What you need to know about Royal Jelly

Royal Jelly is in vogue in beauty. Royal Jelly is a milky substance (see pic)  that's produced by young worker bees for the queen bee's nourishment.

Royal Jelly is a staple of natural skincare formulas (like Burt's Bees); it's in mass hair care such as L'Oreal's new Vive Pro Hydra Gloss Moisturizing line. Royal Jelly is found in combination with peptides and hyaluronic acid in more "serious" skincare formulas such as Bee Royal Products PepTox Wrinkle Relaxing Cream.

So what's so good about Royal Jelly?

For starters, it's vitamin-, mineral-, and protein-rich. Royal Jelly contains a whopping 134 nutrients, including 17 amino acids and vitamins A, C, D and K, as well as multiple B-vitamins. Plus, it's been found to have both antioxidant and antibiotic properties.

Royal Jelly is mostly added to skin products to act as a moisturizer that works to smooth skin's texture and help minimize fine lines.

There are stories on the web that tout Royal Jelly's ability to help with dull, reddish, and blotchy skin--and even eczema--but I haven't seen any conclusive studies to this effect.