Have you ever wondered what a beeswax is? Well, beeswax is a natural wax produced by female worker bees. It is formed by the glands in the abdominal parts of those bees, which is stored inside the hive. The hive workers then collect and utilize it for various purposes, such as for honey storage in the beehive.
Beeswax aren’t easy to produce because bees have to consume eight times as much honey and fly 150,000 miles just to produce one pound of beeswax. Take note that beeswax are not honeycombs. Originally, bees create beehive to produce the honeycombs, however us humans found more than that. What are the other uses of the beeswax? And what are the health benefits of chewing beeswax? Here are the health benefits of replacing sugar with honey.
Types of Beeswax
There are three notable types of beeswax, with the first one being the yellow beeswax. Yellow beeswax is the crude product obtained directly from the honeycomb.
Yellow beeswax also serves as the basic form to all types of beeswax. The second type, the white beeswax is basically a bleached yellow beeswax and the third and final one, the beeswax absolute is produced by treating yellow beeswax with alcohol.
Contents of a Beeswax
- Acids Esters – 1%
- Free Fatty Acids – 12%
- Acids Polyesters – 2%
- Free Fatty Alcohols – 1%
- Hydrocarbons – 14%
- Hydroxy Polyesters – 8%
What are its Health Benefits?
Here are the health benefits of chewing beeswax:
- For Skin Moisturizing
Beeswax is a common ingredient in skincare products, partly due to its skin moisturizing abilities. It repairs and prevents dry or chapped skin effectively due to its locked-in moisture.
The beeswax also has vitamin A, which according to Gene Ashburner in his book “How to Use Beeswax and Honey to Cure Skin Problems,” can soften and re-hydrate the skin plus supports cellular reconstruction. Simultaneously, it still allows air circulation in and out of the skin because it doesn’t clog pores too.
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- Prevents Dry and Cracking Lips
Not only it moisturizes the skin, beeswax also makes a good ingredient of lip balm! Common petroleum jelly lip balms taste terrible and don’t absorb well into the skin, thus making it necessary for you to apply it over and over again.
Lip balms made out of beeswax still tastes reasonably good and is resistant to saliva, so it sticks well into your lips and you don’t need to apply it back and forth.
- Guards the Liver
The report released by the Korean Journal of Internal Medicine in 2013 published an investigation whether the alcohol content of honeycombs and its antioxidants actually protect the liver.
The investigation was also supported with an experiment by using beeswax alcohol to evaluate the safety and effectiveness among patients suffering from fatty liver diseases.
The study lasted for 6 months, and concluded that beeswax indeed sustains liver functions and help the treatment to fatty liver disease.
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- Lowers Cholesterol Levels
Research has it that the long-chain alcohol from plant waxes help lower down cholesterol among humans. The regulatory effects produced by alcohols inside beeswax aid lower low-density lipoprotein, or otherwise known as the “negative cholesterol” by 21-29% and conversely increase high-density lipoprotein or the “good cholesterol” by a range of 8-15%.
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- As an Anti-Inflammatory Agent and a Painkiller
These two are the main traits of chewing beeswax. It is further proved by the 2014 Korean Journal of Internal Medicine that osteoarthritis-related inflammation can be cured with the help of beeswax. The study gathered participants (osteoarthritis patients) and 23 of them experienced a decline in pain, joint stiffness as well as increased physical function. The reactions took place only 2 weeks after the start of the study and it improved as weeks passed.
The anti-inflammatory properties of beeswax also works on fungi-caused skin infections as well as jock itch. The study gathered participants (osteoarthritis patients) and 23 of them experienced a decline in pain, joint stiffness as well as increased physical function.
Beeswax reduces pain in jock itches and fungal skin infections by moisturizing the affected skin as the way of treating the two diseases. A combination of honey, olive oil and beeswax can get rid of the infections effectively when applied to the affected skin thrice daily over the course of four weeks or roughly a month.
- Anti-Acne Agent
Beeswax is considered one simple remedy to prevent acne pimples naturally. It has antiseptic, inflammatory, and also vitamin A that are all useful for getting rid of zits. At the same time, it also softens the skin upon treating acne.
- Gets Rid of Stretch Marks
Stretch marks can be a problem for some as it is so visible to the point of ruining skin appearance. Stretch marks can be removed organically with the help of beeswax. A study conducted by Yonsei University College of Medicine’s Department of Dermatology and Cutaneous Biology Research Institute in Korea suggests that collagen plays a vital role in wound healing.
Beeswax contains both vitamin A, which makes it possible to produce collagen, hence it also benefits the reduction of stretchmarks in the long run. You can have an enhanced stretch mark treatment by combining beeswax with collagen-rich materials such as shea butter, cocoa butter, royal jelly, grapeseed or coconut oil.
- Promotes Relaxation and is also Environmentally Friendly
Beeswaxes also come in the form of aroma-therapeutic candles for a good reason. This is because normal aromatherapy candles are made out of paraffin, whereas beeswax aren’t. Inhaling or getting prolonged exposure to paraffin endangers your health, because of the soot from the wax that gets inhaled.
Meanwhile, paraffin wax isn’t so environmentally friendly at home because it damages electronic appliances plus ductwork. Beeswax candles offers the opposite to what paraffin candles offer, and it is also toxin free, thus making it safe for everyone and all the things inside the house.