yield commercial bee pollen include buck-
wheat, rape, maize, and pine, among
others. Typha pollen (puhuang) is collected
fromTyphaspecies (T. angustataBory et
Chaub.,T. angustifoliaL.,T. latifoliaL.,
etc.) and has probably the longest and most
extensively documented use history, dating
back to theShen Nong Ben Cao Jing(ca.
200 BC–AD 100). Pine pollen is collected
from numerous Pinus species (including
P. thunbergiiParl.,P. massonianaLamb.,
andP. tabulaeformisCarr.) and has been in
traditional Chinese medical records since
the 7th century when it was first described
in theTang Ben Cao.
Commercial bee pollen is collected by
means of netlike pollen traps, set up next to
the beehives that remove some of the pollen
from the hind legs of worker bees as they
return to their hives. The collected pollen is
manually rid of impurities (dirt, floral parts,
insect fragments, etc.) and dried. Major bee
pollen-producing countries include China
and Spain. Bee pollen from China is mostly
derived from buckwheat (Fagopyrum escu-
lentumMoench) and rape (Brassica campes-
trisL).
To collect typha and pine pollen, the
male inflorescence or flower head is
picked in spring or summer when the flow-
ers just start to bloom. It is sun dried; the
pollen is then mechanically separated from
the floral parts and other impurities. Major
producers are northeastern provinces of
China.
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION
Pollen is very rich in nutrients. However, its
chemistry varies greatly depending on its
botanical source and contains: 3–16% water;
5.9–28.3% crude protein: 14.6–21.9% amino
acids, with some in free form; 1–20% lipids;
up to 44% carbohydrates; 4–10% simple su-
gars; 2–2.5% flavonoids; vitamins (A, B 1 ,B 2 ,
C, D 2 ,E,K 1 ,K 3 , folic acid, nicotinic acid,
etc.); 19–24 trace elements; sterols; and
others.1–5
The following are some examples of
specific chemical constituents reported to
be present in certain types of pollen but
not necessarily in others: pentacosane, iso-
rhamnetin glycoside, narcissin, free palmi-
tic and stearic acids, 6-aminopurine, tura-
nose and an oligosaccharide, sitosterol, and
a-typhasterol inpuhuang(ZHOU AND WANG);^6
b-sitosterol and cholesterol, ursolic acid,
rutin (0–17%), C-3/C-8^00 -biapigenin, palmi-
tic acid, nonacosane, luteolin, tricetin,
kaempferol-3-O-sophoroside, and kaemp-
ferol-3-O-b-D-gluco-7-O-b-D-glucoside in
buckwheat pollen.^7PHARMACOLOGY AND BIOLOGICAL
ACTIVITIESNumerous activity studies have been per-
formed on bee pollen. However, results of
these are extremely difficult to evaluate or
duplicate due to the highly variable nature of
this food/drug. The following are some of the
activities of pollen and its extracts: hypolipe-
mic in humans and experimental animals (pu-
huang and pollen mixture);8,9 antiathero-
sclerotic in experimental animals (puhuang
and pollen mixture);10,11protecting liver from
experimental injury (rape pollen and pollen
mixture);12,13inhibiting prostatic hypertrophy
in aged dogs (rape pollen and pollen mix-
ture);14–16immunoregulating and antioxidant
(rape pollen andpuhuang);11,17,18antiulcer in
humans and experimental animals (puhuang
and rape pollen;19,20 antifatigue in mice
(maize pollen);^21 laxative in humans (maize
pollen and unspecified product);22,23anti-in-
flammatory (puhuang); and uterine stimulant
(puhuang) effects, among others (WANG;ZHOU
AND WANG).^24TOXICOLOGYAlthough rare, bee pollen can cause allergic
reactions,25,26including anaphylactic reac-
tions.^27 As it is a uterine stimulant, pregnant
women are advised not to use it (puhuang)
(CHP).82 Bee pollen