Q. You recently wrote about using sugar for slow-healing wounds and bedsores. As a nurse, I learned years ago that the best way to use this home remedy is to make a thick paste of antibiotic ointment and sugar and pack the wound with it.
Old wives’ tale or not, it works. The antibiotic ointment helps to prevent infections.
A. We heard from other nurses and even a vet who have not forgotten this old-fashioned treatment. One wrote: “As a nursing student in 1961, I worked at a small hospital that routinely used a mixture of milk of magnesia and sugar to cure bedsores. It seemed to be successful in many cases.”
Another objected to our terminology: “Using sugar for bedsores is not a wives’ tale. I have been a registered nurse for 45 years. When I was a student, it was very common practice to use sugar packs.”
The veterinarian said: “Many wounds have been shown to heal 3 times faster with the use of sugar granules on a saline wet-to-dry bandage. The sugar helps to pull the bacteria from the wound and the saline feeds the tissue to promote rapid healing of the skin beneath.”
