Treating Eczema With Meliponine Honey

So much has been said about the medicinal benefits of meliponine honey, proven by clinical and laboratory tests conducted by various universities and agencies in Malaysia. We decided to put it to test ourselves in our clinic run by alternative medicine practitioner Dr. Aniza Zain Ahmed.

A female patient, in her fifties had approached us for treatment for eczema on both her legs. She had a previous history eczema and due to recent environmental changes in her work, in addition to stress and hormonal changes, the problem recurred. She had been suffering from this condition for the last three months in which she had tried various natural medicines to no avail.

When we met her on the 11th of June, the eczema was already at chronic stage, her legs were sore, red, swollen and inflamed. The skin was thick and crusted and where it cracked, there was stinging pain. From inside the leg, she felt a throbbing pain. She was feeling miserable, and had been unable to sleep for quite a while now. Her left leg was in worse condition than her right; it was so bad that she did not allow us to show it here.

The affected areas were first carefully cleaned with cider vinegar, a powerful natural antiseptic. We then applied a thin layer of raw, fresh meliponine honey all over the affected areas. Her feet were then bandaged to protect the parts of her skin which were open due to the severity of the eczema.
   

Meliponine honey has powerful
antibacterial and anti-inflammation
properties besides containing loads of
antioxidants.

Only two substances were used to treat the skin,
cider vinegar as an antiseptic (above)
and meliponine honey (right).

The patient was asked to repeat the simple procedure

at home before sleeping. She was  instructed to apply only a light bandage to allow the skin to breath and heal faster.

Imagine her relief and delight when she woke up in the 

morning, the pain was almost gone and her legs felt light. The swelling had subsided considerably. Much to her surprise, the eczema had dried and parts of the skin was already starting to peel off.

12th of June, a day after treatment started. This is the patient's
left leg.

13 June - most parts of the skin had dried and come off,
revealing new, smooth skin.

18 June - a week after treatment commenced, the
skin is 80% healed.

25 June - the eczema had cleared up completely
after just about two weeks of treatment. 

The patient was also advised to drink lots of plain water and cider vinegar with water to detoxify her body. She was also given propolis to take orally to strengthen her immune system. 

Important note**

This article does not intend to serve as a guide for self-treatment of this condition. Chronic eczema should only be treated by a professional medical practitioner.  

Pitstop Bilut Valley Bee Farm - Impromptu Visit by UMT Research Team.

When enthusiasts of meliponines meet, there is no saying what could happen. We were in the last leg of the Le Tour De Kelulut - Jelajah Selatan when the idea of shooting to Bilut Valley cropped up. We had travelled through the states of Negeri Sembilan, Melaka down to Masai, the most southern tip of the peninsula in Johor. Then up north again towards Mersing, Kluang, Segamat and back into Negeri Sembilan via Bahau.

Travelling with us in that tour was a team from Universiti Malaysia Terengganu and they were to break off from the convoy in Bahau as it was the nearest exit back to Marang where the university is situated. They had expressed interest in visiting our farm, especially because we had on our farm a rather rare species known as Heterotrigona erythrogastra. As Bilut Valley Bee Farm totally and wholeheartedly supports scientific research, we didn't hesitate in deciding to divert to Bilut Valley to take the UMT team to our farm.

5th of May, Tuesday was to be the last day of the Southern Route of the tour, We were in Segamat, Johor that morning and had moved to Bahau, Negeri Sembilan where we visited a farm and enjoyed a sumptuous lunch prepared by our gracious host, Puan Ehwani.. We eventually left Bahau after 4pm, It is a 3-hour drive to Bilut Valley and that would mean we would have to drive non-stop to arrive while there is still some daylight left. The UMT Team weren't the least deterred.

Dusk was setting when we arrived Raub and our visitors noticed how beautiful the scenery was at that time of the day. We stopped at our halfway house in the village of Bilut Valley and performed the compulsory evening prayers before the research assistants quickly got into action. Two of them, Muhammad Firdaus and Fatin Farhana stayed back at the house as that was where we kept our Tetrigona or crystal species. They were to take specimens from the five colonies we had there including one of the extremely aggressive T.canifrons species.

The head of the team, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Shamsul Bahri Abdul Razak and another two of his assistants Roziah Ghazi and Siti Asma' headed for the farm where the most of the meliponines are cultured. It was already dark by then, but it didn't stop them from going up to the farm which has no electricity. We had the highest respect for them all - their commitment and dedication towards their jobs and achieving their objectives really had us in awe. The situation was the same amongst the participants of the tour which was headed by Tuan Abu Hassan Jalil in the last four days. We felt so honoured to be working with the individuals and teams of this calibre.

Pix above, Prof. Shamsul and team inspecting a hive where a colony of apis (honey bees)
had invaded a stingless bee colony, and then was joined by another smaller but feisty species 
of stingless bees. They now co-habit in different spaces of the same log.

Once at the farm, they headed straight for the H. erythrogastra colony. They seemed to be delighted to have finally obtained specimens and pictures of this species. And we were more than happy to oblige. Prof. Shamsul was also interested to take a look at our colony of T. melanoleuca which is not that rare but researchers are interested to look into possible variants in specimens from different locations in the country.

We found it amazing that all the three of them, Prof . Shamsul, Roziah and Asma, had felt the ambiance at the farm even in the darkness. All they could see was the silhouette of the hills in the distant horizon, when there was just a hint of daylight left that painted the sky in many different lovely hues of orange, red and blue. They knew it was a beautiful place. And they vowed to come again.

The UMT Research Team with the Bilut Valley Bee Farm Team
From left Aiman, Firdaus, Prof. Shamsul. Marzia, Aniza, Asma, Fauziah, Fatin and Roziah.
It was a long day and we were still not quite done. The UMT Team were headed back to
Terengganu that night which is another 4 hours drive. But our smiles say it all, it was
a wonderful occasion for both our teams,and a beginning of many good things to come, insya Allah.  

  

The video above was produced by none other than Prof. Dr. Shamsul Bahri himself. 

Meliponines by Gee Shariff - Lepidotrigona doipaensis

A showcase of superb macro shots by Bilut Valley Bee Farm's macro photographer Gee Shariff.

Featured here is a species from the genus Lepidotrigona of which name is derived from the word "lepido" which means "scales". Species in this genus have very significant scales in yellow or white that frame the scutum of the meliponine. The species here is named doipaensis.

Bilut Valley Bee Farm Honey - Before It Reaches You (Part 1)

In this first part, we show you how we treat our bottles before honey is stored in them.

Bilut Valley Bee Farm strives to give you, our beloved honey lover, the highest quality of honey possible. There are many aspects to ensuring this and one of the crucial factors in the quality control process is how the honey is packaged and stored in bottles.  Here, we show you how we prepare the bottles that keep your precious honey which is enriched with goodness, and we want to make sure it is maintained that way. 

We insist on using dark bottles, as these are the best to filter UV light that could damage the properties of the honey and cause oxidisation. They're difficult to obtain and a little pricey compared to clear bottles, but we want only the best for you.

The bottles are first washed with a cleanser and then thoroughly rinsed in a disinfectant, both containing tea tree oil. Tea tree oil is scientifically proven to be a powerful antiseptic. We don't want to use detergents which may have hazardous chemicals, because we have your health and safety in mind.

We use a range of solutions by Melaleuca, which again, is more expensive than normal detergents, but they don't contain any hazardous chemicals. Yet they are effective enough to kill 99.9% of bacteria and viruses on hard surfaces.

After the bottles are dry, they are put in this sterilising unit to ensure that the bottles are really clean, enough so the honey stored in them can be used to treat wounds even.

  

Quite a tedious process but Bilut Valley Bee Farm Honey promises the highest quality product that is hygienic and safe for your consumption. 

And finally, the cap is sealed and secured so you're certain your bottle has not been opened by someone who put his nose at the opening to take a sniff at the honey!

Meliponines by Gee Shariff - Homotrigona fimbriata

A showcase of superb photos taken by Bilut Valley Bee Farm's macro photographer. 

Today's feature is the Homotrigona fimbriata, one of the larger species among the meliponines.

The second and third photos are splendid shots where the mandibles and teeth of the meliponine are so clearly visible.

Meliponines by Gee Shariff - Heterotrigona itama

A showcase of superb macro shots by Bilut Valley Bee Farm                     macro photographer Gee Shariff.

The second species featured in the series is the Heterotrigona itama. This is the most common species cultured for their honey and it's the same for Bilut Valley Bee Farm. We have almost 100 colonies at our farm now.

Meliponines by Gee Shariff - Tetragonilla atripes

A showcase of superb macro shots by Bilut Valley Bee Farm macro photographer Gee Shariff. 

As this is her favourite species, we shall start the series with the Tetragonilla atripes.