How To Treat Wounds With Honey

By: Dzhingarov

Honey is great for so many recipes out there but it is so much more than that. It is a shame to see that most people do not know anything about the wound care capability of honey. It helps deal with burn wounds, pressure ulcers and bacterial infections, among others. However, we will only discuss wound healing capabilities.

Using The Right Honey – Manuka Honey

You should not simply go to the very first store that has honey in stock, buy a brand model and just use it to treat your wounds. Regular store honey should never be considered. The best option available is Manuka honey, which is normally sold as edible substitute for regular honey use while offering many therapeutic qualities. It was actually approved by the FDA for wound treatment in 2007.

Manuka honey is very good due to various reasons. For starters, it releases hydrogen peroxide, which is really good to eliminate the activity of bacteria. Pollen collected can help treat different serious infections. This ranges from scalded skin to skin rashes.

Different honey options are effective with wound healing but not store regular raw honey. This product includes high-fructose corn syrup content that can actually make the infection worse.

How To Use Honey For Wound Healing

You cannot just add Manuka honey on the area that is infected and expect recovery. It is important to add the appropriate amount as the honey is evenly spread over your wound. Rub honey over the wound dressing and wrap around infection. When your intention is to have an alternative that is less messy, pre-packaged wound dressings with honey are available at pharmacies. If the wounds are deep, you want to smear honey over area before you add dressing so that honey can reach most of the infection area.

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Does Treating Wounds With Honey Work?

As you can easily notice, it is not at all difficult to use honey for wound healing but does it actually work? Many of the home remedies are not effective so it is normal for people to think that this is also the case here. What you have to know is that there are different scientific studies that were conducted in order to see if honey has wound healing properties. In total there were 19 clinical trials that covered 2,554 patients that had untreated wounds. Doctors proved the fact that honey did help with wound healing recovery faster than film dressing and normal gauze we often see with burn treatment.

The International Journal of Lower Extremity Wounds also published a study with researchers proving that honey had various treatment qualities that were unparalleled when compared with other treatment forms. 22 trials with burn victims treated by honey showed that:

  • Wound infections were cleared and bacteria spreads were diminished.
  • Honey eliminated and controlled strong odors.
  • There was a dramatic reduction in permanent scarring.
  • Anti-inflammatory activity was promoted.

Honey does have really good healing properties and will do wonders for your wounds. Just make sure you never opt for the store option. If you have questions, you should always go to the pharmacy.