The Secret Uses of Manuka Honey

Would you be surprised to discover that scientists and medical research teams are now realising that an item that can be freely bought in shops can be used in a major offensive against post operative infections?

Even to fighting the dreaded MRSA superbug that has been killing thousands of patients a year in UK hospitals?

Well, this new secret weapon turns out to be honey, in this case, a particular type of honey, but nonetheless – honey.

The healing powers of honey have been known to man for thousands of years. We know that honey was used to treat various ailments and wounds by the ancient Greeks and Romans.

We also know that they were aware that honey made from the nectar of certain plants, gathered at specific times of the year, held unique properties.

Unfortunately the arrogance of modern medicine with its myopic view of using pills and antibiotics, has led to the neglect of using natural remedies. This, my friends, is one of the biggest crimes of the modern age.

Sure, scientific advances in medicine have been phenomenal and beneficial. And yes, there are millions of people alive today, who would not be here, but for modern medical advances.

But why shove aside the old cures, developed over thousands of years, simply because there is no profit in them? Next time you’re in a second hand bookshop lookout for a book of herbal remedies that’s at least 100 years old. You will be surprised at what you find.

But, I digress. Yes, honey has wonderful healing properties, especially the monofloral honeys; that’s honey largely from one species of plant. And the honey that has been making the headlines is known as Manuka Honey from New Zealand. It comes from the Manuka plant, otherwise known as the Tea Tree.

This particular honey has an ingredient called the Unique Manuka Factor or UMF. This was discovered by Dr Peter Molan, who leads the Honey Research Unit at New Zealand’s Waikato University. He has spent nearly twenty years studying the antimicrobial and antibacterial properties of honey and how it might be used to treat skin infections, burns and wounds.

He says, “For over 10 years, I have scientifically investigated what many local New Zealanders have accepted as common wisdom: our local Manuka honey is a superior treatment for wounds and infections”.

As you can imagine, putting gooey honey on wounds can be a messy ordeal, never mind trying to keep it in place with a bandage. Well, Dr Molan has come up with a solution. He has developed a special type of rubbery bandage, manufactured from Manuka Honey. It is non-sticky and can be easily cut and moulded into shape.

Truck driver Chris Graham had this unpleasant experience: “”I got bitten by an Alsatian. It grabbed my hand and gave me a five-stitch bite. So I went off to the doctors, and they solely used Manuka honey, nothing else, no other treatment. I’ve got barely a scar now, and that’s only three weeks ago. Now in the medical kit I carry in the truck, I have Manuka honey and bandages, and that’s all.”

But Manuka Honey also has internal uses. It’s been found to be effective against certain stomach ulcers and irritable bowel syndrome.

I hope you will look on honey now as more than something to spread on toast. It’s also not just the food of the gods, but truly a Gift from the Gods.

Ivan Maxwell is a speaker and author specialising in health and well-being. You can find out more about the secret uses of honey at http://www.manukahoneysecrets.com/.

Health Benefits Of Honey

I remember as a kid, whenever I would get a sore throat, the first thing my mother would do would be to boil up some water and throw in a little lemon juice and a heaping tablespoon of honey.

I didn’t ask her why, but I do know that 9 out of 10 times after I’d finish that yummy mixture, my sore throat was gone. Later on in life, as I started to study the health benefits of many foods, I discovered just what it was in the mixture that got rid of my sore throat.

Honey is probably one of natures most wonderful foods. Naturally, this also depends on the quality of the honey itself. Not all honeys are alike so you really have to do your due diligence when buying honey.

The biggest problem with finding a really good honey is that the process by which the bees make honey greatly depends on the flowers from which the pollen is collected. Some plants are better than others and so naturally, some honey is going to be better than others.

Raw honey, in its purest form, which means not adulterated by additives that some companies feel they have to put in, is a powerful anti bacterial and anti fungal substance. Honey is a great energy source and a terrific substitute for processed sugar, which is just plain bad for your health.

But here’s something about honey that few people know. Honey is actually great for applying topically and healing wounds. Honey has been used to treat ulcers and burns for many years in a number of areas around the world.

The United States, which unfortunately has become a “go to your doctor” society, is totally oblivious to the wound healing properties of honey. The reason that honey is such a great healer is because it is composed mostly of glucose and fructose. These two sugars strongly attract water.

So what happens is that honey absorbs the water out of the wound, thus drying it up. It is so simple how it works, yet so incredibly effective.

But the most effective use of honey is internally. Just taking one spoon of honey a day will be enough to eliminate most of the free radicals in your body. The reason for this is because honey raises the levels of antioxidant compounds in your body.

Many controlled studies have been done to show that people on a daily regiment of honey, when given blood tests at the end of the study, showed higher levels of antioxidants. And if all this isn’t enough, honey is absolutely delicious.

Like I said, not all honey is the same and you really have to shop around. You want to look for a honey that is as natural as possible. Your best bet is with your local health food store, though even there you have to be careful.

The health benefits of honey are numerous. And it tastes great too. It’s almost like heaven on Earth. To YOUR Health!

Steve Wagner. For natural treatments to a number of ailments, visit our website at http://www.natures-healing-remedies.com/ where you can get a free report on how the drug companies are killing us as well as get a 52 week series on a different ailment and treatment each week.