What’s the buzz?

Since ancient times, humans have relied on products from the beehive for healing, nourishment and sustenance. Beyond just honey, people have enjoyed "super foods" such as pollen (dense with phytonutrients collected to feed bees) and propolis (tree resins combined with bee secretions forming the "immune system" of the hive) for health-boosting effects. The beauty of these products is that science is completely incapable of duplicating the constituents within any of these by-products, or of synthetically reproducing them. All must be made by the bees themselves.

Honey

Bees make honey from the nectar they get from flower blossoms. The transformation begins in the bees' honey sac. The process is completed in the hive itself. To make one pound of honey, the "busy bees" must convert over 70,000 loads of nectar.

Honey contains glucose, fructose, proteins, antimicrobials, hormones, organic acids and carbohydrates. It also contains a complex mixture of vitamins, minerals and trace elements. Raw honey also contains live enzymes that are vitally important for the proper functioning of all of our body systems.

Honey is built of simple sugars, requiring less work for the body to convert that sugar into energy. White sugar is highly refined and requires far more processing to be converted into energy. Even then, the body cannot assimilate all the by-products of converting white sugars. The remainder ends up stored in the fat tissue. It also stimulates the improper production of insulin in the body. Eating white sugar actually can leach valuable minerals from the body, the same ones that honey put in. White sugar has also been proven to be a carcinogen and it contains no vitamins or minerals. It also weakens bone strength and inhibits calcium absorption in the intestines. The glucose in honey increases the body's absorption abilities of calcium, zinc and magnesium, and the glucose passes into the bloodstream within 10 minutes of ingestion, providing a quick energy boost, whereas white sugar must be processed by the body before it can be converted into energy.

Honey is antibiotic, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, anti-anemic, tonic, laxative, anti-allergenic, expectorant and anti-carcinogenic. It is an overall tonic to all systems in the body and is of special use in the intestinal and skeletal systems. It is high in vitamins B and C, most all of the B-complex, calcium, phosphorous, magnesium, potassium, silicon and a host of other minerals. It is a source of rapid energy, not needing to be processed by the body to convert the useful sugar content. It increases calcium absorption, can increase hemoglobin count, and in combination with vinegar can be helpful to arthritic joints.

Honey has been used throughout the ages to heal wounds. Egyptian papyri dating from before 2000 B.C. shows its uses as a wound salve. It provides protection for open wounds from infection, and it boosts the healing process itself. When honey mixes with the fluids from the body in the wound, it actually causes those cells to release hydrogen peroxide to cleanse the wound and promote healing. Honey has also been proven useful in healing ulcers and gastric lesions. Its specific properties have also proven beneficial in treating respiratory ailments.

You should not give honey to any child under the age of three. It may cause an allergic reaction or respiratory difficulties in children this young.

Store honey at room temperature. It may crystallize over time, and in that case, you can simply place it in a warm-water bath to liquefy. It is best to purchase raw honey to receive the maximum benefits possible. Honey is made from pollens collected from a wide area by workers in each hive. Therefore, there will be color and taste differences depending on the kind of pollen gathered, the time of year, and the mixture the bees used. These differences should be embraced, and there is nothing wrong with honey that looks a different color than the last batch you may have purchased. Honey has an almost indefinite shelf life, as the bees remove all water from the product as it is being manufactured, and due to the fact that the honey itself is a repellant to bacteria.

Bee Pollen

Bee pollen is another "super food" made for us by the bees. It is well known for its nearly complete nutrient content and its remarkable ability to provide energy. It has been used as a food for many centuries. References to it have been found in medical information from 2735 B.C.

Bee pollen contains nearly all of the B complex vitamins, vitamins C, A, E, folic acid, and carotenoids. It contains a wide variety of minerals and trace elements, along with essential fatty acids. It is also extremely rich in rutin (vitamin P), vital to strengthening capillaries and blood cell walls. Bee pollen targets the entire body, but is a special boost to the reproductive, immune and nervous systems. It is antibiotic, astringent, relaxant, tonic and nutritive. It helps to correct and stabilize our body chemistry. European studies have proven that one can live on nothing more than water and bee pollen. It contains every substance required to sustain life.

Bee pollen speeds healing, revitalizes the body's many systems, and helps protect the cells in our body from free radical damage—a major cause of cancer. It helps those who bruise easily, due to its rutin content, helps strengthen the heart, helps fight anemia, and helps to regulate high blood pressure by regulating blood flow. It is often used by athletes to increase endurance and strength. Taking bee pollen can actually help those with allergies overcome them.

Bee pollen helps to break down fats, and can help reduce or eliminate food cravings to help control weight. It is also beneficial to any suffering from intestinal inflammations and infections of all kinds, as well as helps to prevent indigestion, constipation and gas. It also acts as a bacterial inhibitor throughout the body. Many people who use bee pollen regularly, especially the elderly, claim to have better physical and mental health, suggesting that it may be a very effective tonic for aging systems.

Bee pollen has been used to boost the active compounds in many herbs, such as gotu kola, ginseng and schizandra. It is also used in compounds to treat burns, and in anti-aging formulas. Problems with allergies, anemia, chronic fatigue, impotence, infertility, kidney problems, menopause and the prostate can be alleviated with bee pollen.

Royal Jelly

Royal Jelly is manufactured for the nourishment of the hive's Queen Bee. It is such a powerful and nutritious food that it extends the life of the bee from one to two months, the average life span of a worker bee, to one of approximately five years. It is again not able to be synthetically reproduced by science. It is simply too complex, and contains compounds that have not yet been identified.

Royal Jelly is rich in natural hormones, minerals, B vitamins, folic acid, fatty acids, acetylcholine (a shortage in our bodies of this makes us susceptible to MS, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and other nerve diseases), amino acids, proteins, lipids and carbohydrates. It also contains aspartic acid, essential within our bodies for tissue regeneration and growth.

This food is anti-bacterial, anti-viral, antibiotic, nutritive, tonic and anti-aging. It is especially helpful to the respiratory, skeletal, nervous, reproductive, endocrine, cardiovascular, immune and cellular systems.

Royal Jelly is a hormonal stimulant and helps to keep the hormones and metabolic functions regulated and normalized. It aids in cell regeneration, a function that deteriorates as we age, and can help maintain skin tone and full hair, as well as treating skin problems. It is an energy enhancer for all ages, making it invaluable in treating chronic fatigue, sexual impotency, and revitalizing the body after a serious illness, surgeries or trauma.

Royal Jelly is also used in cases of senility, anxiety and depression of all kinds. It mimics the effect of amphetamines without any of the side effects or problems associated with them. Since this substance stimulates cell regeneration, it is believed to be invaluable in dealing with the brain's particular chemistry. The jelly has proven to lower serum cholesterol and lipid counts, and can help to prevent arteriosclerosis. It has also been shown to be beneficial to protecting the liver, build tissue and muscle, enhance bone growth and health, aid in sexual vitality, stimulate the memory, to regulate weight, and to support wound healing. It also has serious use for staph infections.

Royal Jelly can be purchased in several different forms. When in the jelly-like form, it should be kept refrigerated or frozen. It is also available in capsules, tablets, and stored in honey. The capsules and tablets are usually a freeze-dried form of the jelly and are just as potent as the fresh form. Any form that is not freeze-dried can spoil easily, so do pay attention to the labels.

Propolis

Propolis is a resinous substance that the bees gather from tree leaves and bark and combine with nectar, wax, pollen and bee bread to make a natural "glue" type substance. This glue is used to seal hive cracks and holes. It is also placed at the entrance to the beehive where incoming workers have to brush up against it as they enter the hive. This sterilizes the bees from infection and may disinfect them upon entry as well. Beehives are more sterile than the most modern hospitals. Propolis is also used to line the birthing chamber where the queen lays her eggs, thereby providing a clean, sterile environment for the developing eggs.

Propolis contains all the known vitamins except for vitamin K. Of all the 14 minerals the human body requires for normal function, propolis contains all but one, sulfur. It contains a number of unidentifiable compounds that create a perfectly balanced food substance. It also has 16 amino acids that have been identified, and more bioflavanoids (necessary for anti-inflammatory action within the human body) than found in oranges. It is antibacterial, antiviral, antioxidant, antifungal and anti-inflammatory.

This substance has been used throughout many centuries for its natural antibiotic capabilities. Propolis is still able to effectively combat bacterial strains which have become resistant to modern synthetic antibiotics. The bee is the only insect ever to have been found to be bacteria free, due to the action of the propolis. Propolis has no known side effects. It boosts the immune system while fighting invaders, something prescription antibiotics cannot do. It also has demonstrated a remarkable ability to disable viruses. When prescription antibiotics must be used, propolis has proven to boost the effectiveness of the prescription while strengthening the body and drastically reducing recovery times. Propolis is given to patients in Russia before and after surgery to aid in healing and prevent infection, and to boost energy levels during the recovery process. It is often mixed with garlic to make a powerful infection fighter, killing viruses and bacterial invaders without harming the beneficial bacteria needed by the body to function properly.

The bioflavanoids in propolis make it a superb anti-inflammatory. Propolis is very useful in treating allergies, ulcers, skin ailments (internal and external use), cancer, infections of all sorts, colds, flu, bronchitis, ear problems, gum disease, headaches, acne, sunburn, respiratory problems, fatigue, sore throats, skin diseases and even Parkinson's disease, according to extensive European studies.

Propolis is a safe diet supplement, producing no negative side effects, and taken regularly can actually create a positive reaction to almost any disease. In today's world where antibiotics are routinely over-prescribed, this bee product can be your very best first line of defense against illness and chronic disease.