Royal Jelly

Last Updated: September 28 2022

Royal jelly is a nutritious jelly with a composition similar to pollen, created by worker bees. It is being researched for its effects on testosterone and longevity.

Royal Jelly is most often used for

Summary

Royal jelly is a nutritious jelly produced by worker bees. It is fed to larvae worker bees and drones for the first three days of their lives to stimulate growth. Larvae that are fed royal jelly for a prolonged period of time grow up to be queen bees. In fact, the queen eats exclusively royal jelly throughout her life.

Royal jelly is a food product. It contains calories due to its protein, carbohydrate, and fatty acid content.

Supplementing royal jelly is claimed to promote longevity. This claim is not fully supported. It does, however, protect the heart by lowering triglyceride and lipoprotein levels.

Supplementing royal jelly can enhance testicular testosterone production. Animal research suggests it is able to increase estrogen in post-menopausal animals. Royal jelly may also reduce the effects of estrogen in youth. These hormonal effects are unreliable and difficult to predict.

Dosage information

More research is needed to determine an optimal dosage for royal jelly. Researchers have observed benefits when using 50-300mg doses. A 6g daily dose has also been shown to provide benefits.

Supplements Demystified: Get Our Unbiased, Evidence-Based Guide

Examine Database: Royal Jelly
What works and what doesn't?

Unlock the full potential of Examine

Get started

Don't miss out on the latest research

References
2.^Yang A, Zhou M, Zhang L, Xie G, Chen H, Liu Z, Ma WInfluence of royal jelly on the reproductive function of puberty male ratsFood Chem Toxicol.(2012 Jun)
4.^Guo H, Saiga A, Sato M, Miyazawa I, Shibata M, Takahata Y, Morimatsu FRoyal jelly supplementation improves lipoprotein metabolism in humansJ Nutr Sci Vitaminol (Tokyo).(2007 Aug)
5.^Vucevic D, Melliou E, Vasilijic S, Gasic S, Ivanovski P, Chinou I, Colic MFatty acids isolated from royal jelly modulate dendritic cell-mediated immune response in vitroInt Immunopharmacol.(2007 Sep)
7.^Kramer KJ, Tager HS, Childs CN, Speirs RDInsulin-like hypoglycemic and immunological activities in honeybee royal jellyJ Insect Physiol.(1977)
12.^Shinoda M, Nakajin S, Oikawa T, Sato K, Kamogawa A, Akiyama YBiochemical studies on vasodilative factor in royal jelly (author's transl)Yakugaku Zasshi.(1978 Feb)
15.^Hattori N, Nomoto H, Mishima S, Inagaki S, Goto M, Sako M, Furukawa SIdentification of AMP N1-oxide in royal jelly as a component neurotrophic toward cultured rat pheochromocytoma PC12 cellsBiosci Biotechnol Biochem.(2006 Apr)
21.^Honda Y, Fujita Y, Maruyama H, Araki Y, Ichihara K, Sato A, Kojima T, Tanaka M, Nozawa Y, Ito M, Honda SLifespan-extending effects of royal jelly and its related substances on the nematode Caenorhabditis elegansPLoS One.(2011)
22.^Morita H, Ikeda T, Kajita K, Fujioka K, Mori I, Okada H, Uno Y, Ishizuka TEffect of royal jelly ingestion for six months on healthy volunteersNutr J.(2012 Sep 21)
23.^Siavash M, Shokri S, Haghighi S, Mohammadi M, Shahtalebi MA, Farajzadehgan ZThe efficacy of topical Royal Jelly on diabetic foot ulcers healing: A case seriesJ Res Med Sci.(2011 Jul)
25.^Münstedt K, Henschel M, Hauenschild A, von Georgi RRoyal jelly increases high density lipoprotein levels but in older patients onlyJ Altern Complement Med.(2009 Apr)
29.^Elnagar SARoyal jelly counteracts bucks' "summer infertility"Anim Reprod Sci.(2010 Aug)
31.^Mishima S, Suzuki KM, Isohama Y, Kuratsu N, Araki Y, Inoue M, Miyata TRoyal jelly has estrogenic effects in vitro and in vivoJ Ethnopharmacol.(2005 Oct 3)
32.^Moutsatsou P, Papoutsi Z, Kassi E, Heldring N, Zhao C, Tsiapara A, Melliou E, Chrousos GP, Chinou I, Karshikoff A, Nilsson L, Dahlman-Wright KFatty acids derived from royal jelly are modulators of estrogen receptor functionsPLoS One.(2010 Dec 22)
33.^Narita Y, Ohta S, Suzuki KM, Nemoto T, Abe K, Mishima SEffects of long-term administration of royal jelly on pituitary weight and gene expression in middle-aged female ratsBiosci Biotechnol Biochem.(2009 Feb)
34.^Karadeniz A, Simsek N, Karakus E, Yildirim S, Kara A, Can I, Kisa F, Emre H, Turkeli MRoyal jelly modulates oxidative stress and apoptosis in liver and kidneys of rats treated with cisplatinOxid Med Cell Longev.(2011)
35.^Kanbur M, Eraslan G, Beyaz L, Silici S, Liman BC, Altinordulu S, Atasever AThe effects of royal jelly on liver damage induced by paracetamol in miceExp Toxicol Pathol.(2009 Mar)
36.^Narita Y, Nomura J, Ohta S, Inoh Y, Suzuki KM, Araki Y, Okada S, Matsumoto I, Isohama Y, Abe K, Miyata T, Mishima SRoyal jelly stimulates bone formation: physiologic and nutrigenomic studies with mice and cell linesBiosci Biotechnol Biochem.(2006 Oct)
37.^Yanagita M, Kojima Y, Mori K, Yamada S, Murakami SOsteoinductive and anti-inflammatory effect of royal jelly on periodontal ligament cellsBiomed Res.(2011 Aug)
38.^Kafadar IH, Güney A, Türk CY, Oner M, Silici SRoyal jelly and bee pollen decrease bone loss due to osteoporosis in an oophorectomized rat modelEklem Hastalik Cerrahisi.(2012)
40.^Erem C, Deger O, Ovali E, Barlak YThe effects of royal jelly on autoimmunity in Graves' diseaseEndocrine.(2006 Oct)
41.^Park HM, Cho MH, Cho Y, Kim SYRoyal jelly increases collagen production in rat skin after ovariectomyJ Med Food.(2012 Jun)
44.^Thien FC, Leung R, Baldo BA, Weiner JA, Plomley R, Czarny DAsthma and anaphylaxis induced by royal jellyClin Exp Allergy.(1996 Feb)
45.^Laporte JR, Ibáãnez L, Vendrell L, Ballarín EBronchospasm induced by royal jellyAllergy.(1996 Jun)
46.^Harwood M, Harding S, Beasley R, Frankish PDAsthma following royal jellyN Z Med J.(1996 Aug 23)
47.^Bullock RJ, Rohan A, Straatmans JAFatal royal jelly-induced asthmaMed J Aust.(1994 Jan 3)
49.^Rosmilah M, Shahnaz M, Patel G, Lock J, Rahman D, Masita A, Noormalin ACharacterization of major allergens of royal jelly Apis melliferaTrop Biomed.(2008 Dec)