Special honey can defeat deadly MRSA infections
Mary had been suffering from a painful leg ulcer for two months when she visited her doctor. For three more months, they tried treatment after treatment, but nothing helped. Meanwhile MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) was discovered in the wound, and the pain was excruciating. So Mary and her doctor decided to try a uniquely different therapy. A special honey can defeat deadly MRSA infections. Instead of taking antibiotics, Mary applied a dressing of specially prepared honey to the ulcer each day, covering it with a fluid-retaining bandage. The honey did what antibiotics and other medicine could not. In just three weeks, the MRSA was gone, and Mary’s stubborn ulcer had healed completely. Of course, this wasn’t just any honey. It was manuka honey from the jellybush of New Zealand and Australia. This honey has turned out to be surprisingly effective against antibiotic-resistant bugs like MRSA.
- Irish researchers discovered MRSA lurking in the venous leg ulcers of 16 people. Ten were treated with manuka honey and six with hydrogel medicine. After four weeks, manuka honey eliminated MRSA in seven out of 10 people treated with it. But only one of the six people treated with hydrogel got rid of MRSA.
- Sometimes MRSA or other infectious bacteria grow in a form called biofilm, a common cause of chronic sinus infections. These biofilms can be drug-resistant. But a laboratory study found that manuka honey was better at killing MRSA biofilms and other biofilms than the antibiotics usually prescribed.
- Welsh researchers discovered that MRSA treated with manuka honey loses its FabI protein. This vital protein helps create the fatty acids needed to build cell walls and other cell structures. Without this protein MRSA cells cannot reproduce and eventually die.
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The Irish and Welsh studies were not done with regular store-bought honey or even manuka honey purchased through the Internet. The research was done with medical-grade manuka honey. That is important for two reasons
- Store-bought honey has antibacterial properties, but manuka honey has extra microbe-fighting power.
- Regular honey is heat-treated to get rid of any microbes that could cause infection, but that may remove its antibacterial powers. Medical-grade manuka honey is sterilized with gamma radiation. This kills the clostridium spores that could cause extra infection but does not affect the antibacterial powers of the honey.
If your doctor says you have a MRSA skin or wound infection, or if you have an infection that has become more swollen, red, and painful in spite of antibiotic treatment, ask your doctor whether medical-grade manuka honey could be right for you.
- FC&A Staff Writer
