Although pollen and honey are both products commonly associated with bees, the similarity ends there. Pollen and honey are completely different in the way they are produced, how they are used, their purpose, their benefits and so on.
Bee Pollen Definition
Flowers produce pollen to help reproduce. It is a fine yellow dust that is found deep inside the flower; when bees enter the flower in search of nectar, some of that pollen becomes attached to sacs on their legs and is brought back to the hive. Surprisingly enough, the National Council Against Health Fraud states that bee pollen is 50 percent plant material and 50 percent various bee byproducts and body parts.
Bee Pollen Uses
There is a wide gap between the claimed or reputed benefits of bee pollen and those that have actually been proven by science. Bee pollen advocates have claimed that it can prevent or mitigate allergies, fight cancer, improve athletic performance, and aid digestive function. However, according to the Brigham and Women's Hospital, no studies so far have proven that bee pollen actually provides any benefit at all. In fact, some people can have dangerous allergic reactions to it.
Honey Definition
Honey is created by honeybees from the nectar they collect from flowers. The nectar is brought back to the hive and stored by the bees as honey to use for food during the winter months. According to the National Honey Board, it can take the nectar from up to two million flowers to create a single pound of honey. The nectar from different types of flowers can be turned into honey with slight variation in flavors and colors.
Honey Uses
By far, the most popular use for honey is as a natural sweetener. Although the calorie and sugar content for honey is naturally high, many people prefer it to other sweeteners such as those made from cane sugar since honey is a less processed sweetener that contains many nutrients and antioxidants. Additionally, honey has shown promise in being able to help eliminate free radicals, fight some diseases, and prevent infection when applied externally.
References
- National Council Against Health Fraud: Bee Pollen; William T. Jarvis, Ph.D.
- Brigham and Women's Hospital: Bee Pollen
- National Honey Board: What Is Honey?
- Champlain Valley Honey: Nutritional Benefits of Honey
- BBC News: Honey Trialled on Cancer Patients; July 2006
- Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center: Bee Pollen
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