American Chemical Society On Honey And Antibiotics

Below are excerpts from the linked report.

The unique property of honey lies in its ability to fight infection on multiple levels, making it more difficult for bacteria to develop resistance, said study leader Susan M. Meschwitz, Ph.D. [...] The osmotic effect, which is the result of the high sugar concentration in honey, draws water from the bacterial cells, dehydrating and killing them."

 ...another advantage of honey is that unlike conventional antibiotics, it doesn’t target the essential growth processes of bacteria. The problem with this type of targeting, which is the basis of conventional antibiotics, is that it results in the bacteria building up resistance to the drugs.

 We have run standard antioxidant tests on honey to measure the level of antioxidant activity,” she explained. We have separated and identified the various antioxidant polyphenol compounds. In our antibacterial studies, we have been testing honey’s activity against E. coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, among others.”