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Propolis heals herpes lesions faster than
acyclovir
A randomized, single-blind comparative study concluded that the
bee product propolis was more effective in the treatment of genital
herpes than either placebo or acyclovir, a herpes drug marketed
under the trade name Zovirax®. For the study, 90 men and women
with recurrent genital herpes were randomly divided into three
equal-sized groups and treated with propolis, acyclovir, or placebo
ointments. Results were assessed on the third, seventh, and tenth
days of treatment. The primary study endpoints were healing time
of blisters and time until symptoms disappeared. According to
the results, blisters healed significantly faster in people treated
with propolis. On day 10 of the study, 24 of 30 people in the
propolis group were healed, compared with 14 of 30 in the acyclovir
group and 12 out of 30 in the placebo group. Among the 66 percent
of women who had vaginal infections in addition to herpes at the
initial examination, the incidence of additional infection was
reduced by 55 percent after treatment with propolis. No change
in vaginal flora was seen in the acyclovir and placebo groups.
Vynograd N, Vynograd I, Sosnowski Z. A comparative multi-centre
study of the efficacy of propolis, acyclovir and placebo in the
treatment of genital herpes (HSV). Phytomedicine 2000;
7(1): 1-6.
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