What is Manuka Honey?
Manuka honey is collected from bees that gather nectar from native New Zealand forest and scrubland that contain vast tracts of the flowering Manuka tree With a population of just 4 million and a temperate climate, New Zealand’s unspoilt environment and its unique, natural resources provide a treasury of natural health treatments, including Manuka Honey. Manuka Honey is one of New Zealand’s oldest natural remedies. It was used by the Maori, the indigenous people of New Zealand, for treating wounds, for health and wellbeing – as well as a natural food source too. We sell a wide range of Manuka honey with a choice of UMF and MGO ratings.
What are the benefits of Manuka Honey?
- Enhancing general health and energy: Active Manuka Honey contains a high level of antioxidants and helps to stimulate the immune system to battle infections. Antioxidants are known for their possible role in slowing the aging process and preventing diseases such as cancer and heart disease. Research has shown that antioxidants can help protect against the destructive effects of free radicals which are thought to cause cell damage.
- Improving digestive health (in particular it has been found to inhibit growth of the bacteria helicobacter pylori - thought to cause most stomach ulcers, dyspepsia and peptic ulcers).
- Providing relief for a sore throat: Active Manuka Honey is effective against the bacteria streptococcus pyogenes which causes sore throats. The honey has an anti-inflammatory action as well as antibacterial.
- Helping to heal wounds: “Many medical professionals are choosing to use active Manuka honey and are getting very good results with the treatment of wounds which have not been responding to standard treatment (a trial of Active Manuka Honey on unresponsive skin ulcers was successfully carried out at Waikato Hospital in New Zealand: the results have been published in the New Zealand Medical Journal)”. – Dr Peter Molan, University of Waikato.
So, what is all the fuss about?
Dr Peter Molan (MBE), Associate Professor in Biochemistry at Waikato University, in 1981 confirmed that some strains of the New Zealand Manuka bush honey contain an amazing, naturally present, very stable and powerful non-peroxide antibacterial activity not found in any other variety of honey. He called it UMF (Unique Manuka Factor). In laboratory tests, they found UMF Manuka Honey to be effective against a wide range of bacteria, sometimes performing better than standard antibiotic and antiseptic therapy and naturally too!
This exciting discovery swept the world and now, 30 years later, Manuka Honey is acknowledged as a valid treatment for many conditions. For example, it is used to treat bedsores in UK rest homes and is used in the fight against the MRSA superbug in many hospitals.
What is Active Manuka Honey?
Active Manuka Honey is a health honey that has been tested in a laboratory and is guaranteed to contain anti-bacterial activity. However, unless it is labelled with the MGO or UMF trademarks then the antibacterial activity may be due to peroxide, found in most other honeys, rather than the non-peroxide activity that is unique to Manuka Honey.
Not all Manuka Honey is active with either peroxide or non-peroxide activity. Some Manuka Honeys have both types of activity, and some have little or none. There is also a great deal of seasonal variation, with both types of activity being individually either present or absent in any particular honey season.
But if rated either UMF or MGO, you can be assured of concentrated non-peroxide, anti-bacterial qualities.
What is UMF?
UMF® is a quality mark that represents the testing of naturally occurring non-peroxide activity in honey using various test methods and is a registered trademark of the Active Manuka Honey Association of New Zealand. The number that follows UMF, e.g. 20+, refers to the comparison of the antibacterial activity of the honey with that of carbolic acid, or Phenol – thus Active Manuka Honey UMF 20+ has the same bacteria-killing power as a 20% phenol solution. A level of 15+ or higher is recommended and used by medical professionals.
What is MGO?
In 2006 it was discovered that Methylglyoxal, a naturally-occurring compound, is the dominant anti-bacterial constituent in Manuka honey from New Zealand. The test for Methyglyoxal concentration uses highly-accurate and automated HPLC laboratory analysis. The number following MGO shows the tested concentration of Methyglyoxal mg/kg, i.e. MGO400+ has a concentration of more than 400mg of Methylglyoxal per kg of honey. More than 100 mg/kg is the minimum necessary to kill all major bacteria types.