HOME   >   NEWS   >   Does Stingless Bee Honey Have Special Health Benefits?
Does Stingless Bee Honey Have Special Health Benefits?

Does Stingless Bee Honey Have Special Health Benefits?

BY Lewis 23 Jan,2021 Stingless Bee Honey Health Meliponini

Advertisement

Associate Professor Mary Fletcher, an organic chemist at the University of Queensland, said that local people has long known that native stingless bee honey has special health benefits.

She said: “We tested honey from two species of stingless bees in Australia, one of which is from Malaysia and the other from Brazil, and found that 85% of the honey they make is trehalose instead of maltose as previously thought. "

5.jpeg

“Foods that have main ingredient as trehalose, which is a rare sugar with a low glycemic index (GI), have never been found in the natural environment before,” said Doctor Fletcher.

“Traditionally, people thought that stingless bee honey is good for diabetics, and now we know the reason-a lower GI means that sugar takes longer to be absorbed into the blood, so it won’t fluctuate as much as blood glucose. Interestingly, trehalose does not cause tooth decay either.” 

Dr. Fletcher said, “These findings will boost the stingless bee honey market and create new business opportunities.” 

Advertisement

“Stingless bee honey is now sold at around AUD 200 per kilogram, which is comparable to the prices of Manuka Honey and Royal Jelly. The high commercial value also puts it at risk of being faked by inferior products. People may sell other honey as stingless bee honey or dilute the product. However, the result from this research can help us to identify this new type of sugar, which will help the industry to formulate food standards for stingless bee honey. People have obtained patent right for synthesizing trehalose using enzymes and bacteria, but the result of our research shows that stingless bee honey can be used as a food by its own, or used to process other foods to obtain the same health benefits.”

Dr. Fletcher's team started a new research project pertaining to this discovery - funded by Australia AgriFutures and supported by the Australian Aboriginal Bee Industry Association.

Stingless bees (Meliponini) appear in most tropical and subtropical regions, neotropical, non-tropical, and Indo-Australia regions, and there are about 500 species.

Same as the famous bees, the stingless bee society includes a queen and numerous worker bees. The workers collect pollen and nectar to feed the young bees.

Dr. Fletcher says that the local stingless bees are becoming more and more popular in Australia because of their pollination ability and unique honey.

Stingless bee honey not only has health benefits, and also valued for its flavor so that chefs also have a high demand for it.

Advertisement

Advertisement