Who doesn’t love a little honey? It’s sweet, natural, and pairs well with any tea of your choosing. But did you know that honey has healing properties? Well, Manuka honey does, that is!
Manuka honey is made by bees from nectar gathered from Manuka flowers. The Manuka bush (official name Leptospermum Scoparium) is native to New Zealand. The Māori people have long prized the plant for its healing properties, using Manuka bark and leaves to treat many conditions, from colds to skin diseases.
The use of honey in wound management is now a well-established practice, with many clinicians successfully using medical-grade honey products in a variety of wound types. Osmotic effect, high sugar content, low pH, and hydrogen peroxide all contribute to honey’s ability to inhibit microbial growth.
Let’s take a closer look at what makes honey a great healer!
Create a Positive Wound Environment
Manuka Honey contains high concentrations of Methylglyoxal (MGO), a powerful healing component that continues to be effective giving Manuka honey it’s up to 7-day wear time.
Manuka Honey has a pH of ~3.9 (acidic), creating an inhospitable environment for bacteria growth. Low pH levels improve tissue oxygenation which increases resistance to infection and promotes healing.
Aids in Odor Control
Odor in a wound is often caused by ammonia and other odorous products excreted by bacteria. When honey is introduced, bacteria feed on the sugar, rather than the wound tissue causing the emitted by-product to become non-odorous lactic acid. Therefore, the honey helps odor at the source (bacteria), rather than simply masking it. This helps improve patient confidence and mental well-being.
Autolytic Debridement
Sugar naturally present in honey has the effect of drawing fluid out of the wound bed, known as the osmotic effect.
100% Manuka Honey creates a moist wound environment, facilitating autolysis by drawing fluid/exudate from the wound through powerful osmotic action, while simultaneously rehydrating devitalized tissue. Therefore, safe and effective debridement and desloughing occur through this autolysis.
Granulation & Epithelialization
The osmotic effect also rehydrates devitalized tissue and encourages an outflow of lymph fluid, needed for cell growth. This provides glucose to cells that promote granulation and epithelialization across the wound bed.
Does medi have any products containing Manuka Honey?
Yes! The Advancis® Activon products from medi (available in both tube and tulle) contain 100% Manuka Honey. Our Manuka honey is not adulterated with heat (which artificially increases UMF values) and is verified by an external testing laboratory in the UK.
Activon Manuka Honey promotes four essential wound healing functions, which are often found individually in other types of dressings. The Activon dressing range has been expertly designed to support all stages of wound healing, from initial presentation to granulation and epithelialization.
To find out more about Activon Manuka Honey and how it helps maintain a moist wound healing environment which can help speed up the wound healing process, visit Manuka Honey Dressings – medi USA.
