Apitherapy in Ukraine: Past, Present and Perspectives

Dr. Solodenko YURI, Geveliuk NIKOLAY

Ukraine, Kyiv
Ukraine is the country with ancient history, more than thousand year ago history of
Kievska Rus started, from that moment started honoured and suffering history of our country. It
is important that beekeeping in our country was one of the oldest crafts. As in Ancient Greece,
Egypt and China and other countries, as in Ukraine from antiquity it was used bee products
(honey, propolis, bee poison) for sanitation people. For example, very difficult methods of
treating with bee poison (from the history it is known that Yaroslav the Wise in XI century
successfully brought through gout by bee striking). Of course, first apitherapists were beekeepers
and sorcerers and up to XIX century nobody in Ukraine can explore and scientifically justify
those methods of treating. Only in XIX century traditional medicine started being interested in
apitherapy. That times our scientifics started learning and justifying treating with apiproducts.
For instance, I. Mechnikov for the first time explored and justified application of larva of galleria
melonella for treating tuberculosis. In XX century apitherapy started developing. In 1959
Instruction of using apitherapy through bee striking was approved by scientific council of
Ministry of health protection of USSR. In the second part of XX century was accumulated big
experience of apiproducts application in practical medicine. Whose is merit? One of the
coryphaeus of Ukrainian apitherapy is B. Ohotskyi. He made unvalued contribution in
development Ukrainian apitherapy, exploring, studying, developing and implementing different
methods beetreating in medical practice. He was engaged in apitherapy during more than 50
years. e described in 60 scientific researches His unvalued scientific and practical experience.
He ublished several books, including Bees healing. Thanks to B. Ohotskyi constellation of
doctors-apitherapists was grown, who continued his activity, deprive suffering and returning
health for people.
Great merit in scientific apitherapy of Ukraine belongs to Doctor of Medicine, professor,
academician of Ukrainian scientific academy, deserved scientist, laureate of governmental
award, President of Ukrainian Apitherapy Association A. Tikhonov. Under is direction
employees of Chair of pharmacy medicine technology of Kharkov National Pharmaceutical
University created and now create new organic medication on the basis of beeproducts and their
standarded substances. It was worked out, systematized materials about getting, processing of
methods of analysis natural and powdery honey, receiving from them medications.

Academician A. Tikhonov wrote many monographs on the topic of beekeeping products.

Some of them are Natural honey in medicine and pharmacy, Theory and practice of
producing medications of propolis, Medical features of propolis and many others.
Nowadays Doctor of higher category, Doctor of Philosophy, Deputy of President of
Ukrainian Apitherapy Association, President NPO Apiacademy Y. Solodenko gives attention
to scientific and practical apitherapy in Ukraine. Almost 40 years He is engaged in points of
practical and scientific apitherapy. Especially, He worked out schemes treating dispersed
sclerosis, obstructive lung diseases, chronic hepatitis, hypertensive diseases etc. It was worked
out many medications on the basis of bee products for treating periodontal diseases, rhinitis,
sinusitis etc. He worked out and implemented in practice the unique multidisciplinary container
of apitherapist (it can be moved) and mini-hive for the therapy. He organized and he is the editor
of apitherapy magazine Doctor Bee. Doctor Solodenko published more than 10 books on
apitherapy, such as Apitherapy of diseases of urogenital system, How to use correctly honey
and other bee products, Homogenate of drones larva Galleria melonella and others. Now it
is preparing for publishing Apitherapy: training manual.
Many young apitherapists are prepared, they successfully work in many cities of Ukraine.
Many contributions into development of Ukrainian apitherapy made Hromovyi V. He
worked out unique methods of getting royal jelly.
Great attention to practical apitherapy is spared by apitherapists Y. Solovjov, A.
Pashchenko, I. Solodenko and others. Moreover, 25 years ago in Kyiv was established scientific
and investigative Institute of Beekeeping of P.I Prokopovich, in which there is an apitherapeutic
department. Thanks to this institution, apitherapy considerably enrich with scientific and
practical knowledges. During this period apitherapy department worked out many medications
on the basis of beeproducts, conducted many scientific investigations of apiproducts. Due to
leadership of the institute every year in Ukraine is conducted conferences of apitherapy, 1 time
per 4 year congresses. It was established contacts with foreign apitherapists from near and far
countries.
It is important that in the Institute was established one of the best museums of apitherapy,
in which also apitherapy has its own place. At Institute there are courses of beekeeping, where 2
times a year doctors-apitherapists study.
2 years ago in Kiev on the basis of sanatorium Pushcha Ozerna was created NPO
Apiacademy. During this short time were built 4 beehouses, in which beetherapy conducts. For
the first time in Ukraine made and started widely using new method of sanitation - mini-hive

therapy. It was published 5 books about apitherapy. It was organized magazine of apitherapy,
which became all Ukrainian national apitherapeutic magazine. In Apiacademy young
apitherapists have internship and patients are received. It was established friendly contacts and
exchange of experience of apitherapists from Ukraine and Poland. Great merit in development of
Apiacademy belongs to M. Kolesnyk, V. Barabash, N. Geveliuk, V. Geveliuk and others.
Apiacademy proposes cooperate with foreign apitherapists from near and far countries.
Nowadays in Ukraine is accumulated great experience of using beeproducts for treating. But a
lot of features of these products effect on human body is not examined to the end. Nowadays
Ukrainian apitherapists widely apply all diversity of beeproducts with which bees generously
share: honey, zabrus, royal jelly, homogenate of drones larava, wax, propolis, pollen, ambrosia,
bee poison, dead bees, hivetherapy and galleria melonella. Due to constant researches, which are
conducted by many domestic and foreign clinics and universities, every year new medical
characters of these products are discovered and as a result the sphere of its using expands.
Because nature presents us optimal combination of enzymes, vitamins, microelements and other
components, which are contained in those products, which let receive impressive effect when
treating many diseases and very often even where other methods are powerless.
Plans for future. It is planned to approve in the Ministry of health protection of Ukraine
new instruction of apitoxintherapy and write new methodological recommendations of bee
striking. Furthermore, it is significant to implement in medical universities apitherapy for
studying for students. Moreover, it is important to work out recommendations of using
beeproducts for sportsmen, pupils and children preschool age that is for kindergartens. Also, we
need to increase information in all media about benefit of apiproducts and, of course, build
apitherapeutic clinic in Kiev.
It is planned to widely popularize and share experience with foreign colleagues about
new treatments methods. For instance, in Poland with our help bee houses already works, where
hive-therapy conducts. In that place mini-hive therapy develops by our method.