The 14 Best Bee Beauty Products
While it’s true that bee populations, including those of honeybees, are being systematically diminished by almost 50 percent by climate change, human invasion, and, yes, even stress (according to New York Magazine), beauty products made out of beeswax, honey, and Royal Jelly aren’t culpable for the seemingly imminent extinction. Good news for bees — and those who love honey. As a matter of fact, many beauty brands cull their bee ingredients from sustainable beekeepers, using eco-friendly and non-invasive techniques. “The proportion of wax and honey used in cosmetics is a very small amount,” Norman Carreck, Science Director of the International Bee Research Association, tells Yahoo Beauty. “I don’t think use in the cosmetics industry is significant in bee decline. Beeswax is a much more sustainable product than paraffin wax, made from petroleum, and honey is a much more sustainable product than sugar, made from sugar beet.”
Through cross-pollination, the honeybee contributes to many industries that have contributions in the beauty industry. For example, in the January 8, 2010 issue of Science, Carreck notes, “The California almond industry alone is worth $2 billion annually and relies on over 1 million honey bee hives for cross-pollination.” In the United States alone, the number of hives has decreased from six million after the Second World War to only 2.4 million nowadays.
While Gwyneth Paltrow gets her fair share of criticism for extolling expensive jars of manuka honey as a healing production, the beauty benefits of honeybee production is well documented. “There is actually some good data showing anti-inflammatory and antibacterial effects of manuka honey, especially in wound healing,” says New York City based dermatologist Sejal Shah, MD. “There is less data for Royal Jelly but I have read a few animal studies — a few years ago — suggesting it has anti-aging properties.” Dermatologist Frédéric Bonté, MD, the head of research for LVMH also tells Yahoo Beauty that because honey is extremely rich in sugar, it’s an incredible fuel source for cells. “It has been proven that the fibroblasts, the dermal cells which provide flexibility and elasticity to the skin, are very fond of fructose energy power that allows a cellular and sustainable growth. Its healing power comes from this complex mixture of sugar and its organic compounds,” he explains.
Additionally, the pearly white amino acid-rich royal jelly, secreted by the hypopharyngeal and mandibular glands of the worker bees from 5 to 15 days, is used to feed only the future queen bee and allow her to grow to full adult size, allowing her to have the fertility and longevity to give birth to 45,000 bees and live up to five years. “The list of these nutritional, energetic, and metabolic benefits is endless. But again, the source of the royal jelly is linked to its activity,” Bonté explains. As long as you’re careful about your bee product consumption, there’s no reason not to reap the benefits of these ingredients. Here are some of our favorite bee products, from lip balm to skin serum to eye shadow.
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