How Honey Can Heal A Wound

Scientists have determined that a certain type of honey called Manuka Honey is more capable of healing wounds and clearing infections than antibiotics and other forms of traditional medicine. As a result, Manuka Honey is now being used as a main ingredient in wound care products and other skin creams.

Honey is a saturated solution of sugar made by bees that collect nectar which is a liquid secretion from flowers. The honeybees take this nectar back to their hives where they add enzymes to it and place it in wax cells. This is where it ripens to form honey. During the ripening process, the enzymes convert sucrose into glucose and fructose.

There are many different types of honey. The differences are predicated on the floral source. All kinds of honey have the ability to kill bacteria and heal wounds because honey is very acidic. Honey also has a high sugar content and produces an antibacterial molecule called hydrogen peroxide, which can been used as a disinfectant. One particular type of honey known as Manuka Honey is especially effective in treating infected wounds because it contains an additional antibacterial component.

Minor wounds can heal on their own but when a wound becomes infected, the healing process can become complex. Bacteria feed on the damaged tissue and multiply causing more tissue damage. The wound begins to develop pus and malodor. The pus consists of dead white blood cells which is the body’s way of trying to kill the bacteria and heal the infection.

Honey heals infected wounds by destroying the bacteria. Honey has several antibacterial properties. Its waterless environment absorbs fluid present in the wound by osmosis. Bacteria require water to survive. Honey is also extremely acidic and bacteria cannot survive in an acidic environment. Hydrogen peroxide is an antibacterial substance that is produced in honey because of an enzyme called glucose oxidase. Manuka Honey has another antibacterial action caused by phytochemicals that exist in the nectar that comes from the flowers of the Manuka Tree found in New Zealand. For lack of a better term, the molecule responsible for this additional antibacterial activity is called the Unique Manuka Factor or UMF.

"Honey that is produced from the flowers of the Manuka Tree is thick, dark brown, high in sugar and has somewhat of a medicinal flavor, says Frank Buonanotte, CEO of Honeymark International which is a manufacturer of health care products that uses Manuka Honey as a healing agent. "Researchers have determined that Manuka Honey is the most effective honey to use for the purpose of treating wounds and other health conditions because it has the highest levels of antibacterial activity in comparison to other types of honey. It's mainly UMF that is responsible for Manuka Honey’s amazing healing properties."