An Ancient Sweet Solution to a Sticky Modern Problem

Psalm 81:16
“He would have fed them also with the finest of wheat; And with honey from the rock I would have satisfied you.”

We have all heard of “superbugs” – bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics. Antibiotic-resistant Staphylococcus bacteria have even shut down hospital wards. Now, researchers in New Zealand and Australia may have found out how to fight superbugs. And their weapon is one that has been in medical use for over 4,000 years!

Researchers in New Zealand have examined the healing properties of over 30 different types of honey native to New Zealand. They have found that honey, made from the manuka bush has some powerful healing properties. As the honey mixes with the fluids in a wound it produces a small but continuous stream of hydrogen peroxide. Being acidic, honey creates a hostile environment for bacteria. Research is being conducted using honey to treat burns, eye infections, diabetic skin ulcers and other conditions with encouraging results. Australian researchers have found that honey will even kill 100 different strains of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, including the flesh-eating bacteria! One New Zealand man who had developed gangrene that could not be controlled with antibiotics tried honey. The honey stopped the infection and his foot began healing. (Please note that the honey available in stores has been heated or pasteurized, removing its antibiotic properties.)

Honey is a gift of God that has many uses. That it has been used on wounds since earliest times suggests that God gave the first people knowledge of its healing powers.

Dear Father, please keep me in good spiritual and physical health. Amen.

Author: Paul A. Bartz

Ref: Rx Remedy online, “The Healing Powers of Honey.” Photo: A bowl of manuka honey. Courtesy of Sage Ross. (CC BY-SA 3.0)