This honey can heal your wounds, prevent dental decay and add flavour to your food!
Manuka Honey
Updated Jul. 29th, 2024 | Read Time: 3 Minutes | What You Will Learn:
- Top Advantages of Manuka Honey
- Honey is Antimicrobial
- Wound Healing Properties
- Manuka Honey As A Mouthwash
- Understanding The Unique Manuka Factor (UMF)
- Manuka's Key Properties
- Shopping Tips For Quality Manuka Honey
- Important Information & Considerations
- Nutritional Information
- Reader Comments (6)
Dark, and strongly flavoured honey is made by normal honey bees but is created using the nectar of one plant, namely the Manuka bush found in Australia and New Zealand. Manuka honey has been found to have several antimicrobial properties, but the potency of these varies by region and manufacturer.
Top Advantages of Manuka Honey
Honey is Antimicrobial
Most honey contains an enzyme that, when diluted, produces hydrogen peroxide, the same substance commonly used to clean wounds. It also contains a very high sugar content; surprisingly, although sugar is a food source for bacteria, high concentrations of sugar prevent microbial growth.
Wound Healing Properties
Honey has been used to treat infected wounds for thousands of years. Its use dwindled with the development of antibiotics but is rekindling now that many strains of bacteria have become antibiotic-resistant. Interestingly, Manuka has been shown to prevent the replication of MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus), a common "superbug" frequently found in hospitals. When compared with conventional treatments, Manuka honey is more effective for treating superficial and partial-thickness burns of the skin.
Manuka Honey As A Mouthwash
Honey has been shown to stop the growth of dental plaque almost equally to chlorhexidine mouthwash and also reduces the amount of acid produced in the mouth. Acid is the main factor promoting the loss of enamel in the teeth. Since the disease processes of gingivitis and periodontal disease are similar to the inflammation involved in infected wounds, honey may be a potential treatment option. It is excellent at helping to clear infection, and rapidly reducing pain and inflammation. Honey is also far gentler on surrounding healthy tissues than many antiseptics, and has even been found to stimulate the growth of cells that promote wound repair.
Understanding The Unique Manuka Factor (UMF)
It has been shown that honey contains an enzyme that produces hydrogen peroxide when diluted with water. Manuka honey has been shown to contain other antimicrobial substances in addition to this enzyme found in all honey. This additional antimicrobial activity is measured as the "unique Manuka factor" or UMF, which varies by source and manufacturer, and is often listed on product labels. This is a standardization of its antimicrobial activity against a phenol solution of known concentration. Manuka honey with a UMF of 15 is as efficient at killing Staphylococcus aureus (a common skin pathogen), as a 15% phenol solution. This scale allows for the comparison of different Manuka honey products against one another for antimicrobial activity.
Manuka's Key Properties
It has been proposed that the active ingredient of Manuka honey that creates its additional anti-microbial ability is methylglyoxal (MGO). Because of this, one company standardizes its product to MGO levels instead of UMF. This is not an industry standard, and may not be a valid standardization. In general, honey with all MGO levels above 30 will have a UMF of at least 10, and so should be good sources of antimicrobial action.
Shopping Tips For Quality Manuka Honey
Manuka honey is available from most supplement stores and is made by several different companies. In general, a UMF of 10 is the minimum for anti-microbial action. MGO levels are not industry standard for comparison, but in general, all Manuka honey with an MGO greater than 30 will have a UMF greater than 10. Manuka honey can be applied topically under a dressing to treat a burn or wound. Dressings should be checked every 2 days. It can also be used internally to help kill bacteria in the throat or simply added to food for flavour.
Important Information & Considerations
Unpasteurized honey may contain spores of Clostridium botulinum, the bacterium that causes botulism. Because of this, unpasteurized honey should not be fed to immunocompromised individuals or children under the age of 12 months.
I didn't know that honey was antimicrobial and could be used for so many amazing things! This was an awesome read, I always hear about manuka honey but never really understood what it was and from this article I am starting to have a better understanding. I would not feel comfortable consuming raw honey so I love the disclaimer at the end about how it is not appropriate for children or immunocompromised individuals, it is so important to stay transparent! Even though I would not eat it, I would for sure be interested in using it as an antibacterial or some other source of wonderful properties! Thanks for sharing
Hello,
Honey has great medicinal properties, more specifically Manuka honey. The higher the potency, the more healing properties Manuka honey has. There are some that are fine for everyday consumption and some that support health concerns or can be applied topically for wound healing. We're glad you enjoyed this article and learned something new!
Stay healthy & well!
I had no idea what manuka honey is good for and this article gives some very interesting info. Anti microbial is something I never knew manuka honey is. I have had this honey but did not find it tasty enough to want to purchase it, but given what it can do for you, I would most definitely consider buying and using it in the future. Thank you so much for the great info in your article.
Hello Roger,
We're glad this article on Manuka Honey could offer some insight into all the wonderful properties it has to offer. There are different grades of Manuka honey, all offering different levels of benefits. There's one for everyday consumption to use in the kitchen and daily cooking and there's higher grades which have a more therapeutic effect and can also be used topically.
Enjoy & stay healthy!
Thank you for breaking down the potential benefits of manuka honey. I wonder if manuka honey is really much better than other natural honey derived from bees (eg not grocery store honey which is often largely sugar): Manuka simply has research behind it because research has been done on it. Even then, while I think that there ae promising aspects to Manuka, I do not think that the current eviddence on it is strong enough to make many of the claims that it has been touted for. But it has promise!! Thank you for this interesting article-I'm looking forward to how the research on Manuka honey (and other honeys such as buckwheat honey) evolves over the net few years
Hello Rachel,
Manuka honey is an extraordinary product, not only does it taste great but it comes in different strengths, each possessing more benefits. Thank you for your comment and broadening your horizons on natural health with us.
Have a healthy day.