14 DAY TRIAL // Several reports issued by researchers working in the public health field say that superbugs now constitute a major threat to human society, and that efforts must be made to tackle this problem head-on. Interestingly enough, it appears that there is one very simple answer to this problem: honey.
Long story short: experiments carried out by specialists working with the University of Technology Sidney, in Australian, have shown that three different types of honey (i.e. Manuka, Kanuka and Clover honey) are highly efficient in terms of keeping skin wounds free of bacteria.
Thus, not only do they keep bacteria from growing, but they also fight back whatever bacteria have already taken up residence in the wound.
Of said three types of honey, the Manuka variety is now argued to be able to both kill superbugs and make sure that bacteria do not evolve to become antibiotic-resistant.
Still, as the researchers point out, their findings must not be interpreted as an encouragement for people to go out, buy some honey, and use it to treat infected wounds, Daily Mail reports.
Quite the contrary: Manuka honey can only prevent the spread of bacteria and ensure that the latter do not develop a resistance to antibiotics when mixed with treatments already available on the market.
“We have shown bacteria do not become resistant to honey in the laboratory. Consistent with these facts, we also found that if MRSA were treated with just rifampicin [antibiotic], the superbug became resistant very quickly,” Professor Liz Harry reportedly commented with respect to these experiments and their findings.
“However, when manuka honey and rifampicin are used in combination to treat MRSA, rifampicin-resistant MRSA did not emerge. In other words, honey somehow prevents the emergence of rifampicin-resistant MRSA – this is a hugely important finding,” Liz Harry went on to argue.
Just for the record, Manuka honey is currently produced in New Zealand and Australia from the nectar of the mānuka tree.