What's propolis and is it healthy

Written by Eva De Angelis - Nutritionist

As the bees produce honey, part of their saliva is mixed with bees wax and various plant components, creating a resinous and waxy substance that they use to seal the hive to give it structural stability but also to prevent intruders from entering.

This substance is known as propolis. The origin of this word derives from the Greek, "pro" meaning "at the entrance of" and "polis" meaning "community", literally translated as “that which is found at the entrance of the community”. There’s no better name to describe precisely what propolis does for bees.

However, propolis not only works as a glue-like agent for bee hives, but it also has great health benefits for our health. Read on no know more!

Like royal jelly, propolis is known all over the world and ancient civilizations such as the Greeks, Egyptians, and Assyrians have used it for thousands of years as traditional medicine, for embalming mummies, and it was even used to help heal wounds during World War II.

Roughly there are at least 300 compounds present in propolis. The exact composition is complex and it varies depending on the location of the beehive since each one has access to different types of plants.

Raw propolis is made of around 50% tree and vegetable resins, 30% beeswax, 10% essential oils, 5% pollen, and 5% of other organic compounds, like flavonoids a group of highly beneficial antioxidants, part of the polyphenols family.

Propolis can have potent effects on human health and is used for a wide variety of purposes, recent studies suggest that it might be possibly effective as an antibacterial, antifungal, and anti-inflammatory agent, among other things.

There are some ointments or creams available in the markets that have propolis as a bioactive compound to treat minor wounds, cold sores, or genital herpes. You can find a wide variety, with concentrations of propolis going from 0.5% up to 3% of it.

Since it’s filled with antioxidants propolis can help inhibit swelling and fight inflammation, like the one that causes arthritis; some research indicates that the antioxidants found in propolis can regulate the inflammatory substances present in our body, therefore acting as anti-inflammatory agents.

Thanks to its antibacterial and anti-inflammatory properties, propolis is found as a bioactive ingredient in mouthwashes and toothpaste that can improve our oral health.

Propolis present in these types of oral care products helps us to reduce plaque formation having a significant impact on preventing cavities. As an antibacterial agent, it kills the bacteria found in our mouth, inhibits bacterial enzymes responsible for breaking down sugars, which leads to dental decay, and if bacteria survive, it prevents them from continuing to thrive.

In addition, taking propolis orally, using propolis toothpaste, or rinsing the mouth with a propolis mouthwash may help faster healing of sores caused by some oral medications.

Even do propolis can be highly beneficial to our health, there’s still insufficient evidence and more research is needed to prove its possible effects in the treatment of diabetes, cancer, and COVID-19.

While propolis is generally safe, as it can contain a wide variety of compounds depending on where the beehive from which it was obtained is located, some of these components may cause an adverse reaction. 

It is best to look for propolis products that are completely approved for sale and use on humans, and from reliable manufacturers who perform third-party testing on their products to verify that it is pure and safe to use.