Superfood Profile: Bee Pollen

In honor of allergy season being in full swing,  I thought it would be helpful to provide some insight on Bee Pollen and why it is so extraordinary. 

I had my first experience with bee pollen a few years ago. I was working at a local juice and smoothie shop- and we offered bee pollen as an added superfood boost. I would put it in my smoothie every day, and I swear I never had a spring so unaffected by allergies. Knowing this information and how it affected my own system inspired me to learn more, especially as future years sans bee pollen were quite miserable. 

 

what is Bee pollen? 

Bee pollen comes into existence when honey bees harvest pollen from a variety of plant sources. The bees add their own goodness (nectar) into it, and store it in honeycomb. Through this process it becomes a bonafide complete superfood. It has amino acids, essential fatty acids, vitamins, minerals, and more! It's pretty incredible. It is not considered vegan because bees create it- however, no bees are harmed in the harvesting of the pollen. 

 

You've probably heard of pollen as an allergen itself, so why would eating it be good for you?

Essentially the thought is that it helps your body build its immune response to pollens. If your immune system is prepared, you will experience less symptoms once allergies are in full swing. This is also why buying local bee pollen is the best if you would like it to help with your seasonal allergies. When you use local bee pollen, the bees are harvesting pollen from plants that likely will be your triggers later. 

 

If I want to prevent allergies, when should i start taking it?

It's best to start a few months in advance to build up an immune response. So probably too late to save you this spring. You can start next month to prepare for autumn allergens, though! That being said, I've noticed a difference with one dose (probably placebo effect but hey, I'll take it!) - so I will still be taking it this spring, even though it's late in the game! 

I don't have seasonal allergies, why would I want to add this to my routine?

Key word: SUPERFOOD. This stuff is amazing. I mentioned its a complete food, so it essentially is a natural vitamin supplement. Here are some of the many reported benefits: 

• Reduces inflammation
• Protects against liver toxicity
• Improved energy levels 
• Improved gut health 
• Acts as an anti-oxidant
• Natural stress reliever
• And many more! (Want to learn more? Check out "Further Reading" at the bottom of the page)

What to look for when buying 

As mentioned before- first and foremost- try to get it locally. I live in Chicago- but farms in other areas of the state or in southern Wisconsin, Michigan, and northern Indiana all would probably be fine because we all share similar Midwest weeds and plants. Check with your local farmers market or try Whole Foods, they often will try to use local vendors. 

Next, it's great to find kernels with a variety of color. They range from yellow to black - depending on what plants the bees took the pollen from. It you have a diversified mix it will help cover you to a variety of plant allergens. 

It comes in a variety of forms (capsules, liquids, etc.) but get the whole kernels. Less processing is always best! 

Side note: there are a lot of similar benefits to eating raw organic honey, however, it is really hard to find unpasteurized honey. The pasteurization process kills off a lot of the beneficial nutrients. Bee pollen on the other hand, not being a liquid, does not get pasteurized, so it retains it's nutritional integrity better. 

How to best eat it? 

My preferred method of ingesting :) 

I prefer using kernels on top of my smoothie bowls or mixed in to a smoothie (post blend). Always eat it with other food. If added to fruit it is supposed to activate quickly in the gut!

If you have any serious allergies (I'm talking anaphylaxis) ESPECIALLY to pollen, talk to your doctor about ingesting bee pollen. If you are worried you may have an allergic reaction, you can test by putting one granule on your tongue until it dissolves. If there is no reaction, add another. Repeat until you feel confident you will not have a reaction. 

 

Further Reading

Want to learn more? Check out these resources!

How Bee Pollen Could Cure Your Allergies - Mind Body Green

Top 8 Bee Pollen Benefits - Dr. Axe

Top 10 benefits of bee pollen - Be Healthy

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What do you think? Will you give bee pollen a try? I am definitely going to add it back into my routine! Happy June! - AHS

Update: Brain Octane Oil and Bulletproof Coffee Trial

So if you read my post from two weeks ago, you will know that I had been reading and learning about the differences on Brain Octane Oil, MCT oil, and Bulletproof coffee – but I hadn't really tried it out yet. I decided to pursue testing Brain Octane Oil and Bulletproof Coffee. 

I started drinking Brain Octane Oil in my coffee around 2 weeks ago but took a couple days off because I wasn't at home. I immediately became obsessed with the frothy goodness. I love the richness it added to my daily cup o' joe. I realize what almond milk (alone) was lacking was FAT! It isn't quite as satisfying as regular milk, but I had gotten so used to it, I didn't realize what I had been missing. The days that I had coffee out of the house, I seriously missed the oil! 

After a few days with just the oil, and seeing how much I loved it, I decided to give Bulletproof coffee a try. (Reminder: Bulletproof coffee is some type of MCT oil, in this case, Brain Octane, plus 1-2 tbsp of grass-fed, unsalted butter.) Guys, it became even richer and frothier! I was in heaven. All of the froth and richness. With this change, my morning cuppa became a sheer delight (and if you haven't realized already, I'm pretty obsessed with my morning cup). That being said, I am not going to add butter every day, just because I know from past experience my body does better with less dairy. 

I didn't immediately notice any cognitive benefits that you are supposed to see with the oil (with the exception of my morning meditation struggling because I couldn't tame the thoughts! Or was that the caffeine?... Tough to say). Then I realized that I had been not using the full dosage. I had started using 1 tsp, had worked my way up to 2. Well, I was supposed to be using 1 tsp, working my way up to 2 TBSP. So, makes sense I wasn't seeing the level of results I was anticipating.

With the adjustment (I landed at 1.5 tbsp) I did see vast improvement. I didn't notice any difference in results with Brain Octane Oil or proper Bulletproof Coffee, though. One of the benefits of adding butter is that it should supply steady, long-lasting energy, which may have happened, but I ate breakfast most days because I was hungry (the Bulletproof guys make it a meal replacement). So it's tricky to say if it was tied to the my morning drink. They say you won't get hungry, but I did. I kept it light: either a green smoothie or an egg with a slice of sprouted grain toast. 

Without further ado, here are my observations: 

• I felt less brain fog than usual. I felt sharper in whatever I was thinking, writing, or saying. It mayyyyy have increased my ability to focus - hard to say. I'm very ADD (with an actual diagnosis) so I think I saw an improvement, but not really sure. 
• I drank my coffee faster than usual to avoid oil separation, which did lead to stomach aches a couple times. I like drinking my coffee slowly: I end up drinking less that way. So I would consider this a negative. 
• Relating to stomach... adjusting to the oil initially made my poop a bit looser than usual. Not bad though. (Apologies if that's TMI, but thought you should know if you are experiencing that while taking the oil, it's normal! ;))
• One of the biggest surprises was when I added a tbsp to my lunch smoothie. Normally, I do my best work in the morning - no matter what. By drinking it in my afternoon smoothie it kept my brain sharp all afternoon, when I typically struggle the most! 
• I also noticed that by the evenings I was absolutely famished, which is not common for me. It may have increased my metabolic rate! I have lost a little bit of weight, but I have also been following Shed guidelines this month to start the year on a good note. So could be a combination of the two. 
• One other negative, I have noticed an increase in heartburn. As I've mentioned, I've been eating very clean, so I am wondering if the oil/butter are having an impact. It could be unrelated though. (If anyone knows anything about heartburn, help a sister out! #thisis30) You all now know way too much about me. 

In sum, I will definitely keep Brain Octane Oil as a part of my routine. I may split up 2 tablespoons - 1 in the am, 1 at lunch. The cognitive benefits were really noticeable when I increased my intake. It really upped my morning coffee game. I clearly am obsessed with the frothy yumminess. Adding butter to my coffee has really been a treat, I will probably keep using it several days a week. Although, I may try removing it for awhile though to see if helps my heartburn situation (cue *tears of laughter and of sadness at the same time*). 😂 😭 🤦🏻‍♀️

Have you guys tried Brain Octane Oil or Bulletproof coffee? I would love to hear what you think of it! Leave a comment below or on insta. Bottoms up! -AHS

So what's up with collagen?

If you have followed any wellness gurus or influencers at all for at least the past 6 months, you will know that drinking collagen has been a hot topic. I woke up one day and the only thing I saw was collagen, everywhere! On my insta feed, every wellness 'grammer was posting about it. I went to the Cubs game, they were sponsored by Vital Proteins. An athlete friend of mine was all of a suddenly repping them. I couldn't escape! 

Then I began to think, "Is this stuff magical? Could it change my life? Is this something brides should be into? Eh, probs just an excellent marketing team." Either way, it was worth trying. 

So what is collagen? Why should we drink it? What are the supposed benefits? It seems like there are a million products out there, which one do I try? Where does it come from? I'll try to catch you up on my learnings. 

What is collagen and why should i take it? 

Collagen is the most abundant protein in the body. Why take it? Because the intake of collagen ensures the cohesion, elasticity and regeneration of skin, hair, tendon, cartilage, bones and joints. It has been proven to: 

1. Promote younger looking skin
2. Improve skin moisture level and suppleness
3. Improve skin smoothness
4. Prevent the formation of deep wrinkles
5. Help protect connective tissues & restore muscles
6. Replenish moisture levels in hair
7. Support nail growth
8. Aid in gut health (digestion, healing the gut lining, and more!)

Um, this stuff is sounding very intriguing to me. As I turned 30 this year, I have become a bit obsessed with my skin. This is honestly my primary motivation in trying collagen. Is this going to make me glow? I'm also super into the gut health perks. 

Which product to try and where it comes from

I decided to try Vital Proteins. They seem to be the industry front runner (and from Chi! holla!)  and while also being up to my animal product standards. They are sourced from grass-fed, pasture-raised bovine hides from Brazil. The pasture size for each animal is one animal per 2.67 acres which is in alignment with the Global Animal Partnership 5-step animal welfare rating standards.

I try to make my life easier not harder- the product fit the specs on my first try- I didn't see the need to keep searching. There are definitely other collagens out there, but I have not tried them, so cannot speak to their qualities. I'm sure there are a lot of other great options and would love to hear about any other brands you have tried! 

My personal experience

I ended up buying the 10oz canister of Vital Proteins Collagen Peptides to test it out. The canister lasted me about a month. I put one scoop in my coffee every day. Technically, the serving is two scoops, but one seemed enough initially. I tend to slowly work my way to the full amounts suggested. It dissolves beautifully into warm liquid. You can mix it in hot, cold, or even put it in sauces or baked goods. I haven't tried anything but my coffee.

I have a really hard time eating immediately when I wake up, and it's a really easy way to get my first dose of protein in before I even eat breakfast. When I ran out, I actually missed it in my coffee. For an addition that is flavorless, I was a bit perplexed by that observation. I think it just added a more satiating component by adding protein with the coffee. Maybe I should try bulletproof coffee next?  

My nails and hair are growing awkwardly fast. I've always had really strong nails, but I'm actually having to cut them all the time. My hair is the same (the ROOTS! :() My skin has been looking really good, and dare I say, "supple"?  (Sans an awful stress pimple on my left cheek of course.) Did I achieve a "glow"? Eh, I'm going to say that is a stretch. Did I notice a change in my digestive health? Not really. Overall though, I could see and feel a difference. 

So who knows, is it placebo? Could be. Did I miss taking it when I ran out? Yeah, I did. Would I say I recommend it? Yep, I would. 

In fact, because I liked taking it so much, I decided to become an affiliate for Vital Proteins. That means that if you click on any of the links (affiliate links) in this post, at no cost to you, I will earn commission if you click through and make a purchase. But to be clear, this review was not paid for by Vital Proteins and my opinions are all my own. 

Conclusion

I'm really into the idea of collagen. My skin obsession is just getting worse with age, and I like being able to fight the aging process from the inside out. I personally noticed improvements to my skin, nails, and hair. It is an easy addition to my routine without any fuss. I would give it a 9/10. It would get a 10/10 if it was slightly more economically accessible. 

I've only tried the original collagen peptides but I'm really excited about trying the matcha and the creamers. What do you guys think? Will you give it a shot?  I would love to hear what you think of it! Leave me a note in the comments or on insta!

To learn more or to buy click here.

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Other thoughts

When doing Shed I encourage plant based protein powders. Why are collagen peptides okay and other non plant-based protein powders aren't #shedapproved? 

I encourage plant-based proteins because the more we source our foods from plants, the better we all will be. That being said, I am not currently a vegan. My body does not thrive when I eat exclusively plant-based foods. Also, one of the more common form of protein powders is whey protein. I do not encourage taking whey protein because whey is a form of dairy and dairy causes inflammation in the body. While collagen peptides are definitively animal products- they are not dairy.