Honey, honey.

[cyrano]

From SeaChanges, from ChristyMarx:

The ancient Egyptians were among the first to use honey as an early type of antibiotic ointment for wounds. With the rise of drug-resistant bugs in recent years, honey is now making a medical comeback.

Denyse? I have a jar or two that you can take to work. And a little single serving straw with cinnamon in it!

Comments

Cold shower time

[miss-friday.livejournal.com]

Another tool for fighting infections is good. But the undercurrent of the story bothers me. (Plus some of the quotes about antibiotic effectiveness.) This is not a miracle cure, and should not replace the buffet of laboratory created antibiotics. My suspicion is that this honey's effectiveness derives currently from its newness. Once bacteria are given time and exposure to it, resistant mutations will start popping up. I think the key to antibiotics is having a wide variety so resistance mutations are limited. Also concerning is the ever present snake-oil industry, which will undoubtedly latch onto this story in order to bilk cosumers.

But it will undoubtedly lead to hard-core research into both the plant and native bees, and other beneficial discoveries. Or at least understanding into the chemical agents involved. Those are excellent things.

Re: Cold shower time

[cyranocyrano.livejournal.com]

As we develop a battery of more and more destructive anti-biotics, I'm all in favor of adding alternatives to the buffet table. (So long as the steam trays are kept hot enough to discourage the growth of bacteria.)