Contrary to common belief, the substance known as “royal jelly” is used to feed all larval bees, not just the queen. It is created within glands inside young worker bees. When a hive is in need of a queen bee, a single newly hatched larva is fed nothing but large quantities of royal jelly for four days. This causes this particular larva to transform into the singular queen bee of the hive.
Royal jelly has a long history of traditional medicinal uses, but these were based on highly simplistic analogies that make little sense from a scientific point of view. For example, since the queen bee lives far longer than any ordinary bee, royal jelly has long been considered a life-extending substance. In addition, since a queen bee is by definition extremely female, royal jelly was suggested for use in menopausal symptoms, a period of life in which it could be said that some aspects of traditional femininity decline.
Royal jelly continues to be promoted as a life-extending supplement. However, as noted above, this use is based on reasoning so simplistic it is difficult to take it seriously. There is certainly no meaningful evidence that it actually offers this benefit in humans.
There is no question that royal jelly contains a variety of nutrients, including pantothenic acid and vitamin B 6 .
Royal jelly also has antimicrobial properties in the test tube. 1 However, an enormous number of other natural substances do so as well, and yet do not act as antibiotics when taken orally.
A collection of animal studies and poorly designed human trials hint that royal jelly might be helpful for improving cholesterol profile . 2 However, most of this research was done in the former USSR or its satellite countries, and fails to reach current standards of scientific validity.
Very weak evidence, too weak to rely upon at all, has been used to support the belief that royal jelly is in fact helpful in its traditional use as a treatment for menopausal symptoms . 3,4
Other purposes for which royal jelly has been advocated, but that lack meaningful supporting evidence, include preventing cancer5 and treating Grave’s disease , 6hypertension , 7 and osteoporosis . 8
The best designed study of royal jelly was a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of 80 children with hay fever . 9 Unfortunately, in this study, royal jelly proved no more effective than placebo.
A typical dosage of royal jelly is 50-150 mg per day. Standardized extracts of royal jelly are also available. These should be used according to label instructions.
Although royal jelly is considered a generally non-toxic substance, allergic reactions to it do occur and may be very severe. Asthma, hemorrhagic colitis (bleeding in the colon), and anaphylactic shock have been reported. 10-13 People who are allergic to other bee products, or to pollens, should avoid royal jelly products.
One case report indicates that use of royal jelly can increase the activity of the blood-thinning drug warfarin , potentially leading to internal bleeding. 14
Maximum safe doses for young children, pregnant or nursing women, or people with severe liver or kidney disease are not known.
If you are taking the blood thinner warfarin , or any of its relatives, do not use royal jelly; the combination may lead to internal bleeding.
References
1. Melliou E, Chinou I. Chemistry and bioactivity of royal jelly from Greece. J Agric Food Chem. 2005;53:898789-92.
2. Vittek J. Effect of royal jelly on serum lipids in experimental animals and humans with atherosclerosis. Experientia. 1995;51:927-935
3. Georgiev DB, Metka M, Huber JC, et al. Effects of an herbal medication containing bee products on menopausal symptoms and cardiovascular risk markers: results of a pilot open-uncontrolled trial. MedGenMed. 2004;6:46.
4. Mishima S, Suzuki KM, Isohama Y, et al. Royal jelly has estrogenic effects in vitro and in vivo. J Ethnopharmacol. 2005;101:215-20.
5. Nakaya M, Onda H, Sasaki K, et al. Effect of royal jelly on bisphenol A-induced proliferation of human breast cancer cells. Biosci Biotechnol Biochem. 2007;71:253-255.
6. Erem C, Deger O, Ovali E, et al. The effects of royal jelly on autoimmunity in Grave's disease. Endocrine. 2006;30:175-183.
7. Tokunaga KH, Yoshida C, Suzuki KM, et al. Antihypertensive effect of peptides from royal jelly in spontaneously hypertensive rats. Biol Pharm Bull. 2004;27:189-192.
8. Narita Y, Nomura J, Ohta S, et al. Royal jelly stimulates bone formation: physiologic and nutrigenomic studies with mice and cell lines. Biosci Biotechnol Biochem. 2006;70:2508-2514.
9. Andersen AH, Mortensen S, Agertoft L, et al. Double-blind randomized trial of the effect of Bidro on hay fever in children]. Ugeskr Laeger. 2005;167:3591-3594.
10. Leung R, Ho A, Chan J et al. Royal jelly consumption and hypersensitivity in the community. Clin Exp Allergy. 1997;27:333-336.
11. Thien FC, Leung R, Baldo BA et al. Asthma and anaphylaxis induced by royal jelly. Clin Exp Allergy. 1996;26:216-222.
12. Takahama H, Shimazu T. Food-induced anaphylaxis caused by ingestion of royal jelly. J Dermatol. 2006;33:424-426.
13. Yonei Y, Shibagaki K, Tsukada N, et al. Case report: haemorrhagic colitis associated with royal jelly intake. J Gastroenterol Hepatol. 1997;12:495-499.
14. Lee NJ, Fermo JD. Warfarin and royal jelly interaction. Pharmacotherapy. 2006;26:583-586.
Last reviewed April 2009 by EBSCO CAM Review Board
Please be aware that this information is provided to supplement the care provided by your physician. It is neither intended nor implied to be a substitute for professional medical advice. CALL YOUR HEALTHCARE PROVIDER IMMEDIATELY IF YOU THINK YOU MAY HAVE A MEDICAL EMERGENCY. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider prior to starting any new treatment or with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition.
Copyright © 2007 EBSCO Publishing All rights reserved.