Honey for a sore throat, sure. But honey for sinusitis?  Ordinary honey kills bacteria that cause sinus infections, in many cases better than antibiotics, says a new study from the University of Ottawa.

This includes the "superbug" MRSA. And honey is effective when the bacteria form "biofilms," or layers of living material that coat a surface (such as sinus cavities) and fight off normal drugs the way a raincoat sheds water.

So far the tests are strictly in lab dishes, not in live patients.

But testing on live patients "is very, very close," said Dr. Talal Alandejani, a resident studying ear, nose and throat medicine at the U of O, though first they'll do safety tests on animals. He expects it to pass these tests easily.

To reach the sinuses, "we'll use an irrigation needle. This is not new," he said.

"Probably in the non-medical world it sounds weird, but we've been irrigating with antibiotics already, so it's the same equipment … we're just going to use honey in it."

When a sinus infection becomes chronic, it goes on for months, resisting multiple courses of pills, irrigation (squirting salt water or antibiotics into the sinuses) and even surgery.

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