Honey is not only delicious, it is also said to be healthy.
In the case of coughs and colds, it can sometimes even do more than an antibiotic - claims a research team.
Honey is not only a sweetener, but also a popular home remedy.
It is said that it can help as a cough suppressant, for example.
Is it really like that?
A team of researchers from Oxford University has now gained new insights into honey in medicine.
Read more about the recently published study here.
The honey * is often said to have a healing effect.
At least as a
home remedy
, it has to be used in some households.
Many swear by honey, for example when coughing.
Does he really help?
Scientists at Oxford University have now come to the conclusion that honey could be a suitable agent in the
symptomatic treatment of respiratory diseases
, as described in a report by Deutschlandfunk Nova.
The Guardian had previously reported on the study by the said research team from Great Britain.
Especially when patients have a cough, honey can sometimes even be more effective than drugs that are usually given for coughs or colds, the research team of the Oxford study claim, according to the reports.
The study does not mean that honey per se is more effective than an antibiotic, states deutschlandfunknova.de critically.
The results of the study mentioned can now be read in the journal "BMJ Evidence-Based Medicine".
Also read:
Instead of coffee: Why you should switch to the following drink
Medicine: honey sometimes better than antibiotics?
Antibiotics
can help or be necessary
in the case of
bacterial infections
.
If, on the other hand, a
cold
virus has lodged
itself
, antibiotics are “the wrong way”, according to an article on apotheken-umschau.de, which also deals with possible gentle
treatment methods
for cold symptoms.
Antibiotics, on the other hand, "only against bacteria - which, however, easily attach themselves to attacked mucous membranes," says the article in general.
Study: does honey help against coughs?
For the now so much cited results from Great Britain, the researchers viewed scientific studies that
compared
the effect of
honey
or a preparation thereof with other common medicines for coughs and colds, including cough relievers and suppressants, antihistamines and pain relievers, reports the portal aponet. de.
In total, the researchers included 14 suitable studies with 1,761 participants of various ages.
But, this is also the critical comment in this report: “However, the scientists point out that honey is not a standardized product, but a
natural product
with a multitude of ingredients.
And only two studies were tested against placebo.
Therefore, the researchers do not see their conclusions as final. "
Read here
: Cold or coronavirus: My child has symptoms - can they go to school?
Honey is quite popular as a home remedy - even if its effect is debatable.
According to the experience of some doctors, honey could at
least reduce
the urge to cough in
children,
for example
.
However, this home remedy is only suitable for children who are older than a year, as reported, for example, by the Umschau pharmacies.
In
babies,
there is a risk that bacteria, which may have found their way into honey from the environment, trigger a life-threatening disease - so-called infant botulism.
The same applies to adults: a doctor has to decide which medication helps with which symptoms in individual cases.
(
ah) * Merkur.de belongs to the Germany-wide Ippen digital editorial network
.
Also interesting:
Phenomenal mixture: It's that easy to do the wasp fright yourself
