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Are There Many Calories in Bee Pollen?
There are approximately 16 calories in one teaspoon of bee pollen. When looking at the calories in bee pollen, it is important to remember that the bee pollen is typically only used as a health food supplement and not a major food source. As supplements go, 16 calories is not unusual. Many fish oil supplements, as a comparison, have 10 to 15 calories per pill, and a dosage of one to three pills per day. If one teaspoon is taken per day, the calories in bee pollen should not be an issue for weight control.
Bee pollen has been deemed a super food because of its excellent nutritional content that includes protein and numerous vitamins and minerals. Many people are supplementing with bee pollen, which is purported to do everything from increasing lifespans to correcting intestinal difficulties. This leads some people to take more than the recommended dose every day. While the calories in bee pollen are not substantial in one dose, the calories in multiple doses can quickly add up.
The calories in bee pollen can also be more than expected if the dose is measured incorrectly. When taken in capsule form, the measurement is done for the user. Many users actually prefer to use the capsule form to avoid the taste of the bee pollen. If the bee pollen is taken in any other form, the user is sometimes responsible for measuring the supplement. If a tablespoon is used instead of a teaspoon, or if an eyeball estimate is used, the dose can be more than the standard one teaspoon and therefore contain more calories.
Other nutritional information besides the calorie content might be important to some users as well. Although the recommended one teaspoon dose is likely not significant enough to worry about, large doses of bee pollen may contain too many carbohydrates for someone following a strict carbohydrate reduction diet. For instance, someone following the very strict induction phase of a low carbohydrate diet might not be able to afford the more than 6 grams of carbohydrates in three teaspoons of bee pollen, especially considering the very strict beginning phase may only allow for 20 to 30 grams of carbohydrates per day. Individuals who have allergic reactions should also be wary of the large variety of components of bee pollen, and be careful to monitor any signs of trouble and not exceed the recommended dose.
AS FEATURED ON:
AS FEATURED ON:
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![A bee.]()
A bee. -
![A honeycomb.]()
By: tescha555A honeycomb. -
![Bee pollen can be consumed in pill form.]()
By: Anthony HallBee pollen can be consumed in pill form. -
![Bee pollen is used mainly as a health supplement rather than a food source.]()
By: marcelBee pollen is used mainly as a health supplement rather than a food source.
Discussion Comments
@ysmina-- Unfortunately, most of those calories are coming from carbohydrates and sugars. Five grams of bee pollen has only one gram of protein. The rest are carbohydrates. So it's probably not the healthiest supplement or the best source of protein. It's still beneficial because of the amino acids and antioxidants it contains though.
@ysmina-- If I remember correctly, there is about 2 grams of sugar per dose o bee pollen, so per capsule or per scoop. But this will vary from one product to another. The label should already have this information, so you can check the amount of calories, sugar and carbohydrates to make sure.
Something else to keep in mind is that the form of the supplement is important too. 100% natural bee pollen capsules or granules are very healthy. They are low in calories and rich in nutrients, vitamins and minerals. If, for example, the pollen is mixed with things like honey or royal jelly, another bee product, expect the calories to be much higher.
I take a small teaspoon of bee pollen mixed in honey daily. I realize that this has much more sugar and much more calories than other types of pollen supplements. But I read that pollen is absorbed better this way, and it's easy to consume because it tastes good when mixed with honey.
I'm not too worried about the calories in bee pollen. I don't think anyone can ingest so much bee pollen that it will cause them to gain weight. I'm more concerned about where most of those calories come from. Does it come from carbs like sugar or something like protein? I certainly don't want a supplement that's mostly sugar.
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