Huge Programme of Research on Medical Uses of NZ honey launched
15th September 2011 – Medical researcher Professor Shaun Holt has announced what is believed to be the world's largest
programme of research on the medical uses of honey.
Speaking at a meeting in the Beehive yesterday, Professor Holt said that honey had huge potential to treat many medical
conditions, but clinical trials were needed to prove that it worked. "We know that honey can heal wounds and kill just
about any bug, so in theory it could be used to treat diseases ranging from eczema to skin infections to lung infections
in people with cystic fibrosis".
The research programme that was announced will be undertaken by the Medical Research Institute of New Zealand, based in
Wellington Hospital. Ten studies have been commissioned and many more are planned.
For the research programme, HoneyLab medical-grade kanuka honey will be used, and the first products have been launched
this week. "It is important that people only apply medical-grade honey to their skin", said Professor Holt. "Ordinary
honey contains lots of impurities and sometimes toxins, which can cause nasty skin reactions".
At the Beehive meeting, initial results were presented showing that medical-grade kanuka honey from the Bay of Plenty
could be a useful treatment for acne and molluscum contagiosum. In the acne study,
82% reported an improvement within a week and 77% had a reduction in the number of acne lesions. Professor Holt said
that he was not surprised by these results given that honey kills the bacteria which cause acne. He said that compared
to popular acne treatments that contained bleach, honey was natural, safer, healed the wounds caused by acne spots, was
likely to reduce scarring and moisturized the skin as opposed to drying it out. "The leading acne treatment sells around
US$2 billion a year - we think that honey is a far superior treatment and plan to demonstrate this in a large
independent clinical trial". The honey is applied as a facemask for 20-30 minutes twice a day, and washes off easily
with warm water.
HoneyLab medical-grade kanuka honey is available now from Unichem, Amcal, Life, Radius, and
ENDS