A Short Guide to Royal Jelly
Everything You Wanted To Know About This Strange Substance
Aug 19, 2008
If you have ever read any of the wonderful short stories of Roald Dahl, you may be familiar with his dark tale, 'Royal Jelly', which features this strange bee product. But although it is just a story, royal jelly itself is a fascinating substance with a wealth of useful properties.
What is Royal Jelly?
Royal jelly is a secretion that is made by honeybees to feed their young larvae. It is not the only food that is used to feed the larvae, but it is certainly one of the most important in the early days of their lives. It is fed to the larvae of worker bees for their first three days, and after this they go onto a mixture of honey and pollen.
The name royal jelly may seem strange, but it does have a reason. As well as being used to feed the larvae of the honeybee, it is also used to feed the queen bee larva when it has been chosen. In a contrast to the other worker bees, the queen bee will be fed large quantities of royal jelly and nothing else for the first few days, which has the effect of developing the features of the queen bee at this early stage.
How Do You Get Royal Jelly?
Royal jelly cannot be collected in the same way as honey, and the two should not be confused. Whereas honey is collected in large quantities, there simply isn’t enough royal jelly around.
As it is the queen bee who eats the most royal jelly, beekeepers must first stimulate the hive to produce a new queen. When this has happened and the queen is four days old, the royal jelly is collected from the individual queen cells, as these are the only places where you can find large amounts. Although the worker larvae are also fed royal jelly, it is impossible to collect it from them because they eat it as soon as it is produced.
It is estimated that an average hive can produce up to 500 grams of royal jelly over a six-month period, a not insubstantial amount. However, as it does not last for long it needs to be stored, and some beekeepers freeze-dry the royal jelly to make sure that it keeps all of its properties.
The Uses of Royal Jelly
The exact uses of royal jelly are controversial, although it is often used as a dietary supplement and in a range of beauty products. It is also said to stimulate the growth of stem cells in the brain, and to have cholesterol-lowering effects, antibiotic attributes and anti-inflammatory properties, but such claims as yet remain unproven.
Whatever its true properties, royal jelly is certainly an intriguing product, and who knows which of its properties may be proven in the future.
For more about bees, check out my other articles on the history of beekeeping and becoming a beekeeper.
