Manuka Honey

Tigsteroonie

Our 2yo son takes it every day! He has a small spoon of manuka honey on his weetabix every morning

We were bought some from H&B but when I went to buy more, it was too expensive - and then I found it much cheaper in Aldi

Lugh_Chronain

I'd like to look in to this a bit further as we are currently using manuka honey for wound care at work. Apparently, manuka honey could be an efficient way to clear chronically infected wounds and could even help reverse bacterial resistance to antibiotics. Also, Professor Rose Cooper from the University of Wales Institute Cardiff is currently looking at how manuka honey interacts with three types of bacteria that commonly infest wounds: Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Group A Streptococci and Meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).

Historically, honey has been used to treat a variety of ailments through topical application, but only recently have the antiseptic and antibacterial properties of honey been chemically explained.

This is very interesting though I don't know how reliable the above article actually is. At first glance it does appear fairly reliable though. I have however read previously that in New Zealand a researcher has actually come out and said that manuka honey may actually be useful in treating MRSA infections. Topical honey has also been used successfully in a comprehensive treatment of diabetic ulcers when the patient cannot use topical antibiotics.

I'm not doubting the above article on the whole by the way, I'm just a little sceptical as I can't authenticate it at this point, so not sure if it's 100% factual. The evidence does appear to tie in with what I've read previously though. I'm keeping an open mind in the meantime.

A question that has to be asked though is how do we know that this is good for you? What is the evidence?

I'm also not sure of all the marketing hype that surrounds manuka honey as well. People may just as well be taking locally produced honey for health benefits such as mentioned by Kitty. Local raw honey is sought after by allergy sufferers as the pollen impurities are thought to lessen the sensitivity to hay fever, for example. It may also be cheaper as well though can't say for sure as I've never bought either local honey or manuka honey, so I'm not sure of the price differences.

kiss_me_now9

kittycatface wrote: »

those who suffer from hayfever and allergies recommend buying honey from a producer in your local area.

Yep, when my OH comes to stay in Summer he gets hayfever terribly and a spoon of local honey a day seems to help greatly - unfortunately there's only one lady round my way who does it and it's a tad expensive at £4 a jar. It is really lovely honey though!

colino

Much as I adore it, for a small country, half way round the world, the Kiwis have known for a long time they cant compete with US and european suppliers marketing spend. Instead they have, in a lovely, half home-spin, half "academic proof" punched above their weight managed to convince the world that it makes sense to buy and transport thousands of miles everything from butter, lamb and now honey. Well done for them and well done to the NZ Honey Industry Trust funded academic who astonishingly, in his life times work, reckons honey, not any honey mind you, but Manuka honey has an impressive range of hidden benefits.

Lugh_Chronain

You could be right though I'm not sure I necessarily agree.

However, it has to be said, people are assuming the manuka honey they are buying is as beneficial as the manuka honey currently being researched. Not all types of manuka honey contains the antibacterial components that are needed to treat wounds, for example. All honey is an antimicrobial agent and may have the potential for treating a variety of ailments, though it also appears to depend on the antibacterial properties of that particular honey.

My point is, you may as well be buying regular honey as the manuka honey sold on the high street or over the internet may not be any better than regular honey.

Stompa

Lugh_Chronain wrote: »

Not all types of manuka honey contains the antibacterial components that are needed to treat wounds, for example.

Indeed they do seem to use this rather mysterious UMF (Unique Manuka Factor) as a measure of antibacterial strength.

FWIW there's lots of info here:

http://bio.waikato.ac.nz/honey/contents.shtml

Lugh_Chronain

I have Honey as a topical antibacterial agent for treatment of infected wounds from the same website though haven't currently read it yet.

And as I've mentioned, as an antimicrobial agent honey has the potential for treating a variety of ailments. Honey has been used for centuries as a treatment for sore throats and coughs and, according to recent research, may be an effective soothing agent for coughs. Also, unfiltered, pasteurized honey is widely believed to alleviate allergies, though neither commercially filtered nor raw honey was shown to be more effective than placebo in a controlled study of 36 participants with eye related allergies.

Manuka honey that is used for the treatment of chronically infected wounds is also rigorously tested three times during production for the elusive unique manuka factor (UMF); only then can it carry the label "UMF manuka honey".

Therefore, you may not necessarily need to buy Manuka honey, the type that is sold on the high street or over the internet, to see any benefits as it may be no better than regular honey.

lew99

Think Lugh is mostly right there.

Not all manuka honey is the same. The correct stuff does have additional healing properties, as evidenced by many published research papers. Earlier on this year the was a story about it of the latest research done by Cardiff University for on wounds - but it was a particular grade of honey they used.

If you like the taste of the Aldi honey and want it only for that, then by all means do so, but it does not contain the additional properties that the research is based on.

This is meant to be a Money Saving forum - so if you are expecting some extra health benefits don't waste your money on something that doesn't contain any additional benefits above any other type of honey.

You need to get a proper medical grade Manuka honey or at least one that contains the UMF if you want to get the Manuka that does contain the extra health properties. People forget that it is a natural product, and as such you get natural variation, so you need to find one of a correct standard.

Not too sure whether I find this more useful or more concerning - in that there seems to be a lot of mis-promoted Manuka honey out there:
http://www.newzealandhoneyshop.co.uk/manuka-five-top-tips.html

There is Manuka honey even being used in hospitals in several countries - so I am confident there is something to it - you just have to find the right quality.

For everyday use then a local english honey is also good for you, and at this time of year apparently can even help people with hayfever due to containing some of the local pollens in it.

Lugh_Chronain

I must admit, I was sceptical when I heard we were using this at work to treat patients with chronically infected wounds, one reason I've recently taken an interest in this, the other of course is the marketing hype.

Practitioners have [apparently] successfully used honey to treat leg ulcers and pressure sores. It's also said to help with healing after surgery - particularly for diabetic patients.

I'll take a look at what it says on New Zealand Honey Shop though it does appear it might be just as I say, marketing hype. Personally I'd take this with a pinch of salt (sorry for the food related pun, not intended ).

IenjoyAbargain

We`ve used Manuka honey for wound care - granted its a different type from the one you have a spoon of every day.

OH is prone to pressure ulcers (full time wheelchair user) and we have on many ocassions tried manuka honey on the wound to help with the healing process. I`m of no medical training ,mind, but I can tell you I`ve seen this stuff work wonders where little else did.

MANUKARE 18+ UMF by Comvita ( as seen here ) is what we use for wounds and just the jars of Comvita for everyday use, though never less than 10+ UMF.

I wouldn`t buy supermaket manuka unless I wanted it for just honey, it can`t be bad just not so beneficial?