Hi Sherry - What brand of Manuka Honey do you use?  Do you buy it online?  I am at my wit's end with pouchitis, and I am facing surgery to have the pouch removed. I have cycled through all the biologics (latest being Stelara), and I cannot seem to attain remission.  Cipro works, but I do not want to take cipro for the rest of my life! 

I use the New Zealand Manuka honey mgo 400 it is a bit pricey but it's worth a try. I used it alongside antibiotics for several months and then stopped the antibiotic. Still unsure of results but I feel ok which I have never before without an antibiotic! the directions are a spoonful half an hour before meals 3 times a day but I'm hopeless at remembering so I use equivalent to 4 teaspoons on toast in morning. And after a few weeks I've incorporated a probiotic at night. I'm still adjusting and trialling. Lots have success with the honey! 

Oh and in the first few weeks of stopping antibiotics I felt terrible headaches, weakness, skin breakouts and severe thrush so I'm assuming it's my body detoxing 15 years of a yeast overgrowth! 

Thank you

 

My colorectal surgeon has actually run clinical trials with Manuka honey, and he recommended it to me when I started having pouchitis-like symptoms. In his trials he actually used Manuka honey enemas -- nothing like going straight to the source I guess! I never tried that, I only ate it for a while. And yes, you have to be sure to get the right stuff. There's lots of info on the internet about it and its positive effects on the gut.

Karen - would the honey mix well (dissolve?) with water to make an enema? How did your surgeon recommend making an enema with the Manuka honey?

Thanks,

Joe 

Joe, I can't actually remember what he said about it, and I never tried it myself. I do know that you can't heat Manuka honey too much or the anti-inflammatory properties really diminish, if not disappear entirely. When I was drinking it, I would put it in a glass with some warm tap water, and it would eventually dissolve. Then I'd top it up with cold water or juice. I imagine the same thing could be done for an enema preparation (not with juice obviously )

Update - 5 months later, still antibiotic free. (after being on every antibiotic and exhausting them all for 16 years) I don't seem to tolerate the probiotics with antibiotics or Honey. Seems to cancel it out. Haven't had a scope, but no blood and feeling good. Worth a try to anyone ready to give up on pouch like I was, in all ive been taking the honey for nearly a year and I'd give it that long before giving up! Good luck

By the way- Trader Joe's sells a Manuka honey for a very reasonable price. It can be expensive elsewhere.

How are the Manuka Honey people doing, any negative effects? I don't have any sugar in my diet besides a bit of daily fruit (banana,kiwi, blueberry) Should I try it?

Id say its a great accompaniment to antibiotics and everyone is different. Over time I need antibiotics again, but now they work much better alongside the honey.