Honey Recommended for Injury Recovery

Speed Healing: The Road to Rapid Recovery
By Sarah Mahoney, New York Times Syndicate, 8/20/2007

…To move even faster down the road to recovery, though, add these more-surprising, but equally effective, strategies. Whether you're scheduled for surgery or trying to recover from a muscle strain, these six speed healers can shave days -- even weeks -- off your downtime.

1. Honey

The proof: On superficial wounds, such as cuts and burns, honey acts as an antibacterial agent, rapidly cleaning out and preventing further infection, according to an analysis of nearly two dozen studies by New Zealand researchers. One found that burns treated with honey healed, on average, in 11 days -- 4 days less than burns treated without it. The sweet stuff also reduced swelling and minimized scarring.

Try it: Researchers used Manuka honey from New Zealand, available in both pure and ointment forms at manukahoneyusa.com, but any locally farmed raw honey product -- as opposed to commercial brands; heat used during production reduces antibacterial strength -- will be just as effective. To get the fastest results, follow the researchers' method: Put some honey on sterile gauze, apply to the wound, and change the dressing every 24 hours...