A discrepancy in the way Manuka honey’s potency is measured has consumers concerned that they may not be getting their money’s worth.
All types of honey have the ability to produce hydrogen peroxide which accounts for a portion of its healing qualities. Manuka honey from New Zealand is superior over other types of honey because, in addition to its ability to produce hydrogen peroxide, it also has a non-peroxide activity which researchers believe has a synergistic action in providing optimal healing benefits.
When researchers began to recognize Manuka honey’s additional healing components, they started measuring the non-peroxide activity comparing it to a solution with the same percentage of phenol. For example, Manuka honey with the non-peroxide activity of 15 has the same antibacterial potency as a solution that is 15% phenol.
Very often the number that represents the non-peroxide activity of Manuka honey is followed by a plus sign (+). This is because the antibacterial potency of Manuka honey has a tendency to naturally increase over time. For example, Manuka honey that is labeled as a 10+ had a non-peroxide activity of 10 at the time it was tested but it could be higher depending on how long after testing the honey is used. It could have potentially increased to a 15+.
There have been some trademarks that have evolved over the course of time that precede the number that measures the non-peroxide activity of Manuka honey (i.e. UMF). These acronyms are less important than the actual number itself.
One disturbing practice that has evolved out of greed is companies listing the total peroxide activity on their labels. This is misleading to consumers since the industry standard is to list the non-peroxide activity. The total peroxide activity is the amount of both the hydrogen peroxide and non-peroxide activity. Manuka honey with a total peroxide activity of 15 could have a non-peroxide activity of only 5. Manuka honey NPA 5+ is not potent enough to yield the same medicinal results that people have come to expect. Wedderspoon is notorious for indicating a number that represents the total peroxide activity, rather than the non-peroxide activity.
If you are interested in using Manuka honey for its renowned health benefits, make sure to use a reputable brand that can guarantee their honey has been laboratory tested for its phytochemical potency and the non-peroxide activity is accurately displayed on the front label.
For more information, call 1-866-427-7329 or visit www.HoneymarkProducts.com.
Showing posts with label hydrogen peroxide. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hydrogen peroxide. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
The Hydrogen Peroxide Producing Capacity of Honey
Honey's ability to produce hydrogen peroxide is one of the main reasons for its antibacterial activity, making it ideal for treating infected wounds.
Hydrogen peroxide can kill bacteria on contact and has been widely used for that purpose. However, straight hydrogen peroxide is unstable and rapidly loses its effectiveness when exposed to air or light. Hydrogen peroxide in high concentrations can also damaged skin tissue. Therefore, the use of pure hydrogen peroxide has lost its popularity among doctors and other medical professionals.
What most people don't know is that honey has the necessary components to produce small amounts of hydrogen peroxide in a slow-release manner. This makes honey an ideal substance to use in the treatment of infected wounds and other bacterial disorders.
The slow-release mechanism in honey that produces hydrogen peroxide is a chemical reaction. Honey contains glucose and an enzyme added by honeybees called glucose oxidase. Under the right conditions, glucose oxidase has the ability to break down glucose into hydrogen peroxide.
Honey itself does not have the right conditions for this reaction to occur. To become active and begin breaking down the glucose in honey, the glucose oxidase requires a pH of 5.5 to 8.0. The pH of undiluted honey is between 3.2 and 4.5 which is far too low to activate the enzyme. Another condition is also required before the glucose oxidase becomes active. For the enzyme to break glucose down into hydrogen peroxide, a certain amount of sodium most be present.
Honey alone does not contain enough sodium to make this happen. However, skin and body fluids have relatively high pH and sodium levels. When honey comes in contact with skin or an open wound, the high pH and sodium levels activate the glucose oxidase and it begins to break down the glucose, releasing hydrogen peroxide.
"It would take a pharmaceutical company many years and billions of dollars to develop an antimicrobial product that could even come close to being as effective in treating wounds as honey," says Frank Buonanotte, CEO of Honeymark International which is a manufacturer of skin care products that contains Manuka Honey as a natural healing agent. "Even then, it is doubtful that they could create a product that is equally as effective in treating infection as honey."
Manuka Honey from New Zealand is now being used for medical purposes because it seems to contain the most amount of healing properties than any other type of honey. Manuka Honey has even been found to be effective in treating conditions such as MRSA Staph infections, where antibiotics have failed. Buonanotte says that in addition to Manuka Honey's ability to naturally produce low levels of hydrogen peroxide, it also contains unique floral nectar components that are not found in other types of honey.
Many people have lost sight of the fact that honey was used for medicinal purposes many years before modern-day medicine was invented. It is believed that honey will soon make a comeback in the medical industry as antibiotics and traditional forms of medicine become less effective against more resilient mutated bacterial strains. Unlike many pharmaceuticals, honey has been found to have no negative side effects when used for medical purposes. Medical-grade honey can also be used in addition to prescribed medication without causing any conflict.
For more information or to purchase Manuka Honey products, call 1-866-427-7329 or visit www.HoneymarkProducts.com.
Hydrogen peroxide can kill bacteria on contact and has been widely used for that purpose. However, straight hydrogen peroxide is unstable and rapidly loses its effectiveness when exposed to air or light. Hydrogen peroxide in high concentrations can also damaged skin tissue. Therefore, the use of pure hydrogen peroxide has lost its popularity among doctors and other medical professionals.
What most people don't know is that honey has the necessary components to produce small amounts of hydrogen peroxide in a slow-release manner. This makes honey an ideal substance to use in the treatment of infected wounds and other bacterial disorders.
The slow-release mechanism in honey that produces hydrogen peroxide is a chemical reaction. Honey contains glucose and an enzyme added by honeybees called glucose oxidase. Under the right conditions, glucose oxidase has the ability to break down glucose into hydrogen peroxide.
Honey itself does not have the right conditions for this reaction to occur. To become active and begin breaking down the glucose in honey, the glucose oxidase requires a pH of 5.5 to 8.0. The pH of undiluted honey is between 3.2 and 4.5 which is far too low to activate the enzyme. Another condition is also required before the glucose oxidase becomes active. For the enzyme to break glucose down into hydrogen peroxide, a certain amount of sodium most be present.
Honey alone does not contain enough sodium to make this happen. However, skin and body fluids have relatively high pH and sodium levels. When honey comes in contact with skin or an open wound, the high pH and sodium levels activate the glucose oxidase and it begins to break down the glucose, releasing hydrogen peroxide.
"It would take a pharmaceutical company many years and billions of dollars to develop an antimicrobial product that could even come close to being as effective in treating wounds as honey," says Frank Buonanotte, CEO of Honeymark International which is a manufacturer of skin care products that contains Manuka Honey as a natural healing agent. "Even then, it is doubtful that they could create a product that is equally as effective in treating infection as honey."
Manuka Honey from New Zealand is now being used for medical purposes because it seems to contain the most amount of healing properties than any other type of honey. Manuka Honey has even been found to be effective in treating conditions such as MRSA Staph infections, where antibiotics have failed. Buonanotte says that in addition to Manuka Honey's ability to naturally produce low levels of hydrogen peroxide, it also contains unique floral nectar components that are not found in other types of honey.
Many people have lost sight of the fact that honey was used for medicinal purposes many years before modern-day medicine was invented. It is believed that honey will soon make a comeback in the medical industry as antibiotics and traditional forms of medicine become less effective against more resilient mutated bacterial strains. Unlike many pharmaceuticals, honey has been found to have no negative side effects when used for medical purposes. Medical-grade honey can also be used in addition to prescribed medication without causing any conflict.
For more information or to purchase Manuka Honey products, call 1-866-427-7329 or visit www.HoneymarkProducts.com.
Thursday, May 1, 2008
The Unique Manuka Factor (UMF)
Manuka Honey is a special type of honey that has been found to have extraordinary healing properties and is now being used as a main ingredient in health care products because of its natural antibacterial activity.
Researchers have discovered that Manuka honey is a superior and effective treatment for wound infections. Studies have shown that all varieties of honey have some levels of antibacterial activity, primarily due to the presence of hydrogen peroxide. However, Manuka Honey has a much higher level of activity, up to 30 times greater than that of other types of honey. The studies have shown that Manuka Honey contains an additional antibacterial component found only in honey produced from the nectar that bees gather from the flowers that grow on the Manuka bush which is indigenous to New Zealand and some parts of Australia. This other antibacterial component has become know as the Unique Manuka Factor or UMF.
There are several components that explain the antibacterial activity found in Manuka Honey. The high sugar content of Manuka Honey creates an environment in which there are very few water molecules, making it difficult for microorganisms to grow. In addition, the low pH level of Manuka Honey inhibits the growth of pathogens. During the developmental stage, bees add enzymes to the nectar to form honey. One byproduct of this enzyme is hydrogen peroxide. When Manuka Honey is diluted by wound or other bodily fluids, the enzyme activity increases, creating a slow release antiseptic that is antibacterial but does not cause tissue damage like other forms of hydrogen peroxide. The Unique Manuka Factor is an antimicrobial component that is somewhat of a phenomenon, creating an environment impossible for bacteria and other microbes to survive.
The fact that other types of honey do not posses this extra UMF compound is what makes Manuka Honey different in terms of its ability to heal. The antibacterial properties in standard honey can be rapidly destroyed if exposed to certain conditions such as heat or light. However the UMF activity in Manuka Honey does not break down, resulting in the antibacterial activity remaining intact and unaffected. It is also important to know that not all Manuka Honey is considered to be active or have healing properties. It is believed that only Manuka Honey with a UMF rating of 10 or higher is suitable for medical use. The higher the UMF rating, the higher its antibacterial activity.
Manuka Honey's ability to heal is so powerful that it has even been found to be effective in treating antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria such as MRSA and VRE. These new developments are taking the medical industry by storm as a need for alternative solutions to these life-threatening, hard-to-kill bacteria threaten our schools, hospitals and communities.
"Wound dressings made with Manuka Honey are a viable alternative to traditional forms of medicine when treating Staph infections," says Frank Buonanotte, CEO of Honeymark International, a manufacturer of health care products containing Active UMF Manuka Honey as a healing agent. "Our First Aid Antiseptic Lotion has been effective in treating MRSA when other products, including antibiotics, have failed."
For more information or to purchase Manuka Honey products, call 1-866-427-7329 or visit www.HoneymarkProducts.com.
Researchers have discovered that Manuka honey is a superior and effective treatment for wound infections. Studies have shown that all varieties of honey have some levels of antibacterial activity, primarily due to the presence of hydrogen peroxide. However, Manuka Honey has a much higher level of activity, up to 30 times greater than that of other types of honey. The studies have shown that Manuka Honey contains an additional antibacterial component found only in honey produced from the nectar that bees gather from the flowers that grow on the Manuka bush which is indigenous to New Zealand and some parts of Australia. This other antibacterial component has become know as the Unique Manuka Factor or UMF.
There are several components that explain the antibacterial activity found in Manuka Honey. The high sugar content of Manuka Honey creates an environment in which there are very few water molecules, making it difficult for microorganisms to grow. In addition, the low pH level of Manuka Honey inhibits the growth of pathogens. During the developmental stage, bees add enzymes to the nectar to form honey. One byproduct of this enzyme is hydrogen peroxide. When Manuka Honey is diluted by wound or other bodily fluids, the enzyme activity increases, creating a slow release antiseptic that is antibacterial but does not cause tissue damage like other forms of hydrogen peroxide. The Unique Manuka Factor is an antimicrobial component that is somewhat of a phenomenon, creating an environment impossible for bacteria and other microbes to survive.
The fact that other types of honey do not posses this extra UMF compound is what makes Manuka Honey different in terms of its ability to heal. The antibacterial properties in standard honey can be rapidly destroyed if exposed to certain conditions such as heat or light. However the UMF activity in Manuka Honey does not break down, resulting in the antibacterial activity remaining intact and unaffected. It is also important to know that not all Manuka Honey is considered to be active or have healing properties. It is believed that only Manuka Honey with a UMF rating of 10 or higher is suitable for medical use. The higher the UMF rating, the higher its antibacterial activity.
Manuka Honey's ability to heal is so powerful that it has even been found to be effective in treating antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria such as MRSA and VRE. These new developments are taking the medical industry by storm as a need for alternative solutions to these life-threatening, hard-to-kill bacteria threaten our schools, hospitals and communities.
"Wound dressings made with Manuka Honey are a viable alternative to traditional forms of medicine when treating Staph infections," says Frank Buonanotte, CEO of Honeymark International, a manufacturer of health care products containing Active UMF Manuka Honey as a healing agent. "Our First Aid Antiseptic Lotion has been effective in treating MRSA when other products, including antibiotics, have failed."
For more information or to purchase Manuka Honey products, call 1-866-427-7329 or visit www.HoneymarkProducts.com.
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