History of Bee Medicine: Royal Jelly, Propolis, and Bee Bread

It’s not just modern scientific studies that believe bee products have natural healing powers. In fact, bee products have been used for centuries as natural health remedies. Ancient civilizations like the Egyptians, Persians, Greeks and Romans used Bee products as medicines, with the earliest evidence of beekeeping being 15,000 years ago. These cultures believed that bees were so valuable they were worth immortalizing for their contributions to human civilization. 

Natural Medicine Sources for Early Humans

The Egyptians made hieroglyphs of Bees, and even named a Pharaoh the “King of Bees”. The Greeks depicted bees as part of the Gods, and had 15 different authors write about them. Aristotle wrote about beekeeping in his Historia Animalium book, discussing methods for curing bruises and sores with bee Propolis, and Pedanios Dioscorides wrote in his book De Materia Medica that propolis from bees can help cure sore throats and coughs. 

The Romans revered bee products for curing many ailments; like wound care, reducing tumors, reducing joint pain, treatment for ulcers, and abscesses. The ancient Persians are known to use bee propolis for treatment of Eczema, myalgia, and rheumatism. 

Knowledge Lost and Found

Coming through the middle ages, this natural medicine source was all but forgotten. Thankfully, it survived in Eastern Europe as an herbal folk remedy, It was revived through the Renaissance and cataloged in herbal remedy books where botanists documented treatment methods and tincture preparations for bee propolis and other bee products, such as The History of Plants by John Gerard in 1597, or Nicholas Culpepper in his book Complete Herbal published in the 17th century. 

The folklore slowly became scientifically supported, where it remains today. Scientists continue to study all the amazing benefits of Bee Products, like Bee Propolis, Bee Bread, and Royal Jelly. Thankfully, it’s also now available for us non-beekeepers to enjoy. The most effective version is Bee Pearl Powder, which contains Bee Propolis, Bee Bread, and Royal Jelly. By just adding some to a smoothie in the morning, you too can enjoy the health benefits that humans have been experiencing since 13,000 BCE.