So...Manuka Honey has officially surpased Snapple as "the greatest stuff on Earth". And....Cheryld has beaten Ken Jennings as the smartest person. When I finally got my 1st mouth/tongue sore at around my 33rd rad TX I knew using more honey would be out of the question. Putting a paper thin slice of cucumber on my tongue and having it burn like acid was a dead give away that just about anything in my mouth was going to hurt. I read a post by Cherly saying that the honey was burning her so she started to use the Magic mouthwash before and after using the honey and it was working well. She was right! I was to the point where I was having to use the meds. syringe just to get water and protien shakes past my tongue. It wasn't looking good as far as staying "no PEG" guy. Now I'm confident I can make it. The sores on the sides of my tongue are gone

Good for you! I am a huge fan of Manuka honey which is well known to most Australians and Kiwis. Manuka is the Kiwi name for the tea tree. The oil from the leaves is also used for its antiseptic properties (mozzie bites, and cleaning mould and mildew off the tiles).

The honey has been studied for treating leg ulcers that I know of and it outperformed the standard dressings during the trial. I believe there is also a trial to look at mouth ulcers at the moment.

I love the tips for using it when your mouth is in really bad shape and offer one more possibility. You can water it down a bit with water, swill it about and then either swallow or spit. Maybe that won't sting quite so much? If it does, at least you know you can put it away and use in on your oatmeal when you are back to eating

yup. I freeze it into little loszengers too. That way you can put it right where you want it and it will stay there, if only for a minute.

I certainly have not been one to advocate alot of off the wall "cures" but with all my mouth sores recently I thought - what the heck I might as well try the Manuka Honey. I am AMAZED. This honey cleared up 90% of the inside of my cheek within two days. It is expensive, but oh sooooooo worth it. I found the taste pleasant - had expected something more medicinal, and I bought the strongest strength they had - 250+ whatevers!

I can't promise it will work for others - but to all you naysayers - it is definitely worth the try. I'm sold!

Donna

HI Donna
and when you don't need it for ulcers anymore, you can spread it on your toast
Karen
PS finally bought a water pik as you suggested months ago. what a difference! wish we had bought it sooner

OK, so where do you buy this stuff? I've got a sore throat and want to try it.

Take care,
Eileen

You can get it at Whole Foods or go to Manukahoneyusa.com. I'll warn you that if you already have a sore the honey will burn. You'll want to use some of the Magic mouthwash (you know the numbing stuff) first. The streangh should be 16 or higher. I used it more for prevention. 4 times a day including right before and right after rads TX. Good luck. Will

Thanks for the info Will. Maybe I'll ask the doctor first.

Take care,
Eileen

Can I ask how this is used (dose) & if the antioxidants in the honey interfere with the radiation/chemo?

According to what has been mentioned on this site so far, it seems to work very well for the mouth sores - and also used topically for skin infections, scratches, bites, burns, prevents bacterial infections i.e. staph, leg ulcers, surgical wounds, and can be frozen into little lozenges. Of course it's a good idea check with your doctor first, just to make sure it doesn't interfere with anything else you are taking or experiencing. I found it to be quite expensive at the Health Food Store, but when I went to OCF's link to Amazon, it was about half the price, so it would be good to check it out. If you go to the link from OCF, then OCF can benefit a little, too. Just go to the top of this page and towards the left, click on "Forums' and you will see a link to "Shop Amazon.com".