Manuka honey is produced in New Zealand and parts of Australia by honeybees from the manuka bush, which is also known as the South Sea myrtle. It is a type of honey that stands out due to its high methyglyoxal content and antibacterial effect.
Manuka honey and its wound-healing effect on your patients
03 March 2023 — by Linn Masch
You may sometimes come across poorly healing wounds, abscesses or inflamed anal glands in your animal patients. You can find out why manuka honey could be the solution in these cases here.
Die Südseemyrthe, auch Manuka genannt. Ihre Heimat liegt in Australien und Neuseeland, wo sie von Honigbienen bestäubt wird.
What's in Manuka honey?
- Sugars: fructose and glucose
- Amino acids: for example arginine, cystine, proline, valine
- Antioxidants: flavonoids
- Phenolic acids
- Methylglyoxal (MGO)
- Hydrogen peroxide
- Minerals and enzymes: including vitamin C, vitamin B1, vitamin B2 complex, vitamin B6, biotin
- Lipids
- Water
Ganz schön viel drin, im Manuka-Honig...
Honey generally consists of around 80% fructose and glucose, i.e. monosaccharides. The remaining 20% consists mainly of water, amino acids, proteins and minerals. The special feature of Manuka honey is its methylglyoxal content. This is a sugar degradation product that inhibits the growth of bacteria by causing structural changes to the fimbriae and flagella of the bacteria. This restricts the adhesion and mobility of the bacteria.
MGO - what does that mean?
The different levels of methylglyoxal content indicate how many milligrams of methylglyoxal per kilogram of manuka honey are contained in a product. The MGO content level is therefore decisive for the antibacterial effect of the honey.
How high should the MGO content be?
The MGO content varies in honeys. Commercially available honeys contain less than 50 mg MGO per kg of honey, whereas manuka honey usually contains 300 to 800 mg. The higher the MGO content, the greater the antibacterial effect.
Difference between MGO and UMF
UMF stands for Unique Manuka Factor and, just like the MGO content, describes the antibacterial effect of the honey. If you know one value, you can draw conclusions about the other.
How are MGO and UMF values determined?
To determine these values, the manuka honey is tested on cultivated bacterial cultures to determine how high the antibacterial effect is. The result is compared with a known antibacterial standard solution, so the UMF value describes the concentration of the equally antibacterial standard solution.
Dank seiner vielseitigen Eigenschaften kann Manuka-Honig auch vielseitig eingesetzt werden. Ein wichtiges Feld: die Wundheilung.
Effect
The properties of manuka honey are manifold and are primarily characterized by its antibacterial, antimicrobial, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and wound-healing effects. Methylglyoxal is mainly responsible for the antibacterial properties of manuka honey and can help against staphylococci and coli bacteria, i.e. wound infections and infections of the gastrointestinal tract. The hydrogen peroxide present, which is formed by the conversion of glucose, has an antiseptic effect. In addition to methylglyoxal and hydrogen peroxide, manuka honey contains flavonoids and phenolic acids. These are also characterized by their antibacterial effect and their antioxidant effect, which means that honey can protect cells from oxidative stress.
Application
Manuka honey can be used both internally and externally. It is mainly used for external skin regeneration due to its antibacterial and wound-healing effects. It can be used to treat wounds, abscesses, inflamed anal glands and burns. It can be used internally, particularly for inflammatory diseases of the upper respiratory tract, as the methylglyoxal retains its effect even when heated, for example in tea. Manuka honey can also have a supportive effect on bacterial gastrointestinal complaints.
