Bee Therapy: Cautions

Therapists say that most of the allergic reactions attributed to honeybee venom are actually to yellow jacket or wasp venom. However, if you are allergic to bee venom, you should be very careful when using this therapy, and get professional supervision. Furthersome, in case you have an undetected allergy, be sure to keep bee-venom allergy kit (including syringe and epinephrine) on hand.


Health shakes (blended drinks from juice bars) often contain bee pollen or other bee products. If you are allergic, such drinks can cause dangerous reactions. Be sure you know what’s in a drink before you consume it.


If you have heart disease, hypertension, tuberculosis, or diabetes, avoid apitherapy.


Children less than a year old should never be given honey (raw or otherwise), since it may contain bacteria that can be harmful to them.


People with compromised immune systems should use caution when eating raw honey, this may contain infection causing fungus.


Recommended dosage levels have not yet been established for bee products. Therefore, exercise caution when using any of them.

 

Bee Therapy: Propolis - Called as "Bee Glue"

Propolis is a sticky resin that seeps from the buds of certain trees (the bees prefer poplar) and oozes from the bark of others (chiefly conifers). Worker bees collect it; add their salivary secretions to it, and use it to coat the inside of the hive. Propolis has been shown to contain antibacterial compounds and can be effective as a salve for cuts and bruises.

Bee Therapy: Royal Jelly

Royal Jelly is a milky white substance produced in the salivary glands of worker bees as a food source for the queen bee and it may be what dramatically extends the queen’s life and enhances her fertility. There have been numerous claims about royal jelly’s beneficial effects on a variety of medical problems, including fatigue, infertility, asthma, and lack of appetite; these are mainly anecdotal and not substantiated in clinical testing. Interestingly, however, animal an human studies have shown that royal jelly contains ingredients capable of lowering cholesterol levels in the blood. Based on the queen bee, royal jelly occasionally appears as an ingredient in women’s cosmetics, especially wrinkle creams. However, there is no evidence that royal jelly retards aging (or aging skin) in anyone except bees.

Bee Therapy: Raw Honey

Raw Honey is quick source of energy (like sugar) and a natural storehouse of B vitamins and various minerals. It has mild antibacterial and antibiotic properties, and it can help soothe sore throats. Those who use it believe that raw honey, which has not been filtered, heat treated, or processed in any way, is more healthful than processed honey. In some studies, raw honey has been used to suppress bacterial growth, particularly in open wounds.

Bee Therapy: Bee Pollen

Bee Pollen is typically marketed as an energy-boosting nutritional supplement. This bee product contains vitamins, minerals, and protein.

Some practitioners believe that bee pollen is a beneficial treatment for seasonal allergies, because ingesting small amounts builds up resistance to pollen.

Bee Therapy: Bee Venom & Health Benefits

Bee Venom is administered either by needle or by actual bee sting. Chemical studies show that venom contains a number of powerful anti-inflammatory substances, including adolapin and melittin. Said to be a hundred times more powerful than hydrocortisone, melittin stimulates the production of cortisol, a natural steroid that also acts as an anti-inflammatory. Not surprisingly, bee venom therapy is often used for conditions that involve inflammation, such ads tendinitis, bursitis, and rheumatoid and osteoarthritis.

Health Benefits of Bee Venom Therapy:

• Decrease spasms and fatigue in multiple sclerosis patients
• To Increase patient’s stability

Bee Therapy, Apitherapy, Health Benefits by Honey Bee Products

Apitherapy is the term given to the medicinal use of honey bee as well as honey bee products. Besides bee venom, the other most popular form of Apitherapy treatments are honey and pollen. They are most commonly taken as pills, powders, and injections.


Apitherapy, or bee therapy, is the use of products of the common honeybee for therapeutic purposes. Honeybee venom, bee pollen, raw honey, royal jelly, and propolis are the products generally considered to have medicinal effects. These products are said to be effective against a wide range of ailments, from arthritis and chronic pain to multiple sclerosis and cancer.


Today thousands of medical professional and lay practitioners use apitherapy throughout the world.


The five popular products work in different ways to treat various ailments and conditions.


Honey Bee Products:

• Bee Venom
• Bee Pollen
• Raw Honey
• Royal Jelly
• Propolis

Health Benefits of Apitherapy or Bee Therapy:


There have been few controlled scientific studies proving the value of bee venom, bee pollen, raw honey, royal jelly, or propolis, but there are many anecdotal reports about their health benefits.



Because of its anti-inflammatory properties, bee venom is commonly used to relieve chronic back and neck pain. Some apitherapists report that bee venom can also help break down and soften scar tissue, flattening scares and lightening them. This idea is supported by the fact that bee venom contains powerful enzymes that can break through scar tissue.