Why are bees so important? And how you can help them

Both human and environmental health depends on bee populations. Bees are essential for food production because of their role as pollinators and the medical benefits of honey and other goods.

Why are bees so important?

Bees are much more than the fuzzy flying insects we see flitting among the flowers in the warmer months; in fact, they perform a crucial role in preserving our planet. Whereas forests and trees are necessary to filter our air, bees are necessary to pollinate both the food we need to thrive and a large number of the trees and flowers that serve as wildlife habitats.

Over 4,000 of the 20,000 bee species that are known to exist around the globe are indigenous to the United States. Few of these are managed by humans, and most species are wild.

Although not all bees make honey, it is one of the critical factors humans love bees. It is a natural sweetener with a variety of possible health benefits.

Health products

Since ancient times, people have employed bees and bee-related items for therapeutic purposes. According to claims, it contains anti-inflammatory, anti-microbial, antioxidant, and anti-cancer qualities.

Honey is used in traditional medicine to cure a wide range of illnesses. Although many of these applications lack scientific support, they include:

• infections of the throat and lungs

• tuberculosis

• thirst

• hiccups

• fatigue

• dizziness

• Wounds

Bee products have been employed not only in health but also for skin care as ingredients of cosmetics. Numerous studies have demonstrated how bee products affect the skin and using honey, propolis, bee pollen, and bee venom in treating wounds emphasizes their therapeutic usefulness. 

Each bee product has unique active ingredients that dictate how it should be used to treat different skin issues. The bee products utilized for cosmetic and medical purposes include honey, propolis, bee pollen, bee bread, beeswax, and bee venom.

Bees produce honey, a natural product, from nectar and honeydew. A supersaturated carbohydrate solution with various characteristics and widespread application is honey. Bees gather propolis, also known as bee glue, from the buds of trees, shrubs, and green plants.

Propolis is a resinous material. Both propolis and honey were used in antiquity to embalm remains, but honey was also used in traditional medicine to treat pain and heal wounds.

Pollination

It has become apparent in recent years that the importance of bee protection may not be centered on honey production. This is because bees are essential to pollination, using their body hair to transport substantial pollen grains between plants.

Bees are the most important pollinators of both cultivated and wild plants among all animals. They visit more than 90% of the top 107 crops in the world. Almost 75% of crops provide better results if animals assist in pollination.

In other words, many plants, especially food crops, depend on bees for their growth.

Environment

Bees are very clever, and people have used their social connections and mannerisms to inspire human endeavors.

For instance, academics have proposed that observing bee behavior might assist professionals in creating emergency plans to evacuate people from congested areas.

Why are bees disappearing?

Saving bees and trees go hand in hand because many of the challenges to trees and woodlands also concern bees. Globally, bee populations are declining due to several stressors, such as habitat loss and the usage of hazardous pesticides. We could be facing a world without bees if these risks aren't controlled.

How the bee population affects people?

A few factors contributing to the decline in bee populations include farming methods, climate change, and illness. The effects on the global food supply, particularly those of fruits, nuts, and vegetables, worry experts.

According to others, there wouldn't be any nuts, coffee, chocolate, tomatoes, apples, or almonds, to mention a few crops, if bees didn't exist. As these goods are critical suppliers of crucial nutrients, this might result in nutritional inadequacies in the human diet.

Additionally, without bees to give them, it's possible that the newly discovered medical benefits of bee venom and other bee products would never be available.

How can you help?

Fortunately, there is still time to prevent the extermination of the bees. You can do many things to aid in the preservation of these significant species, and most of them may be carried out in the comfort of your own yard.

Through citizen science programs, which encourage individuals to report what they observe in their local region, nonscientists and volunteers can contribute to research. This might assist specialists in comprehending what is taking place in a particular area or nation.

Bee populations have been a personal concern and passion of Brigitte for life, compounded by the fact that every single botanical in our products would not exist without the bee population, and more importantly, we would suffer a global food crisis. For this reason, we contribute $3 for each product you purchase on our website to bee conservation through the Los Angeles County Beekeepers Association, which has been at the forefront of helping bee populations and educating the public since 1973.