Honey - it's not just for breakfast anymore...

[GDRankin]

As most everyone knows, honey is anti-fungal and anti-bacterial. So it stands to reason that it has many more uses than being great on biscuits and toast or in coffee and tea. I have heard that it also has many medical benefits, but had never personally experienced any until this week.

During a tree hive removal, I accidentally burned the tip of one of my fingers on my smoker this past weekend, not just once, but twice. Long story, but it happened because I let someone borrow my good gloves, so I was using an old pair with a hole in the end of one finger. (not thinking, I grabbed the smoker with that hand during a crazy moment with the tree coming down)

Anyway, it burned pretty good . . . down to the second layer and made a fairly nice blister - about the size of a dime. The skin came off before the job was over, so I covered the hole in the glove with tape and finished the job.  

Burns were one of the things I had heard that honey helps with, so that night after a shower I thought I'd give it a try. I put some honey on the burn spot then put a water proof band-aid over everything to seal it closed. I mainly just wanted to see how well it would work.

That was Sunday night and I was able to leave it bandaged all day Monday. When I took the band-aid off after a shower Monday night, it looked a bit waterlogged, so I decided to clean it good with just soapy water then to re-apply a bit more honey, but this time used a regular band-aid (not water proof) so that it could breathe a little.

That bandage stayed on that night and all day yesterday. So last night I removed it before taking a shower and noticed a vast improvement. After my shower there was a little loose skin from the blister, so I trimmed it carefully away with a razor blade and put another drop of honey on the area. This time, leaving it open - no band-aid.

Today the burn is nearly completely healed. I'd say at least 98%! I've had my fair share of burns before and normally one as severe as this one will take at least a week to heal, sometime longer.

I'm confident that it was the honey that helped with the speedy healing process. I'm not saying to throw away all of your other meds, but putting a little honey on a nasty little burn dang sure did the trick for me. :)

I'm just curious if any others have had similar experiences or what other honey related medical stories folks may have to share?

[thewhiterhino]

I would venture a guess that using store bought, filtered, pasteurized and possibly diluted honey would not work as well... :roll:

[iddee]

My wife's brother had a sore on his forehead that came about while he was in the hospital. The doctors gave him anti-biotics for internal treatment and several salves for outside treatment. It kept getting worse for nearly a year. I suggested he put honey on it morning and night, In 3 weeks, it was gone.

[GSF]

Thanks GDRankin and Iddee for sharing that. My new hobby has become home remedy cures. Things like this interest me

[iddee]

Honey is said to be the ONLY thing that will cure MRSA. If it proves to be true, many, many people will be hearing about it.

[GSF]

MRSA?

[sc-bee]

Treating wounds with honey in particular burns dates way back. A local guy who runs a carving shop called me one day and asked if I had any honey left. He said he had burnt himself> I carried a jar to him. He had a candle break in the shop and catch fire. He grabbed the jar and ran outside with it. It spilled on him and he had a large nasty burn. I would estimate 3rd degree as blisters were popped. I told him you need to see a doctor with that. He said give me that jar of honey. He opened the jar and dozed it generously. I saw him a couple weeks later. I said how is you burn. He held his hand up and it was almost healed.

[iddee]

MRSA.......  http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/mrsa/basics/definition/con-20024479

[GDRankin]

Good stuff guys . . . thanks for share'n!

[jayj200]

Thanks GDRankin and Iddee for sharing that. My new hobby has become home remedy cures. Things like this interest me

Listerine works wonders on burns, applied right away.
and Vinegar works to take the itch away from insect bites. it will also cure the  infection (redness) around any cut or scrape. it does bite so only apply after the wound has a scab.

[Dallasbeek]

PROPOLIS IS GREAT, TOO.  About 20 years ago, I fell on the pool deck and skidded on one knee.  The wound never really healed and the dermatologist said it was traumatic psoriasis.  He prescribed some kind of ointment that cost $85 a tube.  Used that stuff for years and nothing helped.  The knee was always raw looking, sometimes bleeding.  Three years ago, I got into beekeeping and read everything I could find related to bees.  I started applying tincture of propolis (bought it at Whole Foods) every couple of days, whenever the previous application sloughed off, and after a couple of months it was barely noticeable.  Now, after a couple of years, I still need to apply propolis every few months, but usually the wound barely shows. 

Seems like everything associated with bees is beneficial to man.  What about wax (other than candles, etc.) -- anybody know of any health benefits in beeswax?

[splitrock]

 anybody know of any health benefits in beeswax?

My wife makes lotion bars and lip balms from our bees wax. They actually heal up about anything they come in contact with. We have heard of some amazing results.

Also, I have a Neurologist in Ca. that buys honey from me by the gallon. He told me during one of our conversations that everything that comes from the bee's is good for you. I would add though... except for those allergic to the venom.

[iddee]

Splitrock, the only cure for the allergy is bee venom, so it is good for them, too, in the right doses.

[jayj200]

yes I wake congested I down a teaspoon of honey

I have chewed propolis and finally escaped a hard cold to throw

[Ben Framed]

My wife's brother had a sore on his forehead that came about while he was in the hospital. The doctors gave him anti-biotics for internal treatment and several salves for outside treatment. It kept getting worse for nearly a year. I suggested he put honey on it morning and night, In 3 weeks, it was gone.

That is noteworthy iddee. Thanks for posting this.

Phillip

[AustinB]

My son was bitten quite hard by a dog Saturday, 3/16" penetration on one canine and 1/4" on the other, pretty gnarly. One thing we have been treating with is honey, it's healing quite nicely. Most of the time the first thing I can grab and put on a wound is honey since its in the kitchen and the jar is always open. The continuous disinfectant due to the creation and slow release of hydrogen peroxide I think does very well on new wounds.

[The15thMember]

My son was bitten quite hard by a dog Saturday, 3/16" penetration on one canine and 1/4" on the other, pretty gnarly. One thing we have been treating with is honey, it's healing quite nicely. Most of the time the first thing I can grab and put on a wound is honey since its in the kitchen and the jar is always open. The continuous disinfectant due to the creation and slow release of hydrogen peroxide I think does very well on new wounds.

That's terrible!  It's good to hear it is healing nicely.  I make a propolis salve that is my go-to for random wounds and rashes, and I also make a sunburn cream out of honey and aloe.  I'm always amazed at the healing properties of the hive. 

[BeeMaster2]

Just before Covid 19 started, I had an impacted tooth. My dentist referred me to a specialist and it took 3 weeks before I could get an appointment. I was in pain the whole time but luckily it wasn?t that severe of a pain. He did the root canal and because of the infection, he packed it with antibiotics, sealed it up and sent me home to wait 3 months for the antibiotics to do its job. When I went back, Covid was in total control. He cleaned the root out and even permanently filled the tooth, something that he normally didn?t do. This ended up costing me almost $2,000.
Six months later another tooth became inflamed/abscessed late one Saturday night about 8:00. This time it was really painful. I new I couldn?t see a dentist that late at night and knew I was in for a long painful night. I was desperate and decided to try using honey. I put a mouthful of honey in my mouth, laid down on my bed with the painful side down so the honey was on the tooth. For three hours I was in severe pain. Then about 11:00 the pain quickly started to subside and completely disappeared. I slept the rest of the night. The next day around noon the pain started again. I filled my mouth with honey again and this time it only took about an hour. I had to do it one more time and then it never came back. This time it only cost me three mouth fulls of real honey. It also saved me from being in pain for weeks on end waiting for appointments and the antibiotics to work.
Jim Altmiller

[AustinB]

That's terrible!  It's good to hear it is healing nicely.  I make a propolis salve that is my go-to for random wounds and rashes, and I also make a sunburn cream out of honey and aloe.  I'm always amazed at the healing properties of the hive.
[/quote]

Thanks me too! Both of those products sound awesome. I've been collecting propolis to make salves and tinctures. I'll have a go at it one of these days.

[AustinB]

Jim that's very interesting, thanks for sharing the story. In my opinion there are so many natural healing options and techniques that are being forgotten or pushed aside for more 'profitable' options made in a lab.