Every time I learn about a new superfood, I always think about all of the other ones out there yet discovered, or the ones whose use has simply been lost in time. In order to be a super being of health and vitality these days it is important to be consuming foods of the same level of optimal potency. Understanding the medicinal value of certain foods is really important and useful especially in todays modern world, where it seems with every turn there is some health degrading situation that we’re forced to combat.
Pine pollen had a strange ring to it when i first heard about it. To be honest since I had never noticed pollen on a pine tree I was unaware that this substance even existed. I was definitely aware of flower pollen collected by bees (bee pollen) and have experienced the benefits of that superfood, but pine pollen was foreign to me. Now I know about it’s amazing health benefits and superfood powers. I love foods that can be used medicinally to treat specific health concerns, or eaten as a general food to help give vitality to the entire body, no matter what level of health a person is experiencing. It is these adaptogenic type herbs and foods that I feel safest eating as supplements because not only are their benefits ancient and well documented, but they will only shift the body in a positive balanced direction, instead of acting like a drug which can “fix” one issue but create another.
Pine pollen, like many healing herbs and substances on the planet, has been used in Chinese medicine long before it’s benefits were discovered in the West. It’s use was first documented 2,000 years ago during the Han Dynasty in China. It is mainly used for hormone balancing due to it’s phyto-androgen content. The phyto androgens in pine pollen help to counter the effects of estrogen mimicking substances that we are exposed to more and more in the world. Many modern chemicals found in body care products, household cleaners, pesticides and herbicides, pharmaceutical medications, plastics and more can mimic estrogens in our bodies and cause disruptions. People also get a hefty dose of estrogen from dairy products with added hormones and many phyto-estrogen containing plants such as soy, hops, yams, nuts and seeds and other fruits and vegetables. It is easy to see how estrogen can over-dominate a person’s system these days. Pine pollen’s estrogen balancing effect can be amazing for people dealing with hormone and estrogen dominance related weight issues, skin eruptions or inflammation, mood disorders, sexual or fertility issues, or for women and men going through hormonal changes as they age.
