Licking your wounds has a literal meaning too, like in India they say that first spit of the morning has medicinal properties and when applied to zits and boils, they heal faster. Now getting a bit scientific, scientists from Netherlands have been able to identify a compound in human saliva called histatin (a small protein in saliva) that greatly speeds wound healing. In the future we could see the compound being used to treat people suffering from chronic wounds related to diabetes, traumatic injuries and burns. This probably explains why wounds in the mouth, like those of a tooth extraction, heal much faster than comparable wounds of the skin and bone. Apparently the compounds can be mass-produced, and have the potential to become as common as antibiotic creams and rubbing alcohol.

"We hope our finding is ultimately beneficial for people who suffer from non-healing wounds, such as foot ulcers and diabetic ulcers, as well as for treatment of trauma-induced wounds like burns," said Menno Oudhoff, first author of the report.

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