Volume 23, Number 7, 3/26/05, page 32

It is estimated that one third of the world's population has been affected by the herpes simplex virus.¹ Honey has a long history in folk medicine as being a cure for many conditions, especially those involving the skin. As a topical agent, honey has accelerated wound healing and reduced scar formation following surgery.² Dandruff and seborrheic dermatitis have also been successfully treated by the same author.³ Combined with olive oil and beeswax, the author states that it has worked very successfully in such chronic skin conditions as eczema, psoriasis, and urticaria.⁴

THE STUDY
Sixteen volunteers (8 women and 8 men) with a history of labial and genital herpes outbreaks volunteered for this study.⁵ The men averaged 6 outbreaks of genital herpes per year and the women averaged 5 outbreaks of labial herpes yearly. The length of resolution without intervention ranged from 7 to 12 days in this small sample. Population averages state that the time to healing without treatment is 10 days. Half of the 16 volunteers were asked to use honey on their next outbreak, the other half used 5% acyclovir cream. They then employed the opposite intervention on their following outbreaks. Therapy was applied as follows: Acyclovir cream was rubbed on the lesions 6 times per day. Gauze soaked in honey was placed on the lesions 15 minutes 4 times a day. All subjects reported to the doctor within 24 hours of the onset of their outbreak. They were monitored daily and their lesions were classified as macula, papule, vesicle, pustule, ulcer, crust, and healed.

DISCUSSION
Although this study is very impressive, it must be noted that it was not blinded. It also contained only 16 subjects and should be validated with a larger sample size. The researchers were not exactly sure why the honey worked so well, but they had some theories, the first of which is that honey has been shown to reduce two series prostaglandins⁶ which can negatively affect the immune system by inhibiting T cell function.⁷

The other possible mechanism of action, either alone or in concert with what was described above, is honey’s affect on nitric oxide. Honey contains nitric oxide metabolites.⁸ Honey can also elevate nitric oxide in body fluids.^9,10 Nitric oxide may retard or prevent replication of some viruses according to the author.⁵

MAYBE THAT'S WHY THEY CALL IT HONEY...

Nitric oxide (NO) has been in the news lately. I remember learning years ago that the amino acid arginine seemed to help the immune response during times of viral overload. Later, it was discovered arginine was a precursor to endothelium derived relaxing factor (EDRF), a group of substances one of which was later determined to be NO. If NO is indeed antiviral, this would not only explain why honey helped against Herpes, but also explain why arginine has been used as a natural treatment for viruses.

A few years ago, when researchers were testing a drug for hypertension (sildenafil citrate), male subjects noticed a rather profound side effect. If their minds wandered to thoughts of the opposite gender, a marked increase in blood flow to a certain anatonical region was clearly noticed. It turns out this drug increases NO, which resulted in relaxation of the corpus cavernosum. The trade name for this drug is Viagra. Could it be that honey got its name for something other than taste?

References
¹Whitley, J., Kimberlin, W., Roizman, B. Herpes Simplex Virus. Clin. Infect. Dis. 1998; 26: 541-555.
²Al-Waili, N.S., Saloom, K. Effects of Topical Honey on Postoperative Wound Infections Due to Gram Positive and Gram Negative Bacteria Following Cesarean Section and Hysterectomy. Eur. J. Med. Res. 1999; 4: 126-130.
³Al-Waili, N.S. Therapeutic and Prophylactic Effects of Crude Honey on Chronic Seborrheic Dermatitis. Eur. J. Med. Res. 2001; 7: 306-308.
⁴Al-Waili, N.S., Lootah, A., Shaheen, W. Mixture of Crude Honey and Olive Oil in Natural Wax to Treat Chronic Skin Disorders. Faseb J. 1999; 13A: 846.
⁵Al-Waili, N.S. Topical Honey Application Versus Acyclovir for the Treatment of Recurrent Herpes Simplex Lesions. Med. Sci. Monit. 2004; 10(8): 94-98.
⁶Al-Waili, N.S., Boni, N. Natural Honey Lowers Plasma Prostaglandin Concentration in Normal Individuals. J. Med. Food. 2003; 6: 129-135.
⁷Baker, D., Thomas, J. The Effect of Prostaglandin E2 on the Initial Immune Response to Herpes Simplex Virus Infections. Am. J. Obstet. Gynecol. 1985; 151: 586-590.
⁸Al-Waili, N.S. Identification of Nitric Oxide Metabolites in Various Honeys: Effects of Intravenous Honey on Plasma and Urinary Nitric Oxide Metabolite Concentrations. J. Med. Food. 2003; 6: 359-364.
⁹Al-Waili, N.S. Effects of Honey Ingestion of Nitric Oxide in Saliva. Faseb J. 2003; 17A: 767.
¹⁰Al-Waili, N.S., Boni, N. Effects of Honey on Blood and Urinary Nitric Oxide in Normal Individuals. Faseb J. 2003; 17A: 660.

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