Bee pollen from Ohio has been touted as one of the best available today. But recent laboratory findings may just prove otherwise.
Chemical tainted bee pollen does more harm than good
Covering almost 45,000 square miles, 30 percent of which is covered with forests and plant growth, Ohio has more than enough land area to accommodate hundreds of flowering plants where bees can get pollen.
Furthermore, farming is quite big in this state, with more than 70,000 active farms as of 2005. There are also some industrial plants and manufacturing centers.
With the economy centered more on farming rather than industrial employment, one would think that there is not much pollution in this state, so Ohio bee pollen would indeed be a pure and uncontaminated product. Unfortunately, this would be a false assumption.
It’s true that there are not many smoke-producing factories in Ohio, and that the amount of heavy metal particles in the air is not that significant. However, there is rampant use of pesticides and other artificial chemicals in the farming industry, and these chemicals can be just as dangerous to human health as any other industrial pollutant.
Although the use of natural pesticides is strongly advocated in Ohio and other parts of the United States, there is still no law governing its use, nor is there any legal mandate that disallows the use of chemical insecticides and pesticides.
So as the bees travel from flower to flower, they are very likely to become contaminated with these toxic chemicals in the air, which they will inevitably transmit to the pollen.
When ingested by humans, these tainted pollen products may cause serious health consequences – with regular use, they may even be fatal.
We are not arguing the fact that bee pollen in itself does have insurmountable merits when it comes to health, but considering these dangers, is it really worth the risk? We don’t think so. Bottom line is, when it comes to bee pollen, Ohio is neither the cleanest nor the best source.
But just because the bee pollen sourced from Ohio makes is risky doesn’t mean you have to miss out on the health benefits of bee pollen altogether. There are many other manufacturers of this natural supplement that get it from cleaner sources.
Take NZ bee pollen, for instance. It is harvested from the South Island in New Zealand, which is very sparsely populated and does not have any industrial infrastructure at all.
Like in Ohio, there are also many farms in New Zealand but a big difference is that New Zealand laws prohibit the use of artificial/chemical pesticides. Only natural pesticides (eco-friendly) are used so there is no danger whatsoever of contaminating their bee pollen with harmful substances.
You can continue to enjoy good health with bee pollen as long as you choose your supplements wisely. With pollen from New Zealand, the benefits are plentiful and there are no health risks involved.