The Potential of Honey to Promote Oral Wellness

P. C. Molan, Honey Research Unit, University of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand

Abstract: Honey has been used as a medicine throughout the ages, and in more recent times has been "rediscovered" by the medical profession for treatment of burns, infected wounds and skin ulcers. The large volume of literature reporting its effectiveness indicates that honey has therapeutic features that indicate it has potential for the treatment of periodontal disease, mouth ulcers and other problems of oral health.

Honey has a potent broad-spectrum antibacterial activity that rapidly clears infection from wounds when applied topically, which may make it suitable for "anti-infective" treatment of periodontal disease as well as for clearing infection in mouth ulcers and wounds from oral surgery.

The action of honey in preventing wounds becoming infected also indicates that it may be of use in preventing the development of dry socket after tooth extraction. The soothing effect resulting from the very effective anti-inflammatory action of honey may also be beneficial in these applications.

The anti-inflammatory activity of honey, combined with its significant content of antioxidants, may also be of benefit in preventing the erosion of periodontal tissues that occurs as collateral damage from the free radicals released in the inflammatory response to infection…

Conclusion: The therapeutic properties of honey evident in its well established usage in wound care clearly give it potential for therapeutic use in various areas of dentistry, but there will need to be trials carried out before its usefulness in known. There is also the potential for the risk of caries to be reduced by using honey selected to have a high level of antibacterial activity, but again trials need to be carried out to determine to what extent this is true…