Pollen Warning

Circled pollen in honey. The pollen is layered in the perfect little cells.

I was reading through a beekeeping catalog and there is a warning for the fresh pollen. I have eaten pollen from when I extracted honey this summer and it is very sour. Sometimes people ask me about using honey for pollen allergies, and I tell them that if they are highly allergic to something, then they probably shouldn’t eat it. My grandmother developed an allergy to honey late in life and couldn’t even use soap containing honey. For the vast majority of adults, though, there is probably little danger in eating local honey.

Here is the catalog’s warning written in bold for the fresh pollen:

Many people buy this pollen to eat. We strongly warn that this pollen is very fresh and strong. Should you have allergies, ingestion should be done under the care of a physician.