By Titilayo Kupoliyi
Bees provide profound benefits to human health through direct therapeutic products (apitherapy) and critical global ecosystem services, acting as the foundation of global food security.
Beyond their agricultural necessity, bee-derived products are rich in bioactive compounds that offer numerous health advantages.
Bees and their byproducts such as honey, royal jelly, propolis, and bee venom are rich in antioxidants, amino acids, and minerals.
They are widely used in traditional therapies to boost immunity, accelerate wound healing, and soothe inflammation.
Beekeeping itself is also recognized as a therapeutic practice to reduce stress and anxiety.
Bees are vital to the ecosystem, primarily because they pollinate nearly 85% of global food crops and wildflowers, ensuring food security and biodiversity. Additionally, they provide humans with highly beneficial natural products, including honey, beeswax, royal jelly, and propolis, which are used for nutrition, medicine, and skincare.
To this end, every 20th of May is set aside by the United Nations as World Bee Day to highlights the critical role bees play in sustaining ecosystems, ensuring global food security, and preserving biodiversity.
The 2026 global theme is “Bee Together for People and the Planet – A partnership that sustains us all,” highlighting the millennia-long, vital connection between humanity and bees.
Speaking on the importance of bee and its byproducts, Chairman, Bees Farmer Association, Iwo, Osun State, Alhaji Abdulkabir Taleat , noted that bee is a life saver and can be a good source of income.
God himself accord importance to bee as indicated in the Holy books of Quran and Bible. The bee is a life saver, when anyone is sick and get stinks by bee, the person gets healing”.
Alhaji Taleat stressed that bees also serve as fertilizers as their pollination aids plant growth while honey which is a byproduct of bee is effective in healing most diseases.
“whenever the bee perch on any plant, it fertilizes it, which makes it grow faster, produces more and healthy fruits”.
“Also, honey is very effective in dressing wounds”.
“Bee is a good source of income, whoever rears bee in large quantity, will always get good money from it”.
The bee farmer encouraged people to go into bee rearing aside being a good source of income, rearing bee will lead to a healthy environment.
“Contributing, a nutritionist at the University College Hospital, Mr Tunde Ajobo emphasized that bees are important part of the ecosystem as they help in pollination which increases oxygen circulation, vital to human existence.
“Bees fly about, sucks on nectar, which helps in flower pollination, also increases oxygen circulation, which man takes in, and release carbon dioxide out “.
Mr Ajobo pointed out that, bees produce honey which is a good source of food for humans.
Bees produce honey, which is a useful vitamin for the body. It helps with the immune system. Honey builds the brain cells”.
“Honey can be used as alternative to sugar”.
The food nutritionist cautioned against excessive consumption of honey, as it could lead to allergic reactions, elevation of the blood glucose and diabetes.
Edited by Olaolu Fawole
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