Why We All Need To Be Listening To Classical Music

In  our first years as beekeepers, we found that honey was becoming more widely known for its antimicrobial properties and its benefit for a healing dressing on wounds and burns.  It was also being used more readily in treatment of skin conditions like pityriasis, tinea, seborrhea, dandruff, diaper dermatitis, psoriasis, and  hemorrhoids.  In cosmetics  it was known for moisturizing, softening, soothing, and hair conditioning effects,  helping keep the skin young-looking and slowing wrinkle formation, regulating pH and preventing infections.  All this had been known for decades, but honey had not been used widely in the US until recently.

We were excited to learn about these benefits of the honey our bees make.   But, we have found that honey is hard to keep in-solution in all natural cosmetic products without adding a chemical emulsifier to keep it mixed with the oils (honey is water based).  It tends to separate out of balms and ointments, and we just didn’t want to add artificial chemicals to our products.

Fortunately, we quickly found a solution!  We discovered something just as effective, or maybe even better that the bee’s honey – PROPOLIS, the sticky tree resin-based goo the bees make to seal and sterilize their hive.  It can be used to help with many conditions and health ailments, both inside and out, in ourselves and our animals.  And we find it  easier to keep it mixed in our skin care products.  We’ve used it ourselves for three years, and are truly amazed at what it can do!

As we have noted many times in our blog, over 50 years of research has proven that propolis contains flavonoids and plant esters that have  antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties. (see previous blogs about propolis for additional research we have reported on.)   One study from 2011  found that poplar bud extract significantly regulated genes involved in antioxidant defenses, inflammatory response and cell renewal, processes involved in skin aging. Poplar bud resin is the main component of bee propolis. The  antioxidant properties  suggest potential anti-aging properties in propolis which could be utilized in cosmetic and nutraceutical formulations. (Stéphanie Dudonné, Pascal Poupard, Philippe Coutière, Marion Woillez, Tristan Richard, Jean-Michel Mérillon, Xavier Vitrac)

Beyond just the daily use of propolis in normal skin care routine, research has shown that propolis can be effective in treating many bothersome skin conditions.  In a 2013 study, propolis was used as a topical treatment for psoriasis.  While testing was done on mice, the conclusion was that propolis extract could possibly  treat psoriatic lesions by reducing the inflammatory cells without any