reduces scarring.

Jelly Bees 

Honey was widely used as a therapy in the ancient world and is still
commonly applied to wounds in Africa, India and the Middle East. More than
500 of about 900 ancient Egyptian prescriptions contain honey. The Greek
philosopher Aristotle also prescribed different types of honey for different
ailments. 

Aristotle seemed to have the right idea because modern research has
confirmed that unlike when it comes to slathering your toast, not all honeys
are created medicinally equal. Some have a much more dramatic healing effect
than others. Queen bee amongst these sweet poultices is "Jelly Bush" honey,
which is derived from the flowers of the New Zealand Leptospermum plant.
Although other members of this species grow elsewhere in the world, none
seem to be as effective as the New Zealand bushes in producing
medically-beneficial honey. One Australian company sells Leptospermum honey
as a registered therapeutic product, to date the world's only example of
officially-sanctioned honey healing.

Another 'Kiwi' connection in this sweet story is Dr. Peter Molan, Professor
of Biochemisty at Waikato University, New Zealand. Molan has been on the
forefront of medicinal honey research for 20 years and, unsurprisingly, he
is a strong proponent of the natural tonic. Clinical observations and
experimental studies carried out by his department have established that
honey has effective antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties. It
painlessly removes pus, scabs and dead tissue from wounds and stimulates new
tissue growth. "Randomised trials have shown that honey is more
effective in
controlling infection in burn wounds than silver sulphadiazine, the
antibacterial ointment most widely used in hospitals" says Dr. Molan.

He believes it vital that honey gains enough recognition so as to be
employed at the earliest possible stage of treatment. Molan says that if
honey were used from the start in cases of chronic skin infections, there
would be far less tissue damage resulting. "The remarkable ability of honey
to reduce inflammation and mop up free radicals should halt the progress of
the skin damage like it does in burns, as well as protecting from infection
setting in. At present, people are turning to honey when nothing else works.
But there are very good grounds for using honey as a therapeutic agent of
first choice." 

The battle though is in building enough clinical data to convince physicians
(conditioned to see pharmaceuticals as the answer to everything) that honey
has a place in the hospital...other than on a patient's breakfast tray.

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David Sunfellow, Founder & Publisher
NewHeavenNewEarth (NHNE)
a 501(c)3 non-profit organization
P.O. Box 10627
Sedona, AZ USA 86339-8627

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