Kanuka even better than manuka

Kanuka honey may have even more beneficial properties than its better-known cousin, manuka.

Medical researcher Shaun Holt says kanuka has twice as much of the bug-killing manuka factor, than manuka itself.

"When we find it in New Zealand, kanuka honey, which is a cousin of manuka, has around double the activity of some of the strongest manuka honeys. So it's a little bit confusing, but it seems kanuka honey is the most effective one to use."

His team at HoneyLab are looking at whether honey could be a useful treatment for skin conditions.

"Like acne, psoriasis, eczema, impetigo, you name it. Anything that bug is causing a disease in the skin, we're going to see if we can cure it because we think we should be able to."

Professor Holt says because manuka is so successful, people perhaps hadn't bothered looking for even better honey products, until now

Professor Holt says early results show honey can be very effective with those conditions.

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