Bees wax is really a miracle of nature. Beeswax is a complex product secreted in liquid form by special wax glands in the abdomen of younger worker bees aged between 12 and 18 days. This is the stage of the bee’s life where the bees act as nurses in the hive.
When the secretion comes in contact with the air, it solidifies. The bees use their jaws to build the honeycombs, adding pollen and propolis to the honey cone structure. When secreted by the bee, the pure beeswax is almost white. Only after contact with honey and pollen the wax assumes a variably intense yellowish colour and turns brown after about four years in the hive because it contains the cocoon. Bees wax is a complex mixture of more than 300 components of hydrocarbons, free fatty acids, esters of fatty acids and fatty alcohol, diesters and other substances. It is known for its anti-fungal and microbiological properties.
The use of bees wax has been common in treating ailments within humans for many thousands of years – usually in compositions of wax, olive oil and rose water. Similarly, wax has been used in many “preservative” type application including polishes and waxes for furniture. Whilst there have been many scientific studies of bee’s wax, even to this day it is not fully understood as to the full potential of its uses in medicine.
My interest in bee’s wax has naturally come about with my interest in furniture restoration and preservation. It has been this interest that has led me down a path of my own research into uses for polishes, waxes and leather conditioners. Bees wax has been a staple ingredient in my Bee Snot products. The mixing of the wax with other natural and pure ingredients – together with a lot of experimentation, has resulted in my Be Snot Polish, Bee Snot Wax and Bee Snot leather conditioner.
Bee’s wax truly is a miracle of nature.
