Manuka Honey is a darker than most types of honey you may be accustomed to…and it’s specifically collected from bees that have been feasting on the Manuka tree, found primarily in New Zealand and southeast Australia.
Key Points:
- Lab tests have shown Manuka honey to be a powerful inhibitor of bacteria that develop on medical devices such as catheters, of which 100 million are sold worldwide every year
- Up to 90 percent of urinary tract infections (UTIs) are caused by Escherichia coli (E. coli) bacteria, but other infections also leave patients open to life-threatening health problems
- Manuka honey has proven to be powerful against E. coli, even when diluted to 3.3 percent. Unlike other “therapeutic” compounds doctors may prescribe, bacteria have not yet developed a resistance to Manuka honey
A new study at the University of Southampton in the U.K. recently reported that the honey from Down Under may be useful for decreasing the risk of infections and helping to prevent pathogenic bacterial colonies known as biofilm from developing on catheters and other medical devices.
Indwelling medical devices harbor biofilms which have been shown to cause infections and act as reservoirs for pathogens. Urinary catheters are often in place for considerable periods of time and are susceptible to both encrustation and biofilm formation…Strategies for minimizing biofilm occurrence underpin an active research area in biomedicine. Manuka honey has, (among other things), well-established antibacterial properties.”1 ~ The Journal of Pathology
The study entailed placing Manuka honey with bacterial cultures including Escherichia coli (E. coli), the cause of up to 90 percent of urinary tract infections (UTIs),2 and Proteus mirabilis, bacteria that under certain conditions can escape from the intestine and cause a urinary tract infection,3 to observe the honey’s effect on biofilm development. Medical News Today reported:
After 72 hours, the team found the highest dilution of honey — 16.7 percent — had reduced the stickiness of bacteria by 77 percent, and all other dilutions had reduced stickiness by at least 70 percent by that point.
Scientists still want to conduct further testing, however, before they advise using honey on catheters in real hospital settings, but as a Time article noted:
Antibiotic resistance is a major problem worldwide. Bacteria can naturally become resistant to drugs used to treat it, and widespread use of antibiotics through the years in medicine and agriculture have contributed to the problem. 5
They say that doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result is the definition of insanity, yet doctors keep applying and prescribing the same ineffective methods and drugs to and for their patients with UTIs and other health problems, often making their diseases, pain and suffering worse. And all the time, honey was right under their noses.