Royal Jelly
Royal jelly is a complex compound, consisting of 60% water, around 18-20% proteins, 15% carbohydrates, and 3% lipids.
It contains an array of water-soluble vitamins, trace minerals and free amino acids, at least eight of which are essential amino acids.
The organic acids of royal jelly are either hydroxyl fatty acids or dicarboxylic acids with the main acid being 10-hydroxy-2-decenoic acid (10-HDA). This substance has become the benchmark for establishing the potency and quality of royal jelly, with 4-6% 10-HDA being the desired range for royal jelly used in health supplements., which is a unique active substance present in royal jelly (Isidorov et al., 2009). 10-HDA is chemically stable and, therefore, has been adopted as an international standard for the quality and freshness of royal jelly. This substance is truly unique in so many ways, and is responsible for the reproductive power and longevity of the hive queen, as she is fed on an exclusive diet of royal jelly.
Bee Pollen
Bee Pollen is sourced from a very diverse range of sources (plant species, geographical locations, seasonal/climate effects, etc) hence no two batches of bee pollen contain the exact same chemical composition. Regardless, all fresh bee pollen is found to be rich in biologically active substances, with proteins, amino acids, carbohydrates, lipids, and fatty acids, phenolic compounds, enzymes, and coenzymes being the most abundant. :
The approximate composition of most domestic US bee pollen is:
24% protein
12% essential amino acids
30% digestible carbohydrates
25% sugars (fructose/glucose)
5% lipids
1.5% phenolic compounds
2.5% vitamin A, E and D, B1, B2, B6, and C, along with pantothenic, nicotinic and folic acids, biotin, rutin, and inositol.
Macro and micronutrients in bee pollen include calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, sodium, and iron, potassium, copper, manganese, silicon, and zinc
The essential amino acids, which many believe provides bee pollen with its medicinal benefits* include lysine, methionine, leucine, isoleucine, threonine, histidine, valine, phenylalanine, and tryptophan.
The phenolic compounds in bee pollen include flavonoids, catechins, leukotrienes, and phenolic acids. Moreover, vitamins and bioelements also belong to valuable substances.
Bee Propolis
Propolis contains approximately:
50-70% resins
30% wax
10% etheric oils
5% pollen.
Propolis is especially rich in amino acids and it has a high vitamin content. It is rich in bioflavonoids (Vitamin P) which are reported to have numerous immune building properties and health benefits. Bioflavonoids are the natural pigments in fruits and vegetables and are found in abundance in oranges, and bee propolis contains around 500 times more bioflavonoids than is found in oranges.
According to researcher undertaken at the Second Leningrad Scientific Conference on the Application of Apiculture (bee culture) in Medicine, Bee Propolis is found to be rich in:
Vitamin A (carotene)
Vitamin B1, B2, B3, biotin.
It contains an array of bioflavonoids, albumin, calcium, magnesium, potassium, and phosphorus.
Except for vitamin K, Propolis contains all known vitamins and has fourteen of the 15 minerals that the human body requires for normal function. (it does not contain sulfur).
Honey
The main nutritional components of honey are:
Carbohydrates in the form of simple sugars -
38.5% fructose
31% glucose
Small amounts of protein, vitamins, minerals, trace elements, enzymes and polyphenols.
(honey contains around 18% water)
Honey is rich in both enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants, including catalase, ascorbic acid, flavonoids and alkaloids, and it contains around 18 different amino acids in trace amounts.