Lick your wounds

When I was a kid, I used to put my saliva on my wound until I can feel the wetness on and around the wound area. Then normally I get scolded by my mom for doing this, but I just couldn’t stop myself, it just let me feel better. So, day by day, I was getting used to this so called “dirty act” whenever I get cut. And today, I came across an article in a magazine with the title “Lick your wounds” which support this “dirty act” as shown below:-

Human saliva may not always get the respect it deserves but this humble fluid had been shown to have powerful antifungal, antibacterial and antiviral properties. One study conducted by French researchers in 2006 identified a pain-killer in saliva called opiorphin which is reportedly six times more potent than morphine. Considering these traits, a new discovery by Dutch-based scientists at the Academic Centre for Dentistry in Amsterdam makes perfect sense. They have isolated a compound in human saliva called histatin that greatly speeds the healing wounds. According to Gerald Weissmann, editor-in-chief of The Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology Journal, which published the results, the findings explain “why wounds in the mouth, like those of a tooth extraction, heal much faster than comparable wounds of the skin and bone. It also directs us to begin looking at saliva as a source for new drugs.” Because saliva is virtually unlimited resource, wound-healing drugs could be mass-produced with relative ease. The researchers are particularly hopeful that their findings will mean good news for people like diabetics and burn victims who suffer from hard-to-heal wounds.

So friend, what do you think after reading this article? If you are doing the same “dirty act” as mine when kids, please do share this article with your parents…to show that.. sometimes…kids are right!