Apitherapy is the use of honey bee products in treating illnesses and diseases. Apis means “bee” while “therapy” is a treatment intended to relieve or heal a disorder. The different products derived from the beehive which can be used in apitherapy are: honey, pollen, propolis, venom, wax and royal jelly.
Being from different cultural and ethnic backgrounds, we all have been exposed to honey bees and their products in unique ways. Despite our differences, collectively, we share great interest in the application of honey, bee venom (BV) and propolis in contemporary medicinal practices. In the following paragraphs each member shares their personal exposure with bees and why they have an interest in the medicinal use of BV.
Mai
As a young boy, my father intentionally interfered with bees in order to get stung. Now, being an adult, he is immune to bee stings, showing no signs of inflammation after a bee sting. The first time I got stung by a bee I was 7 years old. It hurt so badly and one thing was sure: “I would not walk in my father’s footsteps, when it comes to the subject bee stings.”
In university, a classmate mentioned that BV contains certain chemicals which are beneficial to multiple sclerosis (MS) patients. Although my first experience was unpleasant, I started to believe that bees can be useful. Good story: it reveals the sources of your curiosities and it draws out social issues.
Morayo
“They sting! Keep away!” this was my initial perception of bees. Later on, I learned that bees can be useful. As a child, my parents gave me lime and honey to alleviate tonsillitis (inflammation of the tonsils). Eventually, I started using honey to exfoliate my skin. My interest in bees was greatly influenced by modern biology classes i...
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...iation for the Study of Pain, 9(4), 289–297. doi:10.1016/j.jpain.2007.11.012.
Vynograd, N., Vynograd, I., & Sosnowski, Z. (2000). A comparative multi-centre study of the efficacy of propolis, acyclovir and placebo in the treatment of genital herpes (HSV). Phytomedicine. 7(1), 1¬6. Retrieved from Founder's Library, St. George's University
Viuda-Martos, M., Ruiz-Navajas, Y., Fern´andez-L´opez, J., & P´erez-´Alvarez, J. A. (2008). Functional Properties of Honey, Propolis, and Royal Jelly Journal of Food Science. 73(9) 117¬124. doi:10.1111/j.1750-3841.2008.00966.x
Effect of honey bee venom on microglial cells nitric oxide and tumor
necrosis factor-_ production stimulated by LPS
SangMi Hana,∗, KwangGill Lee a, JooHong Yeo a, HaeYong Kweona, SoonOk Woo a,
MyeongLyeol Lee a, HaJu Baekb, SunYeou Kimc, KwanKyu Park d
Journal of Ethnopharmacology 111 (2007) 176–181
According to Medline Plus, the herpes simplex virus, also known as HSV, causes the infection known as Herpes. There are two types of HSV; there is Oral herpes that causes cold sores around the mouth or face and Oral herpes, or HSV 1, usually causes cold sores, however it is quite easy to transmit this disease to the genital area and can cause genital herpes. There is also HSV 2 and that is the usual cause of genital herpes, and like HSV 1, HSV 2 can infect the mouth. HSV 2 is also known as genital herpes and can affects the anal, buttocks or genital areas. This is a sexually transmitted disease, however there are other herpes infections that can affect the eyes, skin, or other parts of the body. Herpes can be dangerous in newborn babies or in individuals with weak immune systems.
Throughout The Secret Life of Bees , there is no shortage of symbolism, coming directly from its namesake, bees. Each connection draws upon the deep and rich meaning behind this wonderful composed text. The bees, however, never are a scapegoat. Similar to Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird character Atticus, they never allow for shortcuts or disillusion with reality. They force you to see the world as it is, and to accept it, and send love to it, for it is all you can, when you are as insignificant as a
There was also a specific process for the bees that were used and the process of stinging. Only guard bees were taken from the entrance of a hive. The guard bees were located because of t...
Many people know very little about how honey bees have been apart of our history from colonial times. Why were honey bees important to the colonial beekeeper? How were the bees kept? Does beekeeping now, vary from what it was then? These are all questions that must be asked. The honey bee is a unique insect that has been apart of the history of our country for centuries. Beekeeping has changed over time yet many of the essential results of keeping honey bees are unchanged. Lets look at their similarities and differences.
It is not unusual for bees to die or colonies to be lost, but the nature and extent reported in the year 2006 was alarming. Statistics gathered in the United States alone show that 50-90% of the bees have been lost so far, due to this scientific phenomenon (Cox-Foster et al., 2007, p. 284). Honeybees play a very major role in the pollination of plants and therefore these huge losses have become a serious concern. There are many reasons that have been floated and acclaimed to be behind CCD and they include pesticides, parasites, electromagnetic radiation, malnutrition, climatic changes, and urban sprawl, among many others.... ...
Think for a moment of a world without bees; a world without our buzzing friend. They might look like they barely do much to help our ecosystem. However, bees are a vital part of our agriculture and this makes it vital that we keep them around. The bee population decline in recent years is troubling for both us and our little friends. As their friends, we must do all we can in order to ensure their survival which in turn will ensure our own.
Initially, I didn’t care much about bees until after I received this assignment. Although I may be allergic to bees, they do help my everyday life. I don’t want food prices to go up because we can’t save some bees. We spend trillions on protection, when we have no war. How about take a few million to save the bees, and possibly save man.
...nator health by preserving wild habitat 3. Restore ecological agriculture(ref.) through several bee decline contributing factors, and are still in the process of investigating the effectiveness. Pollination plays a significant role in the food production process for notably fruits and certain vegetables, and bees including other pollinators provide beneficial services to the ecosystem, human nutrition, health and wellbeing. There are currently many participation in campaigns, investigations, studies, advertisement, and clubs to help save the bees, and raise awareness. "Honeybees are the modern canary in the coal mine, and they have a very important message to impart to our planet; they are telling us that we are out of sync with nature and that we need to come together for the greater good of Mother Earth and be the change we want to see.” - Director Maryam Henein
Prunella Vulgaris is flavinoid rich, an anti-inflammatory, high in tannins, and used in many existing herpes treatments. Tea Tree Oil is also an anti-viral, though it has no effect on the herpes virus after it has penetrated the cell and can be irritating to mucous membranes. St. John’s Wort is a very old traditional treatment studied since the early 90’s with no definitive effect on the herpes virus. St John’s Wort also interacts with numerous drugs, including oral contraceptives, serotonin reuptake inhibitors and triptans (migrane medications). Aloe Vera has anti-viral qualities and helps soothe and speed healing of existing lesions. Geranium Maculatum was an addition to the ingredients that puzzled us, as this is an herbal remedy that was used in the 1800’s primarily to treat diarrhea, and has no known effect or benefit to treat herpes. Geranium Maculatum is also high in
Others include birds, butterflies, and the wind; however, honey bees, by far, are the best at pollinating plants. Collecting pollen is their whole life’s purpose, according to Michigan State University’s article, “Native Plants and Ecosystem Services”. Over one hundred forty three million acres of plants in America are sprayed with a bee-killing insecticide that has been banned in Europe by the European Food Safety Authority (Sarich). Promote ecological farming, and ban all bee-harming pesticides.
With devastation around the globe, it is no wonder that bees have only recently become an importance. Consequently, the bees’ current situation is now considered a global issue, risking the health of our ecosystem and health of the human race. There is a need for people to recognize just how significant the decline and possible extinction of bees will affect us, and the impact it will have on not only the ecosystem, but also the high demand of key crops, fruits, and vegetables. In the articles “Bees in Decline” by Reyes Tirado, Gergely Simon, and Paul Johnston, and “Bee-Ware Investigating Bee Colony Decline and its Ecological Effects on Human Health” by Daryl A. Mangosing, both authors have imperative evidence to support their main ideas.
The lives of humans and honeybees have been intertwined for millennia. For at least 8,000 years, humans have sought honey for applications in disciplines ranging from medicine to the culinary arts. But while humans love honey, honeybees provide a much more valuable service: pollination. As the world’s most prolific pollinator, honeybees are essential to the reproduction of many plant species, which in turn benefits other animals and plants. In fact, humans heavily rely on honeybees to pollinate our own food source, a service that is worth billions of dollars a year. Unfortunately, the honeybee population is in a severe and prolonged decline, often in the form of colony collapse disorder, in which entire colonies are seemingly abandoned by adult bees overnight. Honeybees are an indispensable component of modern agriculture, and a failure to discern and address the many causes of honeybee population decline – both manmade and natural – could have disastrous consequences for the environment and human society.
Proposal The first step in bee conservation would be to accurately determine the cause of death of bees in the United Kingdom. This would use about £30million to set up research labs across the country. Stricter guidelines for bee keepers would be developed so that dead bees can be analysed by researchers to better understand the cause of death. Bee keepers need to be vigilant about reporting colony deaths and sending found bee bodies to appropriate researchers to investigate the cause of death.... ...
Bees are an insect well known to all mainly due to their sweet tasting honey and ferocious sting, but what most people don’t realise is the importance of these tiny creatures to the ecosystem. Honey Bees (scientific name Apis) live in hives and there are three different levels of bee here, all with different jobs. Firstly, there’s the workers, these are female bees that are not sexually developed and have to do all the hives hard work such as collecting food, cleaning, feeding and taking care of the larvae and male bees. Next there is the Queen who really lives up to her title, the queen bee lives a life of relative luxury and her only job is to lay the eggs. The last are the drones, the male bees. The drone bee makes up a small amount of the hives population and their sole purpose is procreation. Bees have a very interesting way of mating, the queen bee will fly 200-300 feet into the air where she will encounter and mate with several drone bees, very few drone bees actually get to mate with the queen bee, but it’s not exactly lucky for the few that do as as soon as they mate, they d...
Bees are small flying insects, buzzing around with its painful stings which always make people afraid and annoyed. What generally relate with bees are their roles in pollination and producing honey and beeswax. So it seems that bees might be nothing to human as it’s easy to find substitutes for honey as flavoring. However, this perception is mistaken. Without bees, aftermath.