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Bee Pollen by HLife Photography

There are so many different ways of verbally glorifying bee pollen because its just that holistically amazing. It’s a complete food famous since ancient times due to its nutritional properties and medicinal benefits. Throughout centuries, bee pollen has been referred to  via  a variety of names, among these “the semen of the plant kingdom,” “the original treasure house of nutrition and medicine,” “the ultimate superfood,” and “the proactive life force of the plant world.” My family and I like to refer to bee pollen as “the real gold nuggets.” In Spanish we called them “las pepitas de oro” (seeds of gold).

History: The Bible, the Talmund, the Torah, and the Koran, along with the scrolls of the Orient, the writings of Ancient Greece and Rome, and the legends of the Russian and Slavic people, all praise the many nutrients provided by the hard work of the bee as well as the species’ industrious  characteristics. Bee’s nectar is mentioned 68 times in the Bible. The book of the Hindu people, the Rig-Veda, written in Sanskrit before  2000 BC, demonstrates a high admiration for bees. Vishnu, the powerful Preserver and Protector of the Hindu trinity of gods, is often depicted as a blue bee on a lotus flower. In cultures that worshiped a goddess of fertility, (Venus, Diana, Ceres, Cybele, or Iris,) bees were considered sacred and were minor deities in their own right.  No other living creature, other than man, has been held in such high regard by so many diverse cultures.

Hippocrates, the Father of Medicine, believed that bee pollen contributed to longevity, and it looks like he may have been correct. Most of the modern Methuselahs who live in dry, desert-like climates like the one in Georgia (formerly the Soviet Union) are beekeepers, whose main daily nourishment consists of raw, unprocessed honey with bee pollen. “All of the 200 or more people past 125 years of age in Georgia, without exception, state that their principal food is pollen and honey – mostly pollen,” said Professor Nicolai Vasilievich Tsitsin, a biologist and experimental botanist at the Longevity Institute. Naum Petrovich Joirich, M.D., chief scientist at the Longevity Academy in Vladivostak, concurred: “long lives are attained by bee pollen users.”

Description: Bee pollen takes the shape of small granules that look like various shades of tiny yellow, orange and brown balls, that are soft and compacted.  To me, they look like drops of yellow gold. One pollen granule contains from 100,000 to five million pollen spores, each capable of reproducing its entire species. Bee’s gather the pollen (carrying it in their legs, as is depicted in the picture below), mix it with their own digestive enzymes, then form them into granules. The taste depends on the trees located in the area where the pollen was gathered, flowers they collect pollen from, and the environment (type of ecosystem, pollution, organic farm, natural habitat).  Bee pollen captures the essence of every plant that the bee collects its pollen from. Sometimes it is sweet and sometimes it is not.  My favorite is Viva Pura’s Australian Jarrah Bee Pollen, which is ethically wild crafted from a one million acre preserve. This bee pollen has been biologically and energetically tested by Gabriel Cousens, M.D., Director of the Tree of Life Rejuvenation Center, and discovered to be highly vibratory, full of life force energy – higher than any other food ever tested. Literally, it is the best bee pollen I have tasted, and it is my own version of candy.

Nutritional info: Bee Pollen contains all of the nutrients needed to sustain life. In fact, studies have shown that generations of mice have lived on bee pollen exclusively, with no signs of malnourishment.  Bee pollen is the perfect food for the human body, as it contains all the nutrients the body needs, and that’s why we call it a perfect food.

• ☀ Loaded with protein in amino acid form, so it is easily digestible and won’t putrefy in your intestines. Contains all essential amino acids, about 20-25% complete protein (some say up to 40%) with most containing at least 18 amino acids. It has five to seven times more protein than meat, eggs, or cheese and it is easily absorbed by the body: Clinical tests have shown that within two hours of ingestion, bee pollen is found in the blood, cerebral spinal fluids, and in the urine.

• ☀ A varied and high mineral content, with minerals such as calcium, potassium, chlorine, magnesium, copper, manganese, iron, zinc, as well as trace minerals such as iodine, silicon, boron, and sulfur. Minerals are needed for the intra and extracellular communication that emanates from DNA and for its repair.  Health and disease can both be traced back to either an adequate amount or a lack of minerals.

• ☀ Contains about 5,000 enzymes, co-enzymes, carbohydrates and essential fatty acids (alpha-linolenic and linolenic). Enzymes are necessary in the body for digestive and immune functions and the ones present in pollen are especially important for a balanced chemical metabolism – which makes it a great food for weight management.

• ☀ Helps to support the immune system.  In a study of 25 women suffering from inoperable uterine cancer,  the ones given bee pollen in their food quickly showed higher concentrations of cancer-fighting immune system cells, increased antibody production, and a improved level of infection-fighting and oxygen-carrying red blood cells.

• ☀ High in Vitamins A, E C, K, and almost all B’s including vitamin B12 (one of the few vegan sources of B12) and folic acid. Folic Acid is important for the synthesis of DNA and RNA as well as required for the metabolism of amino acids.

• ☀ Contains flavonoids that have significant antioxidant properties such as Luteolin, an agent in the prevention of inflammation, a promoter of carbohydrate metabolism, and an immune system modulator. Also, Quercetin, which acts like an antihistamine and an anti-inflammatory, and may help protect against heart disease and cancer. Tricetin and myricetin  are present too, and they are anti-cancer, anti-inflammatory, and promote heart and brain health. Antioxidants destroy the free radicals formed as a result of metabolism, which can potentially damage cells.

• ☀ Essential for mental health. Contains 15-20 % lecithin, which is the form of phosphorous for the brain, which we burn every time we think and need to replenish daily.

• ☀ It is high in nucleic acid (The NA in DNA and RNA), whose main function is to store and transmit genetic information and use that information to direct the synthesis of new protein. It’s the short-term energy storage for all life processes and plays an essential role in providing energy.

• ☀ The ultimate biogenic food. Dr. Eric Erickson from the university of Wisconsin found in his research that bees have a slight negative or neutral charge and when they come back to the hive they have a charge as high as 1.5 volts, same as their bee pollen. In other words ,pollen causes a positive electric charge.

• ☀ It’s been know to rejuvenate, stimulate organs and glands, rebuild the body after illnesses and improve physical performance.

• ☀ Helps the body normalize from diarrhea and constipation and reduce upper respiratory infections

• ☀ Protects red and white blood cells from radiation and increases blood hemoglobin.

• ☀ Detoxifies by flushing out artery-clogging biochemical deposits.

• ☀ Protects the skin against dehydration and stimulates its growth.

• ☀ Research has shown that bee pollen contains a substance that inhibits the development of numerous harmful bacteria, including E. Coli.

• ☀  Bee pollen stimulates metabolism and curbs the appetite due to its Phenylalanine content, one of the essential amino acids and also a powerful antioxidant.

Preparation: Simple – I put it in my morning smoothie every day.  Also, can be mixed with water, nut milk and cereal, eaten by itself or sprinkled in salads.

NOTE: Some people may be allergic to bee pollen and as little as 1 teaspoon can trigger serious reaction. People with pollen allergies should refrain from ingesting bee pollen.

Sources: http://www.draperbee.com/info/beepollen.htm, http://www.ebeehoney.com/beepollenbenefit.html, Spiritual Nutrition by Gabriel Cousens M.D., Healthy Healing by Linda Page, http://www.indianchild.com/bees.htm, http://74.125.155.132/search?q=cache:qVQg4Nn-R58J:www.angelfire.com/clone2/nucleic_acids/functions.htm+nucleic+acid+function&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us&client=firefox-a,