The name Propolis is of Greek origin (pro – in front of, polis – city, fortress). Propolis is a resinous substance that bees collect from certain plants and trees and arrange it with their secretions, rich in ferments.
Bees use it for covering the internal walls of the hive. They achieve high sterility with it, clean surroundings of the hive, and keep bacterial infections and external influences out. It is also used for filling cracks in the hive and regulating the size of the entrance to the hive.
But have you heard about this health & beauty benefit of propolis?
Hair loss affects millions of people worldwide, but scientists believe that there may be a natural cure. The researchers found out that the substance of the honeycomb helps with hair growth in laboratory mice. Ken Kobayashi and his colleagues at the University of Medicine and Dentistry in Tokyo point out that propolis contains active substances that fight fungal and bacterial infections.
People from ancient times used propolis in wound healing, inflammation and cancer, and more recently, scientists have found out that it can speed up the growth of certain cells.
That is why Kobayashi and his team examined how this will affect the hair follicles of a shaved mice and others who have their hair removed with wax.
it turned out that the hair grew much faster in mice who used propolis therapy, than in the mice where it wasn’t used. The scientists also observed that after topical application the number of special cells were involved in the process of hair growth.
Although they tried this product on mice, which would anyway grew back their fur, the researchers point out that in some cases hair loss is caused by abnormal inflammation and that propolis can soothe that situation and help with hair growth.
Since propolis contains many health beneficial ingredients, they believe that it may soon become a part of the cure for baldness. However, they point out that additional testing is needed to check whether this substance affects the human follicles.
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