Why Choose Beeswax?
There are many reasons to choose beeswax for both candles and as an ingredient in other natural products.
Let's talk about the qualities of beeswax first, and then we'll take a look at how the bees make and use beeswax.
Qualities of Beeswax
- natural & eco-friendly (when harvested ethically & sustainably)
- natural mild honey scent
- considerably higher melting point that other waxes
- releases negative ions as it burns
- emits closest light wavelength to sunlight
Let's delve into the benefits of each of these qualities.
Harvesting Beeswax
When harvested ethically and sustainably, beeswax is removed from the hive as part of harvesting honey, which is only harvested after the hive has already produced more honey than it needs. The beeswax is collected in the form of wax cappings that were covering the harvested cells of honey, making it a by-product of the honey harvest. Saving the wax and purifying it for use in candles and hive products actually makes the honey harvesting a more sustainable process!
Scent of Beeswax
Pure beeswax has a sweet, mild honey aroma that is not irritating to people with scent sensitivities or allergies to synthetic fragrances. The natural scent doesn't release any toxins when burned.
Melting Point
Beeswax has a considerably higher melting point than other waxes, which means it takes longer to melt. It burns up to 3 times longer than paraffin. With such an efficient burn time, beeswax is more economical than you might initially think!
Finally, my two favourite features of beeswax:
Negative Ions
The negative ions released by burning a beeswax candle help eliminate dust, pollen, mould, smoke, food odours, pet dander, airborne germs and bacteria from the air. How? The negative ions bond to these positively charged particles, causing them to fall to the ground. Note that some of the additional benefit of negative ions from beeswax is due to its higher melting point which allows beeswax combustion to release more negative ions than other natural waxes. The effect of negative ion release from a burning candle will be more significant in a small room or home.
Negative ions are also found in high concentrations in ecological areas such as mountain regions, seashores, and waterfalls. Electrical storms and rainfall also release negative ions. These ions help alleviate asthma and allergies, and have an invigorating effect.
Light Wavelengths
The beautiful golden glow of burning beeswax is the closest light wavelength to natural sunlight that we can make! This explains why we love burning beeswax candles so much more during the shorter, darker days of winter here in Canada.
Some studies also show that burning beeswax stimulates the pituitary gland, which can heighten dream activity and increase intuition and creativity. Reports also suggest that burning beeswax before bed helps with achieving a more restful sleep. In addition, during gatherings, meditations and spiritual experiences, beeswax candles can contribute to a greater sense of connection, awareness and positive energy.
Give beeswax candles a try in different situations and see how they make you feel!
How Bees Make & Use Beeswax
Collectively, a hive of bees will travel around 80,000km and pollinate over 2 million flowers to generate ¼ LB of pure beeswax. Beeswax comes in a variety of shades and tones that are influenced by the nectar and pollen sources of the bee - the wax from the bees’ wax glands is white, and changes colour with age and the types of nectar and pollen stored in the honeycomb cells of the hive.
Once a bee secretes a flake of wax from it's wax gland, it will use its mandible and legs to mold the wax into the hexagon shapes of the combs the bees live and work on inside the hive. In cases where a totally new comb must be built, the bees work together in a formation called "festooning", building a scaffold with their bodies and helping one another form and mold tiny wax flakes into one large comb. Not only do the bees store honey in the wax combs, they also use some areas of the hive to store pollen and raise brood - new bees which grow from eggs to larvae to pupae to emerge from cells of comb as adult bees.
To produce 1 LB of beeswax, bees must consume 8 LBS of honey - this makes beeswax a valuable resource! When beekeepers harvest honey, we scrape off the wax capping overtop of the honey cells, spin the honey out, and save the base structure of the comb to return to the bees to help reduce their workload as they prepare to store more honey away. This may also help you understand why beeswax is more expensive than honey - the beeswax harvest from any given crop of honey amounts to around 1% of whatever size the honey crop is, so there isn't nearly as much of it!
I hope this blog post has helped you gain a new understanding and appreciation of beeswax. Please share any questions in the comments so I can update the post with answers!
Bee well,
Jodi