A Different Use For Honey...!

You know how I always like to find the strange and unusual topics for us to talk about? This one from Listverse certainly fits that bill!

As much as I like honey, this is one way I don't think I'll try it. Call me crazy...I don't mind!

Mellified Man

After hearing of the mellified man, you may take your tea with something other than honey for a few days. Ancient Chinese writings tell of an Arabian process wherein elderly men near death would subsist on a diet of nothing but honey. Soon, his excrement and his sweat would be entirely comprised of honey. The man would soon die from this rather unhealthy practice, and his body would be placed in a stone casket full of honey. After a century or so of aging, the substance is gathered up and used as a medicine, particularly for the healing of broken bones.

There are very limited accounts of mellified men, the most notable coming from Chinese pharmacologist Li Shizhen, in his “Bencao Gangmu”. Although honey is known to never go bad (edible honey has been found in the tombs of pharaohs dead thousands of years), and to have noted antimicrobial properties especially a protein dubbed defensin-1, the effectiveness of this medicine is debated. Whether the story is mere legend, or whether this vile medication ever existed, is unknown. Few senior citizens seem willing to come forward and duplicate the experiment!

I do enjoy honey in many different ways, but I don't want to volunteer for an experiment like this. I'm kinda funny that way!

Coffee out on the patio this morning. I'll set out a jar of honey for anyone who wants it, OK?