Also known as bee glue.

It is well known that Honey resists spoiling because it is free from germs. Honey has been put on wounds and Soviet surgeons often feed honey to their patients prior to surgery as a precaution to reduce infection.

Nature has provided Bees with a substance that keeps them and their hives free of germs in spite of 40,000- 50,000 bees being crammed into close quarters in the hive.

The protective substance is called "Propolis" which is a name derived from two Greek words meaning "defenses before a town". The bees places Propolis near the opening of the hive to sterilize anything entering it.

Bees encase any foreign object that entering the hive in a cocoon of propolis to prevent decay. Small creatures that have the misfortune of entering the hive are stung to death and entombed in propolis and wax.

Crude honey from natural hives contains bits of propolis which keeps it sterile. The Assyrians and Egyptians may have learned of the antiseptic and embalming property of propolis-rich honey from the bees. These ancients buried their dead in honey and wax.

Bees do not make propolis; they gather it from the buds of trees such as the poplar and horse-chestnut, and from cracks in the bark of trees such as spruce, larch and other conifers.

Propolis is not a single compound, but a varying mixture if many compounds including nutrients and the anti-bacterial galangin.

The amount of propolis present in refined honey has diminished due to modern beekeeping processing methods. Propolis is obtained by chipping it away from the hive.

Before modern medicine, history tells us that propolis was used as a remedy for slow healing sores and intestinal ailments. Hippocrites, the father of modern medicine, recommend honey (with its entrapped propolis) for sores and ulcers.

In the first century AD, Pliny, Celsus and Dioscorides described the use of bee propolis in health. Early herbalist such as John Greard's "The History of Plants" (1597), Nicholas Culpeper's, Complete Herbs" and " Green's"Universal Herbs" (1824). Described health uses of propolis, generally as an ointment taken directly from the tree as opposed to beehives.

It is reported that propolis was used on slow-healing wounds and sores during the Boer War and even during the Second World War in Russia.

Interest lessened in propolis with the advent of modern anti-bacterial such as penicillin.

Early tests showed propolis had direct anti-bacterial activity and later tests showed that propolis went beyond anti-bacterial activity. Propolis was determined to have anti-viral activity, anti-fungicodal activity and even enhanced the immune systems response.

EFFECTIVENESS

Propolis has been found to be highly effective against the following effects of these bacteria: B. subtilis (Caron), Staphylococus aureus, B. Alveiand Proteus vulgaris; Moderately effective against Salmonella Pallorum, Salmonella gallinarum, S. type Dublin, Escherichia coli, B., and Bacillus larvae; but not effective against Escherichia coli and Pseudomonas Pyocyanea.

Dr. N. Likar, bacteriologist at the Institute of Microbiology in Ljubljana notes that propolis was the first substance known to inhibit the growth and activity of the microbe Proteus. Dr. Likar also reported that Propolis was effective against the worst of all bacteria Staphylococus aureus.

Dr. Maximillian Kerns, also of the Clinic of Ljubljana in Yugoslavia, has reported very good results for propolis against inflammation of the mucous membranes of the throat and mouth, halitosis and tonsillitis.

Dr. Franz K. Feiks of the Public Hospital at Klosterneuberg in Austria conducted a clinical trial of Propolis against ulcers. Fifteen ulcer patients were treated exclusively with propolis, whole seventeen patients were treated with conventional medication.

Fourteen of the fifteen propolis treated patients were cured while only six of the conventionally treated patients were cured.

In a second test, Dr. Feiks treated 294 hospitalized with ulcers Ninety percent of the 108 patients given propolis were free of symptoms after two weeks compared to 55 percent of the 186 conventionally treated patient. Dr. Fekis noted that 70 percent of the propolis group obtained relief after three days compared to only ten percent of the group receiving conventional medication.

Dr. Edit Lauda, a Soviet physician, reported in 1958 that a propolis tincture and ointment completely healed the vast majority of patients with various types of acne. One test involved 59 patients who still had severe acne after several years of antibiotics during treatment in dermatological clinics. Dr. Lauda reported that all 25 cases of acne simplex were completely healed in one week, and that 35 cases of acne simplex combined with acne pustules were healed within three weeks Clinic trials should be repeated to verify these earlier trials.

In 1955, A Soviet physician, Dr. Prokopivic determined that a quarter of a percent propolis solution was three timed more effective than a corresponding cocaine solution and more than 50 times as effective as a Novocain solution. In 1973, a report from the U.S.S.R. decribed a new anesthetic that was a mixture of Novocain and propolis. Soviet dentists have regularly used a 4 percent propolis solution as a pain killer.

Dr. P. Kravcuk of Kiev, U.S.S.R., found Propolis effective against sore throats and dry coughs in 90 percent of 260 patients.

Dr. Izet Osmanagic of Sarajevo, Yugoslavia, tested propolis against influenza during an epidemic. 270 Volunteers were studied, with 88 of them taking propolis. only seven percent of those taking propolis became ill compared to 63 percent of those not taking propolis.

Two international symposiums have been held in Czechoslovakia to discuss the many health benefits of propolis.

According to one report, propolis stimulates the body's immune system. The report states, "The mechanism for healing in propolis is based not only on its anti-bacterial propensity and the detoxifying effect, but also on defensive reactions of the organism."

Dr. Remy Chauvin of Pairs, France, concurs, "Propolis works by raising the body's natural resistance to infections through stimulating one's own immunity system."

SAFETY

No side effects has been reported for propolis, but perhaps a very small percentage (1/20th of one percent) of the population may be allergic to propolis; but as Susan Smith Jones commented in Let's Live, "Bee Propolis has been around for 40 million years! That's a reasonable testing period."

REFERENCES

1 Hill R., Propolis, The Natural Antibiotic, Thorsons, Wellingborough, England (1977)

2 Jones, S. Let's Live, 112-118 (Oct. 1979)

3 Churchill, R. American Chiropractor, 34-38 (Jan/Feb. 1980)

4 Kravcuk, P. Doctoral Dissertation, Kiev Univ., USSR (1971)

5 Vosnjak, M. The Miracle of Propolis, Thorsons, Wellingborough, England (1978)

6 First and Second International Symposia on Propolis , Czechoslovakia (1976-78)