[guide.chat] In Reply To: [guide.chat] In Reply To: you won't believe it

  • From: "James Liddell" <james.liddell2@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • To: "Dawn Watson" <dawnyhen@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, "Guide Chat" <guide.chat@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • Date: Sun, 17 Mar 2013 23:31:35 -0000

Harold and Dawn;
The Ancient Egyptians used honey as a treatment in cases of open wounds.
The earliest evidence for this was from the sixth dynasty tomb of Meryruka 
about 2340 BC, where wounds are shown being dressed with honey and pads of 
flower petals by priests.
Nothing new, eh?
Jim.

-----Original Message-----
From: Dawn Watson - Email Address: dawnyhen@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Sent On: 17/03/2013 23:22
Sent To: Guide Chat - Email Address: guide.chat@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [guide.chat] In Reply To: you won't believe it

Hi Harold,
found this article  very interesting, as myself and Chris both have used Manuka 
Honey for various things such as wounds, hot toddies and a all round antibiotic 
and is also good for the immune System. 
Thank you for  posting this.
Dawn 
You won't bee-lieve it! Could manuka honey beat drug-resistant superbugs?
PUBLISHED: 01:53, 16 March 2013 UPDATED: 01:54, 16 March 2013 
Strong stuff: Manuka honey could fight drug-resistant superbugs 
Strong stuff: Manuka honey could fight drug-resistant superbugs
It is a natural medicine used for thousands of years to clean wounds and fight 
bacteria.
Now, however, honey could hold the key to combating the very modern threat of 
drug-resistant superbugs.
A study has shown that manuka honey can fight back on two fronts. Not only can 
it help to kill MRSA and other superbugs, it can also prevent bacteria from 
becoming resistant to antibiotics.
The danger of the rise of bugs which do not succumb to drugs was outlined this 
month by the Chief Medical Officer.
Professor Dame Sally Davies described it as a 'ticking timebomb' which could 
leave millions vulnerable to untreatable germs within a generation.
But a study in Australia offers a solution. At the University of Technology 
Sydney (UTS), tests were carried out on manuka, kanuka and clover honeys to 
find which was best at treating bacteria commonly found in chronic skin wounds
Researchers looked at key ingredients known to inhibit bacterial growth. 
The best at doing this was Comvita medical-grade manuka honey, made by bees 
foraging on New Zealand's manuka trees.
When combined with common antibiotics, the treatment hampered the spread of 
bacteria on wounds.
Crucially, scientists found the honey prevented the bugs from developing any 
resistance to the antibiotic.
ANCIENT REMEDY. 
Apitherapy, the use of honey as a medicine, has been practised since the  times 
of Ancient Greece (2,000BC - 600AD)
Honey from the manuka, an evergreen shrub originating from New Zealand, was 
used by Maoris and settlers as medicine
The honey has an anti-bacterial level four times greater than standard 
antiseptic
It is used to clean wounds, heal  stomach ulcers and treat eczema, acne and 
insect stings 
Professor Liz Harry, of UTS, said: 'Manuka honey should be used as a first 
resort for wound treatment, rather than the last resort, as it so often is.'
The research, in the journal PLOS ONE, follows a previous study which found 
that the honey was effective against more than 80 types of bacteria, including 
MRSA.
Commercial honey bought at shops is not suitable as it needs to be sterilised 
to make it medical grade.
Infections are becoming more difficult to defeat but no new class of antibiotic 
has been discovered since the 1980s. 
It follows a previous study that found manuka honey is effective against more 
than 80 different types of bacteria, including hospital superbug MRSA.
Professor Liz Harry at UTS said: 'We have shown bacteria do not become 
resistant to honey in the laboratory. Consistent with these facts, we also 
found that if MRSA were treated with just rifampicin [antibiotic], the superbug 
became resistant very quickly,' she said. 
'However, when manuka honey  and rifampicin are used in combination to treat 
MRSA, rifampicin-resistant MRSA did not emerge. In other words, honey somehow 
prevents the emergence of rifampicin-resistant MRSA - this is a hugely 
important finding.'
With overuse of antibiotics partly blamed for the increase in resistant 
superbugs, GPs will be asked to prescribe fewer antibiotics to patients. 
And while infections are becoming increasingly difficult to beat, no new class 
of antibiotic has been discovered since the 1980s.
Dr Harry added: 'With the existence now of bacteria that are resistant to all 
available antibiotics, and the death of new antibiotics on the market, manuka 
honey should be used as a first resort for wound treatment, rather than the 
last resort as it so often does. 
'What we need is an acceptance by society that antibiotics are not going to 
provide all that we hoped for when they were discovered in the 1940s; and that 
we need to start getting very serious about using alternatives to this, or use 
honey in addition to them.' 
While all types of honey have some antibacterial properties, the ingredients of 
manuka honey make it particularly powerful.
It is possible to buy dressings that already contain the honey, as well apply 
honey directly to bandages and other dressings.
However, supermarket honey will not do.  Any honey used be sterilised to make 
it of medical grade.
MOST READ NEWS. 
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