In Brazil, when the bees start doing a frenetic dance, it is because they have found the Baccharis Dracunculifolia. It is with the resin and bark of this small endemic shrub that the foraging bees make the elixir that protects the hive from all diseases(1). They add their own saliva and other secretions to produce a kind of paste that will serve as a "cement" in the hive, to seal the breaches(2).
But above all, this elixir that they coat at the entrance of the hive serves as an anti-infectious agent to prevent the whole hive from being affected by parasites or fungi. More surprisingly, bees also use this wax to embalm the corpses of the hive: the Egyptians were inspired by bees to embalm their pharaohs with this magic resin.
Cet élixir, c’est green propolis This elixir is the green propolis of Brazil. It is produced only by the oldest and most experienced foraging bees in the Iguaçu region of southern Brazil. No wonder the bees thrive here, far from urban fever, human and agricultural pollution.
Look how beautiful it is: it looks like the image we have of Eden! It is one of the last paradises for bees.
In France, for 15 years, bees have been living a real nightmare. They fall by tens of thousands, entire hives are ravaged in a few days... and this, even in my remote countryside of Corrèze or at my wife's place in Brittany: they are victims of pesticides of all kinds. But over there in Brazil, they still benefit from a dream setting to gather and manufacture this product of exceptional quality.
This green propolis is a real gift for health(3). We should all have it in our medicine kit and make at least one cure per year.
Propolis verte : une résine verte qui agit à 360° sur la santé
Scientific studies are beginning to "fall" and suggest a product of rare power for our health(4) :
- A natural antibiotic of a remarkable effectiveness and which does not disturb your intestinal flora;
- This resin stimulates your immune system and protects you against many diseases;
- The substance made by the bees reduces inflammation;
- In vitro trials, not yet conducted on men, suggest that it would have a very promising anti-tumor effect in the treatment of cancer; several studies indicate that it would promote the self-destruction of cancer cells by apoptosis(5), a kind of "suicide" of the cells (I will come back to this);
- Powerful anti-viral properties; against genital herpes, a study showed that propolis was more effective than aciclovir, the classic treatment(6)!
- Its effectiveness against the flu and the gastroenteritis virus is also demonstrated;
- And many studies suggest that its reach is even wider.
La propolis
Propolis would also be useful against warts, for the treatment of burns, against respiratory infections in winter and ear infections, asthma. In many cases, it is more powerful than antibiotics, to which microbes are increasingly resistant.
Lyme disease, Helicobacter pylori: green propolis protects against the most dreaded bacteria
The green propolis of Brazil is known for its extremely powerful antibacterial effects:
- Green propolis from Brazil can overcome multi-resistant staphylococci;
- Green propolis from Brazil acts on the bacteria of angina - those with Streptococcus A;
- Green propolis from Brazil acts against the bacteria responsible for dental plaque and dental caries (streptococci capnocytophaga)(7)
- Several studies also suggest that it could help to overcome the terrible bacteria that causes stomach ulcers, Helicobacter pylori ;
- And even one of the bacteria responsible for the dreaded Lyme disease, Borrelia burgdorferi ;
Cancer: the Japanese buy 80% of the world's green propolis
One of the greatest specialists of ortho-molecular medicine in Japan studied for years the effects of green propolis on health. It is Dr. Osamu Mizukami, a true expert in Japan. His work is very well known in the country, and it is not a coincidence if the Japanese buy the quasi-totality of the world production of green propolis.
This great researcher has observed the effects of this substance on more than 500 cancer patients(9). And his discoveries are spectacular: he observed total cures on patients suffering from lung, colon, prostate, pancreatic, and breast cancer, even in advanced stages, thanks to propolis, in addition to anticancer treatments.
Here are the conclusions of Dr. Mizukami - for whom propolis must remain a complementary treatment:
- Patients who take propolis tend to have a better quality of life, experience less pain, less fatigue, and have a better appetite.
- Patients who have taken propolis seem to survive longer, the survival period is extended: they live twice as long, three times as long, and sometimes even 10 times longer than expected.
"According to him, propolis allows you to have fewer side effects, less pain, less fatigue, and allows you to regain your appetite," explains one of the best experts on propolis in France, pharmacist Françoise Sauvager, a researcher at the Faculty of Pharmacy in Rennes, who works at the Microbiology Laboratory.
Even more incredible: A small number of patients had their tumors regress, without even resorting to conventional treatment. And a few patients had their cancer (1 cm or less in diameter) disappear completely without conventional treatment.
One of his patients, aged 57, was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. This was in 1990. She underwent surgery on her ovaries and uterus and then chemotherapy. But after the chemo, she experienced high fevers, diarrhea, and leukopenia (a drop in the number of white blood cells). Twelve years later, it was discovered that the cancer had spread to her colon: that's when she started taking propolis, with 2g per day.
She then underwent a new chemotherapy, but this time without any adverse effects. And today, this patient is in good health.
Dr Mizukami remains a pioneer, and we still have few studies carried out on humans on the anticancer effects of propolis. This remains to be confirmed. But its anti-infection, anti-bacterial and pro-health action in general is not to be proved any more. The real question is how a simple resin produced by bees can present so many assets for health?
Green propolis: 300 compounds and 1 SINGLE substance
The secret of green propolis lies in its purity and the raw material from which the bees draw: it contains resins (55%) and essential oils (7%), beeswax, pollen and very rich minerals. In all, this natural elixir is said to have 300 different compounds - and most of them have a positive effect on health. Here are the main ones:
- Propolin A, B and C, acetophenones
- Aromatic aldehydes and ketones such as vanillin;
- Clerodane, geraniol, bisabolol, farnesol, squalene, sterols...
- Aliphatic acids (oleic, palmitic, stearic, linoleic...) and their esters
- Amino acids such as serine, glycine, glutamic acid, aspartic acid, tryptophan, phenylalanine, leucine, arginine, proline...
- Vitamines : A, B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, C, E)
- and many minerals (Mg, Cu, Se, Fe, Ni, Si, Sr, Zn...)
But the most amazing compound is Artépilinne C, a unique phenolic acid. It is the substance that chemists envy to bees. The green propolis from Brazil contains 6 to 8%, that is to say 2 to 3 times more than the brown propolis found in France. This brown propolis is made by our bees from resins and bark of poplar (there is another kind of propolis, the "red" which grows in the mangroves of northern Brazil).
How do you get quality Propolis?
Mais un petit problème persiste avec la propolis : son goût est très spécial. La propolis en bloc n’est pas toujours facile à avaler ou à mâcher. Sa résine a une texture proche de la cire. Cette résine a un goût âcre, parfois très amer. La solution ? Trouver de la propolis en gélules. Elles sont plus agréables à avaler, et surtout, les propriétés de la résine restent intactes, même après plusieurs mois.
Sources
[1] Dr. Françoise Sauvager, Congress of the National Federation of Departmental Apicultural Health Organizations 2017
[2] Contribution to the study of the antiviral properties of propolis - Françoise Sauvager-Glavany (Doctoral thesis in pharmacy), University of Rennes, 1992
[3] Propolis: a wonder of nature to stay healthy, Professor Henri Joyeux, February 2016
[4] https://www.lanutrition.fr/interviews/patrice-percie-du-sert-l-less-than-one-euro-per-day-for-propolis-r
[5] Apoptosis and suppression of tumor growth by artepillin C extracted from Brazilian propolis. : https://europepmc.org/abstract/med/9824373
[6] Efficacy of Brazilian Propolis against Herpes Simplex Virus Type 1 Infection in Mice and Their Modes of Antiherpetic Efficacies : https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3118910/
[7] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18696746
[8] My clinical experience using propolis in the treatment of patients with advanced cancer – Dr Osamu Mizukami, Health Promotion Clinic - Tokyo