Celebrating World Bee Day with BSKIN

Without bees, we wouldn't have BSKIN.

In 2018, the United Nations nominated 20 May as World Bee Day to raise awareness of the importance of these little creatures and how to protect declining populations due to lost habitats, intensive agricultural practices, as well as rising temperatures due to climate change. In fact, almost three-quarters of the world's food crops are dependent on pollinators like bees, and their suffering numbers could pose serious problems for global food security. 

If honey is the only bee active you're famillar with, you're not alone. Honey has become a delicious staple in most households but many people are not aware that bees produce many other beneficial compounds that are excellent for health. These potent bee actives are found in most of BSKIN's products. 

Bee-amazed by these Less Well-Known Bee Actives in BSKIN Products

PROPOLIS: Propolis is a mixture of beeswax and resins collected from leaf buds, twigs and tree back. It is commonly referred to as nature's antibiotic and it also has powerful antibacterial and antifungal properties. Bees use propolis like a glue, to patch up gaps or cracks in their hive to prevent external contaminants from entering. Hence, to harvest propolis, the beekeeper places a flexible plastic screen with cracks on top of the hive. The hardworking bees quickly work to seal all the cracks with propolis and the beekeeper then removes the screen to harvest the precious propolis. 

Propolis contains antiseptic characteristics that actively fight off acne-causing bacteria and regulates oily skin. It also helps speed up recovery from scarring. 

ROYAL JELLY: The queen bee in the hive is the only bee that is raised purely on royal jelly and it allows her to grow larger than other bees in the colony (40% larger!). It also causes her ovaries to fully develop, allowing her to lay up to 2,000 eggs a day (more that twice her body weight!). In addition, a queen lives may live for to 5 years - this is 30 times longer than the other bees in the hive. A well-managed bee hive can produce about 500grams of royal jelly every 6 months so it's a very high priced and precious commodity. 

Due to its anti-ageing properties, royal jelly is known as the elixir of youth. An important part of Cleopatra's beauty regime, it soothes stressed skin, improves skin elasticity and stimulates collagen production for a firmer and more youthful complexion. 

BEE POLLEN: Many people get a bit worried when they think of pollen because a common misconception is that pollen triggers allergies. Bee pollen is actually different from the pollen that triggers allergy symptoms because it is combined with the natural nectars and saps from the flowers the bee has chosen to visit and then stirred with bee saliva and other natural secretions, which give it anti-inflammatory, antibacterial and antifungal properties. According to nutritional tests conducted in the UK, bee pollen is actually a complete super food with many nutrients. Meaning you could technically live on just bee pollen and water. 

One of the amino acids in bee pollen, proline, is a building block for collagen synthesis that helps to boost skin firmness. Bee pollen is also high in antioxidants that help keep the skin supple and youthful.

Do Your Part to Save the Bees

Bees also play a critical role in the health of the planet and its ecosystems, and the people who depend on those ecosystems. Pollination - which happens to be a bee's full-time job - is crucial for crop production. Without bees, the availability and diversity of fresh produce would decline sustantially, and the balance of our ecosystem would be destroyed. 

Although bee-keeping remains a niche hobby in Singapore, you too can do your part to encourage bee populations to thrive: 

Grow Them a Garden

Plating bee-friendly herbs and flowers in your garden for bees to forage is a great way to nurture our at-risk bee population. Bee favourites like rosemary, mint, borage and lemon balm are easy to grow and have edible and medicinal properties that benefit us in a multitude of ways too.

Go Chemical Free

Synthetic pesticides, fertilizers, herbicides, and neonicotinoids are harmful to bees. Avoid treating your plants with synthetics. Use organic products and natural solutions instead such as compost to aid soil health and add beneficial insects that keep pests away like ladybugs and praying mantises.

Educate Yourself about Bees

Learn more about organizations that support the sustainable development of beekeeping such as Nutrinest and Bee Amazed. You can also participate in a beekeeping and beehive removal course where you will learn basic handling of different types of bees in the garden, basic maintenance of the beehive, extracting of beeswax and honey, and how to humanely remove the different types of wild beehives in Singapore.