Elsevier

Trends in Food Science & Technology

Volume 71, January 2018, Pages 170-180
Trends in Food Science & Technology

Review
Pollen and bee bread as new health-oriented products: A review

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tifs.2017.10.021 Get rights and content

Highlights

  • Bee bread provide energy and the biochemical components and nutritional value.

  • The nutritional value of pollen often is evaluated by protein concentrations.

  • Pollen and bee bread is used in the human diet as a food supplement.

  • Apitherapy is the field of apicultural science that involves the treatment of diseases.

Abstract

Background

An interest in substances of natural origin has been a subject that is increasing constantly-both those known for many years and recently discovered are of great interest to the researchers. This interest also applies to bee products because of their extensive nutritional and therapeutic properties; these products are known and used for several thousand years, but only recently, they became the subject of sparse documented scientific research. With the passing of time, it is difficult to determine what will be the wishes and requirements of the future consumers, what should be introduced to new technologies to ensure the demand for new products.

Scope and approach

Recently, there has been an increasing demand for natural products, particularly the bee products. Bee bread and pollen, due to their nutritional and medicinal properties, are used for apitherapeutic purposes. These include about 200 different substances, such as free amino acids and vitamins. Special attention should be attributed to unsaturated fatty acids such as linoleic, linolenic, and arachidonic, which are found in pollen and bee bread.

Key finding and conclusion

The fashion for a healthy lifestyle leads to a situation where a number of people start taking care of their health. They search for the highest quality products, preferably with health benefits, rich in vitamins, valuable bioelements, and nutrients. Therefore, bee bread that is rich in beneficial ingredients has proved to fulfill these expectations. It constitutes a wholesome, biologically active nutrient, which can be used in the food industry.

Introduction

The first traces demonstrating bee products’ acquisition by humans came from the rock paintings discovered in 1919 in Spain in the Cave Spider (Cuevas de la Araña) located by the River Cazunta near Valencia. The painting shows a person taking honey from wild bees. It is assumed that the painting was created in the years 8000–5000 bc, that is, at the turn of middle and younger Stone Age (Neolithic Age) (Nayik et al., 2014). In many non-European countries, indigenous people still deal with the search for the nests of bees living in the wild to gain bee products.

The history of bee products dates to the ancient times. The Greeks believed that honey and pollen are the food of kings, giving the youth and life. The bee pollen is mentioned in the holy scriptures, including the Bible: “And God said, Behold, I give you every plant yielding the seed of the whole earth and every tree that which fruit has the seed, let they be your food” (Genesis). Hippocrates, Pliny the Elder, and Pythagoras believed that pollen shows therapeutic effect. Pollen began to be used on a larger scale for human consumption only after the Second World War, when the method of pollen traps was improved and easily accessible (Campos, Frigerio, Lopes, & Bogdanov, 2010). Bee products in ancient times were not only highly valued products, but played a major role in the religious rites of almost all cults.

The history of beekeeping on the Polish lands dates back more than two thousand years. The first record related to this activity comes from the Arab traveler Ibrahim ibn Yaqub, who in the 10th century wrote about Poland as a country abundant “in the food, meat, honey, and the arable lands” (Madras–Majewska & Majewski, 2007). The chronicler, Gallus, who arrived to Poland at the beginning of the 11th century, mentions the abundance of honey and forest beekeeping. Poland was commonly defined as “the land flowing with milk and honey.” In view of the already made and continued civilization characterized by development, today beekeeping in Poland operates in economic, natural, and environmental conditions other than in the recent past. A significant technical progress has been made and is continued; there are new threats posing to the life of bees, and science is offering solutions and technologies that have been developed, which were unknown in the past (Pałach 2004). An important aspect is the reactivation of beekeeping, which provides wide opportunities. In the past, Poland was the only country in the European Union that made an attempt to restore beekeeping on its area, as the primary method of bee-rearing. This aims to create the image of Poland as a country that not only cultivates its history (beginnings of beekeeping, bee-rearing), but also tries to bring its past elements back to life (Śliwka & Staniszewski, 2013).

Today, the use of products of natural origin must have a perspective program of development and specified aims of its implementation. This is primarily the task for the scientists, who should timely notice the upcoming threats and crises, and thus affect the economy to ensure its rational development, availability of raw materials, and food security. The concept of sustainable development of bee products, which could become an alternative to the products already present in the market, is a very important issue. Modern trends concerning consumer's behavior and needs set the directions for the development of new products and thus new technology for their production. For example, an increase in the environmental awareness of the consumers constitutes the diversification of an activity of enterprises from many food industries to start the production of organic products. Health-promoting aspects of the food are significant in searching for a new offer to the consumers. Bee products, an example of which is the bee bread, are characterized by a wide range of biological properties (Fuenmayor et al., 2014).

Section snippets

Bee products

Biologically active substances of natural origin always focus a great interest. This also applies to bee products because of their powerful healing properties. Despite this, the fascination with these issues has not been diminished. On the contrary, even a deeper learning about the properties of these products creates new problems for scientists and practitioners, which remain difficult to explain. Bees’ life is still the subject of scientific interest and a source of inspiration for artists,

Pollen

Pollen is often regarded as “the world's best food product” (Bobis et al., 2010). Global production of the pollen is around 1500 tons per year. The largest producers are China, Australia, and Argentina (Estevinho, Afonso, & Feás, 2011). Pollen is a product harvested by bees. The pollen transferred to the hive in the form of pollen loads is called the “bee pollen.” It is the product that contains valuable substances such as essential amino acids, phenolic compounds, vitamins, pigments

Chemical composition of pollen

Fresh pollen loads contain water ranging from 21% to 30%. Such a high level of water content in the pollen favors the rapid growth of various microorganisms, which, in turn, results in its rapid deterioration. In the case of pollen subjected to drying, the moisture content ranges from 2% to 9%. Commercial pollen contains 5.91% of water (Bobis et al., 2010), while the data presented by de Arruda et al. (2013) showed 3.47% water content in the pollen coming from Pariquera-Açu, São Paulo, Brazil.

Bee bread

An increasing number of people appreciate the therapeutic effect not only of honey, but also of other products with wide application in apitherapy. Bee bread (ambrosia) is a unique product, which is very important not only for humans, but also for the bees. It is not always easy to get it, and the price is several times higher than the price of honey. The bee bread mainly includes pollen, honey, and secretions of bees’ salivary glands (Barajas et al., 2012, Vásquez and Olofsson, 2009). Bees

Microbiological quality of pollen and bee bread

Bee pollen is the result of a combination of various grains connected with nectar, bees’ saliva, and honey. The consumption of this product is driven by constantly increasing demand for natural products characterized by health-oriented or therapeutic properties for an organism (Barreto, Funari, & de Oliveira Orsi, 2005). In addition, there are growing concerns about the sanitary quality of the food. Particular stages in the chain of beekeeping should be constantly monitored and good production

Lactic acid bacteria in bee pollen

Growing importance of lactic acid bacteria results from the fact that they have the status of bacteria safe for humans and animals (GRAS—Generally Recognized As Safe). All lactic acid bacteria have a typical fermentation metabolism and gain energy as a result of transformation of saccharides present in the environment. The products of metabolism are organic acids, diacetyl, acetoin, acetaldehyde, and bacteriocins (Forsgren et al., 2010, Waśko et al., 2012). Rapidly developing studies in recent

Bee bread acquisition

Bees collect the pollen from flowers in order to meet their nutritional requirements; this is the only external source of protein for the colony. The principle of all the trap operation is the same, and it involves the blocking of the entrance to the hive with a special barrier with holes, through which the bees must crowd (Barajas et al., 2012). When passing through it, pollen loads are knocked off the legs of bees and fall into the tray of the trap. Pollen loads are collected by placing the

Biological properties of pollen and bee bread

The development of civilization results in the emergence of new lifestyles and thus innovative food trends. The way of feeding is shaped by socioeconomic conditions, family environment, regional customs, as well as nutritional messages. Human life is related to eating and assimilation of food. Table 1 shows the Daily Intake of nutrients found in the bee bread and bee pollen. The condition of proper human nutrition is the total coverage of their energy needs and all the nutrients needed for

Dosage of pollen and bee bread

The use of bee bread is analogous to the pollen. The daily dosage for an adult should be about 20–40 g. It should be noted that there is no possibility of bee bread overdose. It is enough to eat one tablespoon of bee bread every day to regenerate and strengthen an organism. A lower dose of pollen is used in combination with other drugs and in chronic diseases. Bee bread as a product characterized by a stronger activity than the pollen is usually administered in smaller amounts or over a short

Conclusion

After a period of fascination with highly processed products, the return to natural foods, whose nutritional value is confirmed by the results of scientific research, is currently observed around the world. Expectations of the consumers in relation to food are increasing. What consumers demand is that new foods be introduced in the market that are characterized by health-oriented properties, are effective in increasing the overall efficiency of an organism, and are even preventive in the

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