Propolis Could Overcome Resistance to Antibiotics

Future of Medicine ‘in Beehives’

Whitby Gazette, 6/15/2012

A mysterious substance, made by bees and used by ancient Egyptians, has the potential to save millions of lives – and its miraculous properties are being uncovered in Whitby.

Honey bees use propolis to seal their hive by filling tiny gaps between the larger honeycomb structure and the substance has long been a traditional cure in Eastern medicine for mild ailments such as mouth ulcers or sore throats, but James Fearnley of Bee Vital believes that it actually holds the key to the future of medicine.

At Nature’s Laboratory on Enterprise Way, James explained his wide-ranging vision for propolis, including treatment for a variety of life-threatening diseases and even a potential cure for cancer.

“I am convinced that in bee hives we have the future of medicine,” he said. “We think drugs are sophisticated because we have put a lot of time and effort into them, but we are on the wrong track.”

The World Health Organisation has recently warned that more and more diseases are becoming resistant to antibiotics and a “doomsday” scenario is a serious possibility.

It may soon become a reality that the drugs stop working and alternatives to artificial drugs are needed.

This is where Bee Vital is hoping to step in.

“If a bee collects pollen in an area where there’s sleeping sickness, they also collect a chemical which acts against it,” he said. “The bees are taking the plant’s response to the disease and using it themselves.”

A beehive is comparable to the human body, with a similar internal temperature, and this means that a lot of what works for the bees also works for humans. So a person treated with propolis, produced in an area affected by sleeping sickness, could receive the same protection that the bees receive…