Did you know that bees produce substances other than honey that are beneficial to human health?
That’s right, honey is not the only thing these bees are hustling and bustling for. Royal jelly and propolis are both substances that are rich in flavonoids (natural compounds found in a variety of foods that could lower blood pressure) and are found to be antioxidants (found in plant-based food that could help fight off harmful free radicals that are linked to diabetes and cancer). Both are highly beneficial for humans, but what exactly are these substances and how are they helping to boost our health?
Royal jelly, as its name suggests, is a nutrient that has been consumed by royalty for decades. Not only was it used and incorporated into the lifestyles of royal figures like the late Queen Elizabeth II. It was also used by empires such as the Inca of indigenous Colombia and was even produced and used as a beauty product for Cleopatra. The product later became synonymous with strength, leading to a rise in its consumption by the Pharaohs of ancient Egypt. However, royal jelly is not just used by human royals only. It seems it has played a very big role in the developmental process of queen bees and the running of the hive.
In its purest form, royal jelly is a substance, rich in protein, that has been excreted from the glands of worker bees. So, essentially, it is the bee’s version of a mother’s milk. There are many benefits that royal jelly can bring to humans, which include improving the skin’s health, maintaining normal blood pressure levels, and having antioxidant properties. Some research even suggests that it could provide anti-aging effects as well as reduce the side effects of cancer treatment. The application of royal jelly is very simple since it can be consumed directly, applied in a gel or paste form, or even as a liquid form to drink. You can find royal jelly in soaps, face masks, supplements and even powders.
The ethics around Royal jelly, although widely used, are to be debated. One of the ways Royal Jelly is produced is by beekeepers ‘tricking’ bee colonies into producing more queens to harvest the royal jelly. They do this by stimulating worker bees to produce extra queen cells which hold royal jelly inside. Some producers even go as far as purchasing artificially inseminated queens from producers; therefore, it is essential to do your research on how these products are made before buying Royal Jelly from different brands.
Royal jelly is easy to come by, but a doctor’s visit prior to consuming wouldn’t be such a harmful thing to do at all. In fact, although royal jelly has been proven to be beneficial for all sorts of illnesses, you could be allergic to some of the ingredients, especially the ones that have been added to commercial royal jelly sold in the stores. So, a quick reminder is to always make sure that you double and triple check that ingredients list before buying royal jelly.
