It was only in China and Eastern Europe ( countries like Russia, Poland, Bulgaria and old Yugoslavia) that medical research were conducted on bee propolis.

Propolis brought to the West

The medical community in the West only took notice in the 1960s and 1970s after the works of Dr. Aagard Lund in Denmark and Dr. Remy Chauvin in France was published – outlining the benefits of propolis to health.

Starting from that, like any other useful natural plant or substance, scientists have been working hard to extract that special ingredients in propolis that is beneficial for our health.

But it appears that you need to take whole propolis to get it’s health benefits. The combined and synergistic effects of propolis are proved to be better than any single ingredients extracted from it.

Non-toxic

These scientific research have also concluded that propolis not toxic. In simple words this means it is safe for you to take propolis.

However, it has a few side effects, mainly affecting those who are already allergic to bees or bee products.

Later on, propolis were also mentioned in Arabs, Greeks and Roman medical treatises during the late 19th century. Equivalent to today’s medical journals, these treatises talk about using propolis for treating infection, skin diseases, respiratory and joint problems. The Greeks were known to use it for abscesses while the Assyrians used it to heal wounds and possibly tumors.

In Europe and North Africa, propolis have been reported as a form of treatment for  wound, caries and all forms of  mouth or throat infections.