Normally when we think of bees, we associate it with the delicious, thick, rich taste of honey. But actually, there is another substance that bees work hard for that we should pay attention to as well. While honey has been used as a natural remedy for coughs, colds, and sore throats, it contains nowhere as much nutrients as bee pollen does!
Raw honey is a good source of carbohydrates, helping to fuel brain and muscle function. But bee pollen in comparison is a complete food source, made up of about 55% carbs, 30% protein, 1-2% fat, 3% minerals and traces of vitamin. You’ll also find amino acids, enzymes, fatty acids, and other beneficial trace elements all totalling over 100 nutrients! Bee pollen is absolutely a “complete balanced meal” for your body.
You might already be sold on how amazing bee pollen is, but having all the nutrients your body needs is just one of the benefits bee pollen may give you.
Another advantage to bee pollen might be helping with your digestion. Bee pollen can possibly regulate your intestines, relieving constipation and diarrhea. Pollen also self-digests and may create a speedy combustion to burn fats faster and increase your metabolic rate, so when taken with proper exercise and diet it could help with weight loss as well!
For those of you who often feel tired, get sick easily, have allergies, take a while to recovery from injuries, and just generally need a boost in the way your body runs, bee pollen may be the answer to helping you bring a spring in your step and give you longevity.
According to researchers at the Institute of Apiculture, Taranov, Russia: "Honeybee pollen is the richest source of vitamins found in Nature in a single food. Even if bee pollen had none of its other vital ingredients, its content of rutin alone would justify taking at least a teaspoon daily, if for no other reason than strengthening the capillaries. Pollen is extremely rich in rutin and may have the highest content of any source, plus it provides a high content of the nucleics RNA [ribonucleic acid] and DNA."
Rutin is a bioflavanoid that has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-diabetic properties. It helps the body fight off diseases, aid in certain intestinal issues and has been used by doctors to treat edema.
The most amazing thing about bee pollen, aside from the benefits you’ve just read, may be that bee pollen cannot be replicated in a laboratory setting. When researchers took away bee’s pollen filled combs and feed them manmade pollen, the bees died even though all the known nutrients were present in the lab produced food. It seems that there may be something magical in natural bee pollen that cannot be identified by science just yet.
Perhaps the missing factor is the amount of labour and love bees put into harvesting bee pollen. A honey bee will arrive at a flower and gather just enough loose pollen to fill it’s baskets before having to make the trip back to the hive. One run results in only a single golden granule each time. For just a teaspoon dose of pollen, a bee would have had to work 8 hours a day for a month to gather! So next time you take a dosage of bee pollen, be thankful for the 2.5 billion grains of pollen bees had to gather in order for you to receive the nourishing benefits of this superfood.
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Reference:
Attia, YA, A. Al-Hanoun, and F. Bovera. "Effect of Different Levels of Bee Pollen on Performance and Blood Profile of New Zealand White Bucks and Growth Performance of Their Offspring during Summer and Winter Months." National Center for Biotechnology Information. U.S. National Library of Medicine, Feb. 2011. Web. 29 Feb. 2016. <http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20455966>.
Beck, Leslie. "Could Bee Pollen Be the Answer for Everything from Colds to Cancer?" The Globe and Mail. 19 Jan. 2015. Web. 29 Feb. 2016. <http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/health-and-fitness/health/whats-the-buzz-about-bee-pollen-is-it-a-healthy-supplement/article22519896/>.
Corleone, Jill. "Allergy Symptoms From Bee Pollen." LIVESTRONG.COM. LIVESTRONG.COM, 21 Aug. 2015. Web. 29 Feb. 2016. <http://www.livestrong.com/article/171559-allergy-symptoms-from-bee-pollen/>.
Komosinska-Vassev, Katarzyna, Pawel Olczyk, Justyna Kaźmierczak, Lukasz Mencner, and Krystyna Olczyk. "Bee Pollen: Chemical Composition and Therapeutic Application." Evidence-based Complementary and Alternative Medicine : ECAM. Hindawi Publishing Corporation, 11 Mar. 2015. Web. 29 Feb. 2016. <http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4377380/>.
Mercola, Joseph. "The Use of Bee Pollen as a Superfood." Mercola.com. Web. 25 Feb. 2016. <http://www.mercola.com/article/diet/bee_pollen.htm>.
Tremblay, Sylvie. "How to Take Bee Pollen for Weight Loss." LIVESTRONG.COM. LIVESTRONG.COM, 24 June 2015. Web. 02 Mar. 2016. <http://www.livestrong.com/article/400600-how-to-take-bee-pollen-for-weight-loss/>.
