Manuka honey helps fight allergies and hay fever

Due to high levels of Methylglyoxal (MGO) Manuka can help irritated nasal passages and throat linings, reduces inflammation and makes breathing easier. Scroll down to read Dr. Hilary Jones' advice.

Summer wellness starts here

Struggling with hay fever or allergies?

Sneezing, itchy eyes, and congestion can ruin your day, but Manuka honey can offer natural relief. Research suggests honey could help regulate your immune response and soothe symptoms.

Here’s why Manuka honey stands out:

✅ Anti-inflammatory & antimicrobial properties – Helps calm allergic reactions

✅ May ease hay fever symptoms – Could reduce sneezing, congestion & itchy eyes

✅ Soothes sore throats – Great for postnasal drip and irritation

✅ Backed by research – Studies show honey may enhance allergy relief

Manuka Doctor’s pure 100% raw honey is known for its potent anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial properties.

It’s been shown to have prebiotic activity, encouraging the growth of beneficial bacteria in the gut. A healthy gut has proven essential in strengthening the immune system, helping to reduce the susceptibility of allergies and their symptoms.

Try our allergy relief supplement

Looking for a Higher Strength?

Our Manuka Honey starts at 30 MGO and goes all the way up to a Limited Edition 1300 MGO.

View our complete range of Manuka Honey

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Your questions answered

What’s so special about Manuka honey?

MGO Manuka Honey is special because its antimicrobial properties come from non-peroxide activity. Research shows this activity, which is unique to Manuka Honey, has "significant antibacterial effects" [1].

The now world famous Manuka Honey is only made by bees who collect nectar from the Manuka bush, a wild shrub which grows widely across New Zealand but flowers for only a few weeks a year.

Pure Manuka Honey has "antibacterial and antioxidant
properties
" which have been linked with a range of wellbeing benefits
according to scientific journals [2].

Parts of the Manuka bush were used for centuries by New Zealand's native Maoris as a herbal medicine to treat conditions like fevers and dandruff [3]. While honey has been used widely since ancient times to help wounds heal [1], it was not until European settlers introduced the European honey bee in the first half of the 19th century that both Maori and settlers started using the honey to help with wellbeing.

1. Mandal MD, Mandal S. Honey: its medicinal property and
antibacterial activity. Asian Pac J Trop Biomed. 2011;1(2):154-60. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3609166/

2. Patel S, Cichello S. Manuka honey: an emerging natural food with medicinal use. Nat Prod Bioprospect. 2013;3(4):121–128.
doi:10.1007/s13659-013-0018-7

3. Jones R, Rongoā – medicinal use of plants, TEARA: The Encyclopaedia of New Zealand https://teara.govt.nz/en/rongoa-medicinal-use-of-plants

Who is Manuka Doctor?

We’re a privately owned family company based in Auckland, New Zealand. We are one of the biggest independent exporter of genuine Manuka Honey from New Zealand and the Manuka Doctor brand is sold across the world.

Our base in Leicestershire means we can supply customers in the UK easily and quickly via mail order and telephone, plus we also supply the UK’s biggest health-food chain Holland & Barrett.

Manuka Doctor is proud to be a New Zealand owned company that oversees 60,000 individual bee hives in the North and South islands, spanning over 11,000 hectares of land, all owned by our founder.

This means that we can trace every single batch of honey right back to the hive site where it was created.

And after laboratory testing to ensure purity and strength, we pack every pot of Manuka Honey in New Zealand itself before products are exported to the UK.

Once in the UK, we test every batch of honey a second time at a Government laboratory in York to ensure every MGO rating is true to label before sale.

We call this unique supply chain trusted and traceable from Hive to Home.

What does Methylglyoxal mean in Manuka Honey

The number on the front of the pot represents the mg per kg of MGO (Methylglyoxal) and the related strength of Antimicrobial Activity, which is known to kill certain types of bacteria. The greater the number, the stronger the Antimicrobial Activity.

MGO is related to the strength of the Manuka Honey. The strength of Manuka Doctor honey is measured using the MGO grading system from 30 MGO to 1300 MGO. Scientists generally agree that MGO is the best way to establish a honey’s antimicrobial (bacteria killing) strength.

So put simply, the MGO number refers to the amount of methylglyoxal per kilogram. For example Manuka Doctor 340 MGO has 340mg per kg of MGO in the pot.

Offer T&Cs

Manuka Doctor offers genuine, world-famous Manuka honey with anti-microbial properties, which can only be harvested in New Zealand. Our award-winning range is guaranteed to meet the strict New Zealand export standard.

With UMF and MGO grades independently tested twice before sale (UMF Licence No: 1026) Either take a spoonful everyday, mix into warm drinks or enjoy it as an ingredient in healthy smoothies, breakfasts, tonics or hot toddies.

Genuine Manuka Doctor honey is thicker and creamier than standard table honey. It is darker in colour, has a more subtle level of sweetness and a natural woody taste.

Always pure, natural and unpasteurised, just as nature intended, choose Manuka Doctor.