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Bacteriophages

Honey is Best!

New Wive's Tale.
.
News that honey remedies top the chemical 'alternatives' will come as a
shock to pharma companies and patent lawyers, while vindicating the
beliefs of most people that Nature knows best! Strange though, how we
only really believe something when scientists prove it, even though we
knew all along it was true!. We're a strange lot...


Honey beats medicine at curing coughs

By Charlotte Eyre


04/12/2007 - New research from the US suggests that naturally
occurring honey may ease coughs and respiratory illnesses in children
more effectively than over the counter medicines.

While honey has been used for thousands of years to treat wounds and
ailments, scientists have only recently begun to explain the precise
effects of the natural sweetener's antiseptic and antibacterial qualities
on human health.

During the trial, scientists from the Penn State College of Medicine
researchers asked parents to give either honey, honey flavoured
dextromethorphan (DM), or no treatment to 105 children, between the
ages of 2 and 18 children, all suffering from nocturnal coughs.

The trial was partially blind, researchers said, as parents could not
distinguish between the honey and the medication, although those
administering no medication were aware of the fact.

The parents were asked to report on cough frequency and severity,
how bothersome the cough was, and how well both adult and child
slept, both 24 hours before and during the night of the dosage.

According to researcher Ian Paul, all the parents indicated that honey
yielded greatest improvement, followed by DM, while no treatment was
consistently named as the poorest treatment.

Based on parental "symptom points", children treated with honey
improved by an average of 10.71 points compared with 8.39 points for
DM-treated children and 6.41 points for those who were not treated.

According to Paul, the study's are likely to be noted to with great
attention accross the US, as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
recently recommended that children under six should not be given
over-the-counter cough and cold medicines, due to potentially harmful
side effects.

"Our study adds to the growing literature questioning the use of DM in
children, but it also offers a legitimate and safe alternative for physicians
and parents," said Paul.

While safe for adults, DM may provoke dystonic reactions, severe
involuntary muscle contractions and spasms in children.

"Additional studies should certainly be considered, but we hope that
medical professionals will consider the positive potential of honey as a
treatment given the lack of proven efficacy, expense, and potential for
adverse effects associated with the use of DM," he added.

Several scientific reports linking honey to health have been published in
the last few years, including research suggesting that taking honey in
combination with calcium supplements could help boost bone strength.

Furthermore, Spanish scientists said in February that bees that feed on
honeydew produce honey with double the amount of antioxidants.

Research such as this has helped boost honey consumption around the
world, with sales increasing 14 per cent between 2004 and 2006,
according to market analysts Mintel.

In international terms China is currently by far the largest
honey-producing nation in the world, with around a 40 per cent slice of
the market, while the next biggest producers are the US, Argentina and
Ukraine.

According to the American Honey Producers Association, China and
Argentina have been adversely affecting America's domestic honey
industry with cheap imports, although there is a counter argument that
both China and Argentina have been helping to counterbalance falling
production in the US.


Nature's natural bacteria killers.
Bacteriophages - read all about it!
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