Reader story — Tom, rural New Zealand. Health focus: chronic ankle wound.
Essential takeaways
- The application of UMF™ 26+ Manuka honey to wounds can be very effective. This story is an example of how Manuka honey can speed up healing and leave almost no trace of scars or damage.
- The higher the UMF™ grading, the better results you're likely to see in wound care.
Warning: this article contains graphic images of a foot wound.
"I started crying, I thought they were going to amputate my foot when I saw the state of it. It was horrific after 10 days in the cast."
— Tom
This is the story of how Manuka honey helped Tom, who was suffering from a hospital cast gone wrong and a severely swollen foot wound.
Thankfully, today, Tom is completely healed and back to his normal life. Since he's fully recovered and very grateful, he was happy to share his Manuka honey story.
"More people should pay attention to Manuka honey and have a jar in the pantry — you never know when you'll need it!"
— Tom
Let's dig into the story of what happened.
The accident: Tom on his farm
Tom was out on his farm in rural New Zealand when he jumped a fence and sprained his ankle. A simple mistake, not too serious you'd think? Well, you'd be very wrong.
When Tom went to Accident and Emergency (A&E) for treatment, the triage doctor said it was the worst Grade 3 sprain he'd seen in over 20 years on the job.
A Grade 3 sprain is the worst type of sprain. It typically means the ligament is completely torn or ruptured.
Tom's ankle was bandaged, put in a lower leg cast, and he was sent home to rest up.
But the pain didn't subside.
"The pain was so intense that we cut the cast off at home."
— Tom
When Tom went back to the hospital for a second cast to be applied, the pain was still so intense that when the nurses rebandaged his ankle, they had to do it again, looser this time.
Tom was sent home to rest again.
Resting up in a cast at home
Tom kept this second cast on for 9 or 10 days (he can't remember exactly), resting at home, but didn't feel like he was recovering.
"I was in quite intense pain for the whole ten days."
— Tom
Tom didn't know at the time, but his foot was turning purple.
His ankle had been bandaged, but during this process a triangle of skin had been left uncovered. Because the swelling in Tom's foot was so bad, it started to expand into the only space it had — the triangle.
The result of this was a big sloshy blood blister, only to be discovered when the cast was removed.
Back to hospital for a purple surprise
"When the cast came off, my foot looked worse than what it was when it went in there."
— Tom
When Tom saw his ankle for the first time in over a week, he couldn't believe it. He quite literally thought that they'd have to amputate his foot, because of the colour of it. It looked so much worse than the initial sprain.
"[The bandage] created this massive blood blister that had quite a bit of blood swishing around in it."
— Tom
The nurses were also shocked, and apologetic, and said that it had been poorly bandaged. They applied hospital-grade cream and gauze, and recommended he do the same at home when re-dressing it.
A friend's suggestion: try Manuka honey
Over the next few days, the blood blister burst.
At this point, Tom was talking to a few friends about his foot and how he'd had a rough time resting at home. Luckily, one of those friends was a longtime advocate for Manuka honey and its incredible wound-healing properties, and advised Tom to put Manuka honey on it. Tom had a jar of UMF™ 15+ in the pantry, so started using that.
Using Manuka honey on the open wound was also approved by Tom's mother-in-law, a nurse.
When his friend saw Tom's foot in person, it was a lot worse than he'd imagined and needed some serious help healing — so he gave Tom a jar of high-grade UMF™ 26+ Manuka honey, because the higher the UMF™ value, the more potent the honey and its effects.
Healed in record time with UMF™ 26+ Manuka honey
Having seen some positive results with the UMF™ 15+, Tom started religiously applying the UMF™ 26+ to his foot, forsaking the hospital cream.
"I was literally doing it twice a day, morning and night — the honey, then the gauze, and the bandage, and changed it twice a day."
— Tom
After a while, Tom went back to the hospital to have the top layer of skin scraped off, as is usual with blisters. The doctor was amazed at the result of using Manuka honey — although, working in medicine, he was already aware of its qualities.
"I kept putting the honey on and it got better."
— Tom
Within a few weeks of applying UMF™ 26+ Manuka honey, Tom's foot was almost back to normal.
Tom now: living the good life with Manuka honey
Tom has fully healed and recovered from his sprained ankle and the wound that followed.
"I'm stoked I was given Manuka honey at that critical time, I couldn't believe how well it worked. Amazing!"
— Tom
Since recovering, Tom has chosen to incorporate Manuka honey into his daily routine for both immunity and vitality.
Why did Manuka honey work?
Manuka honey has potent antibacterial properties. This means it's great at killing bacteria and preventing more from cultivating.
But that's not all. On a wound, it does a few specific things, such as:
- Creating a protective barrier. The high viscosity of the honey puts a vital distance between the wound and the external environment, strictly keeping bacteria out.
- Drawing liquid to the surface and keeping it hydrated. Its high concentration of sugars activates osmosis, effectively pulling fluid up through the subdermal tissue.
- Flushing bacteria and debris from the wound. The low water content of honey results in "fluid flow", clearing away the bad stuff and carrying nutrients and oxygen from deep tissue to the wound area.
The results are quite amazing. There's little to no scabbing or scarring involved.
And it isn't just anecdote — the US FDA approved Manuka honey as a possible wound treatment in 2007. It's attracted attention from researchers and medical companies alike.
"[Manuka honey] contains the components of other honey varieties, but its unique component, methylglyoxal, acts as an additional antibacterial agent. Several companies collect, pool, filter, and sterilize Manuka honey for clinical use, including ManukaGuard (located in New Zealand) and Medihoney (a subsidiary of Derma Sciences, Princeton, NJ, based in the United States)."
— US National Library of Medicine
But there's nothing purer than Manuka honey straight out of the jar. Just as it can help with acne and rosacea, it can also help with wounds and scarring.
Want results like this?
If you're thinking about all the times you could have applied Manuka honey to a wound, don't stop there.
Many households keep a jar of at least UMF™ 15+ on hand — and for a busy family household (or the accident-prone), having a higher grade like UMF™ 26+ within reach can do wonders. Whether you're recovering from serious hospital treatment or tending to your own small cuts and scrapes at home, wound care is where the higher UMF™ values come into their own.
Disclaimer: Manuka honey is not a replacement for seeking professional medical help. Always consult medical professionals in an emergency.
Sources referenced in the text:
- Honey-Based Templates in Wound Healing and Tissue Engineering, US National Library of Medicine
- 510(k) Premarket Notification, US Food and Drug Administration
Names and some identifying details in this story have been changed to protect the privacy of the individuals involved.