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| Propolis / Bee Products |
Last updated: Jun 30, 2009 |
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One of the most well-documented products from the honey bee, propolis (also called Russian penicillin or bee glue) is known in countries outside the United States as a powerful, natural antibiotic. The former Soviet Union performed many scientific studies on the effects of propolis.
This sticky, brown resinous substance is collected by honeybees from various plants and mixed with wax to sterilize their home against infection and for use as a multi-purpose cement and varnish. Propolis is harvested from the beehive and is made available in various forms to be used internally or externally. Propolis is available in capsule and tincture form to be taken internally to help fight infections. Because of its antibacterial and antifungal qualities it is a frequent ingredient in salves, lozenges, chewing gum and toothpastes.
Exact dosing recommendations cannot be made due to differences between various products. Capsules of 500mg are often recommended from 1 to 4 times daily. Follow product directions or your doctors instructions.
While the claim is seen that propolis has proven safe for human use, caution is advised for people sensitive to bee stings. Some of those allergic to bee stings have allergic reactions to propolis as well. Furthermore, people suffering from bronchial asthma and eczema may be more sensitive to bee products. It is not yet proven whether propolis itself or protein residues left by bees in propolis cause these allergic reactions. Another bee product, royal jelly, is associated with a higher risk of serious allergic reactions. Most such reports regarding royal jelly have been in asthma sufferers.
The antimicrobial activity of Manuka honey has been compared to other honey in several studies.
Different honeys have been tested against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus, which are microorganisms that infect wounds. These two organisms were most sensitive to manuka honey, illustrating the presence of its special constituents. Both manuka honey and heather honey, which has activity due primarily to hydrogen peroxide, inhibited Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, but only manuka honey inhibited a number of other bacteria.
Both manuka and kanuka honey had high antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus aureus, and most of the effectiveness of manuka honey was attributed to a substance other than hydrogen peroxide.
Manuka honey has been found to be effective against Helicobacter pylori, which is the pathogen responsible for gastric or peptic ulcers and implicated in gastric cancer. Helicobacter pylori isolated from biopsies of gastric ulcers were sensitive to a 20% solution of manuka honey, but were not affected by a 40% solution of another honey in which the antibacterial activity was primarily due to its hydrogen peroxide content. Growth of these bacteria was prevented completely by a 5% solution of manuka honey.
An extensive article on the use of Manuka Honey can be viewedhere.
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 Propolis / Bee Products can help with the following: | | | | | | Allergy |  Allergic Rhinitis / Hay Fever | Some patients have reported a resolution of hay fever symptoms after contacting a local bee keeper and asking for some cappings. Cappings are the waxy sealant the bees use to seal the honeycomb cells. Normally this is cut away and discarded by the bee keeper when collecting the honey. Consuming some of this capping several times a day for 2 weeks may help reduce your allergic response to local pollens. |
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Circulation |
 Poor/Slow Wound Healing| | The topical use of honey has long been recognized as an aid to wound and ulcer recovery. An extensive article on the use of Manuka Honey can be viewedhere.
MEDIHONEY Wound & Burn Dressings are being distributed during November 2007 to physicians, hospitals and acute rehabilitation clinics. The product marks the first FDA clearance of a honey-based product for managing wounds and burns.
"Clinical studies of MEDIHONEY have shown it has promise over current treatments because of its strong wound healing benefit," said Ed Quilty, CEO of Derma Sciences (OTCBB:DSCI), the manufacturer and marketer of MEDIHONEY and other advanced wound care products.
The dressings are made with Leptospermum Honey, the pollen and nectar of which comes from the Manuka bush, a wild shrub indigenous to New Zealand. The medicinal honey is harvested by beekeepers, filtered and then sterilized and standardized. Leptospermum honey dressings have been in use for some time throughout the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand. In July 2007 the FDA cleared them for use in wound and burn care, making them the first honey-based products cleared for medical use in the Untied States. Over the past decade, researchers have begun to report the unique characteristics and components of Leptospermum honey, making this particular variety of honey ideal for wound management. |
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Digestion |
Gastric/Peptic Ulcers| | An extensive article on the use of Manuka Honey can be viewedhere. |
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Infections |
 MRSA| | UMF Manuka Honey dressings kill MRSA, something many of our strongest antibiotics cannot do, and what's more, they are available on the NHS. Professor Molan is one of the world’s leading authorities on the use of Manuka honey in wound care. He has conducted numerous clinical trials that document the success of Manuka Honey in killing MRSA and treating various other bacterial infections associated with open wounds and ulcers at New Zealand’s Waikato Hospital.
It is believed that although honey cannot combat MRSA once it has reached the bloodstream, it can stop the initial wound infection spreading within the body, and can also halt the spread of the bug to other patients. |
Pharyngitis| | Propolis has proven effective in helping to deal with a wide variety of infections including sore throat. [Doroshenko, P. N. (1978, 1981, 1990) (U.S.S.R.)] |
Helicobacter Pylori Infection| | In a clinical trial of 45 patients with dyspepsia, the subjects were given 30ml (about 1 ounce) of raw honey three times a day. After treatment, the number of patients with blood in their stools caused by peptic ulcers decreased from 37 to 4; the number of patients with dyspepsia decreased from 41 to 8; the number with gastritis or duodenitis, as viewed by endoscope, decreased from 24 to 15; and the number with duodenal ulcers decreased from 7 to 2. In another study on gastric ulcers, the healing rate from raw honey was 70%, measured as the number of honey-treated ulcers compared to the untreated control group. A study in 1994 showed that the Manuka antibacterial factor in raw active Manuka honey completely halted the growth of Helicobacter pylori (the bacteria responsible for upper G.I. dyspepsia of stomach ulcers) at concentrations as low as 5%, but the hydrogen peroxide components in other honeys did not, even at concentrations as high as 50%. |
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Risks |
Cancer / Risk Reduction - General Measures| | Bee propolis, a sticky resin collected by bees from trees, is a COX-2 inhibitor, according to Dr. Gaynor. Dr. Rao has found bee propolis very effective for cancer prevention in animals, noting, "You can use it in lower doses than curcumin because it is highly absorbable." It is typically sold as 500mg capsules. |
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Uro-Genital |
Female Infertility| | Forty women with primary infertility of at least 2 years' duration, and mild or minimal endometriosis, were randomly assigned to receive bee propolis (500mg BID) or placebo for 9 months. Twelve (60%) of 20 women in the active-treatment group became pregnant, compared with 4 (20%) of 20 in the placebo group. No side effects were reported. [Fertil Steril 2003;80(Suppl 3): p.S32] |
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KEY | | May do some good | | | Likely to help | | | Highly recommended |
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