Extinction of the bees

The use of bee products (honey, propolis, royal jelly and pollen), apitherapy, is an integral part of natural medicine, aiding in the treatment of certain health problems, but one must know that the daily use of bee products in the diet can preserve health and prevent diseases in humans and animals.  Bee products, due to their complex composition and synergistic action, are of great importance in the preservation of health and are a help from nature in the treatment of many diseases. Preparations containing honey, pollen, propolis and royal jelly are increasingly popular because their use has a beneficial effect on the body.

We are witnessing that today's lifestyle continues at a pace that does not cease to expose us to excessive stress and emotional imbalance, and so day by day there is a growing need for modern humans to prevent stress reactions and eliminate (or at least alleviate) the consequences of such a condition.

Croatia has an enviable natural diversity, so many bee products and various types of honey can be found in our country, and apitherapy is high on the list. Beekeeping in Croatia is a traditional agricultural branch with great economic importance. Bee products - honey, pollen, wax, propolis, royal jelly, and bee venom are used as food and nutritional supplement because of their functional properties. Due to different climatic zones (Mediterranean, Continental, Mountain), Croatia has different conditions for the development of beekeeping. The diversity and richness of plant species enables the production of many types of honey such as: chestnut, acacia, sage, linden, heather, sunflower, flower and meadow honey, and coniferous and deciduous honeydew. The steady increase in the number of beekeepers and beekeeping communities from year to year can be attributed to the good organization of beekeepers, market needs and support to this sector.

Audio therapy, as a relatively new anti-stress method, is often combined with yoga meditations and exercises. In traditional Oriental medicine, staying in nature already has certain benefits, and connecting with nature through smell or sound has a great influence on the activation of chakras (energy centers in our body) that in turn drive the entire endocrine system. And what do apitherapists say about how bees fit into sound therapy? According to the acknowledgment of many beekeepers, as well as lay people who have had the opportunity to stay at the apiary, the sound of bees humming in the pasture and in the hive has an extremely beneficial effect on the psychophysical state and from the audiotherapy point of view it can help in the treatment of chronic headache and migraine, stress and depressive conditions.

Apiturism or beekeeping tourism is a new, specific branch of agritourism that includes visits to beekeeping tourists, learning about production technologies, tasting bee products in a tasting room and selling them.

The first apie routes in Croatia, organized by the Croatian Apitherapy Society, will come to life this spring, and until then the round table discusses the possibilities of developing apitourism in Croatia. Also, this spring, in cooperation with individual counties, tourist offices and agencies, the education of tourist guides for this form of tourist offer begins. The trend of api-inhalation finally came to life in Croatia, so several apicomors were opened last summer in which medicinal air can be inhaled from the hive. We all know about the healing powers of honey, propolis and everything that bees can give us.

But bees are increasingly disappearing due to pesticides, antibiotic use, bee exposure to electromagnetic radiation. Bees pollinate 60% of the food supply of 90% of all flowering plants, and when they disappear, there will be an economic and food disaster globally. Bees play a very important role in the ecosystem, and for more than a decade have faced threats such as urban development, biodiversity loss and habitat destruction. Losing them could mean we are facing mass extinction.

One tip for all gardeners. Don't cut the dandelions this year, let them grow and save the bees. Besides being extremely useful to humans, dandelion is invaluable to bees and other pollinators.

To conclude, I will quote Einstein's warning: "if the bees had disappeared from the Earth's surface, humanity would only have 4 more years to live."