Critical Appraisal of the Action of Honey on Skin Infection, a Case Study of Honeys from Four Different Locations in Nigeria

Abstract

Honey has been used as traditional medicine in many countries and in the world at large before modern medicine was introduced. These substance is not only a waste product produced by honeybees but also a therapeutic agent used as an ant inflammatory, ant fungal, bacterial and ant microbial agent too. This context assess the healing potency of honey on different skin and wound infections such as dermatitis, boils, eczema, burns etc. Many of these complications are eliminated due to the chemical constituents found in honey but these constituents differ more greatly in their distribution across places in Nigeria such places are north, west and eastern parts of Nigeria. These distributions affect the healing potency of many honey collected from these areas. In this context, the sample differ in their potencies and also in their chemical constituents. These areas of collection include Abuja, Nsukka and Ibadan respectively. The honeys obtained are applied on surface wounds and on skin inflammations infected by S. aureus to see whether they differ in their potency or not. Statistical analysis such as Chi-square test (χ2) was applied in order to compare the association between different honeys on skin infected with Staphylococcus aureus. In other aspect of life, honey is used in many candy products and sometimes in substitute for sugars due to its property of flavonoids compounds.