Bee pollen is a combination of plant pollen and honeybee secretions and nectar. The Bible and ancient Egyptian texts are documented proof of its use in public health. It is considered a gold mine of nutrition due to its active components that have significant health and medicinal properties. Bee pollen contains bioactive compounds including proteins, amino acids, lipids, carbohydrates, minerals, vitamins, and polyphenols. The vital components of bee pollen enhance different bodily functions and offer protection against many diseases. It is generally marketed as a functional food with affordable and inexpensive prices with promising future industrial potentials. This review highlights the dietary properties of bee pollen and its influence on human health, and its applications in the food industry.

Centre for Natural Products Discovery School of Pharmacy and Biomolecular Sciences Liverpool John Moores University James Parsons Building Byrom Street Liverpool L3 3AF UK

Chemistry of Medicinal Plants Department National Research Centre 33 El Bohouth St Dokki Giza 12622 Egypt

College of Food Science and Technology Northwest University Xi'an 710069 China

College of Pharmacy University of Sharjah Sharjah P O Box 27272 United Arab Emirates

Department of Bee Research Plant Protection Research Institute Agricultural Research Centre Giza 12627 Egypt

Department of Chemistry Faculty of Science Menoufia University Shebin El Kom 32512 Egypt

Department of Molecular Biosciences The Wenner Gren Institute Stockholm University SE 106 91 Stockholm Sweden

H E J Research Institute of Chemistry International Center for Chemical and Biological Sciences University of Karachi Karachi 75270 Pakistan

International Research Center for Food Nutrition and Safety Jiangsu University Zhenjiang 212013 China

Laboratory of Growth Regulators Institute of Experimental Botany ASCR and Palacký University Šlechtitelů 27 78371 Olomouc Czech Republic

Nutrition and Bromatology Group Department of Analytical Chemistry and Food Science Faculty of Food Science and Technology University of Vigo Ourense Campus E 32004 Ourense Spain

Pharmacognosy Group Department of Pharmaceutical Biosciences Biomedical Centre Uppsala University Box 591 SE 751 24 Uppsala Sweden

School of Food and Biological Engineering Jiangsu University Zhenjiang 212013 China

School of Food Science and Technology National Engineering Research Center of Seafood Dalian Polytechnic University Dalian 116024 China

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