The Effects of Honey and Bee Bread on Bodyweight, Sperm Parameters and Reproductive Hormones in Male Mice

Bee products (honey and bee bread) have been used for their nutritional and therapeutics properties since time immemorial. Honey and beebread contains numerous nutrients that have antioxidant properties that can be tested for improving male reproductive functions. The effect of Honey and beebread intake on male mice reproductive system has not been reported. Therefore the aim of this study was primarily designed to determine the effects of honey and beebread intake on bodyweight, reproductive hormones and spermatogenesis. Honey and beebread were harvested from bee hives and filtered to remove solid particles and concentrated (40% w/v water) by oven drying at 40ºC before use. A total of 30 male mice weighing between 12-30 grams were used for this study. The animals were randomly divided in a blinded fashion into 3 groups of 10 each, (Group A, B and C). Mice in group A served as control, which received oral administration of distilled water while mice in Group B and C received freshly prepared honey and beebread at dose rate of 1g/kg bodyweight orally respectively by gavage daily for 70 days according to Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) guidelines. Parameters measured were bodyweights, serum hormonal levels (Follicle-stimulating hormone, Luteinizing hormone and Testosterone), sperm count, viability, motility and morphology. The result revealed that prolonged administration of honey and beebread found to be improved bodyweight and spermatogenesis in the treatment groups (B and C) as compared to the control (A), (P<0.05). Sperm concentration was found to be higher (P<0.05) in the honey treated group (18.47 ± 1.66) as compared to beebread treated group (14.42 ± 1.58) and control group (12.21 ± 0.97), while percentage motile sperm was also significantly (P<0.05) higher in the treatment groups (B: 78.41 ± 4.73) and (C: 75.06 ± 9.49) as compared to control group (A: 61.74 ± 4.78). The percentage of viable sperm was also significantly (P<0.05) higher in the treatment groups (B: 69.80 ± 1.48) and (C: 64.60 ± 2.51) as compared to control group (A: 59.20 ± 1.64) respectively. A significantly higher percentage of abnormal sperm was observed in the control group (A: 12.00 ± 1.58) as compared to treatment groups (B: 6.00 ± 0.71) and (C: 9.40 ± 0.55). The serum level of reproductive hormones (Folliclestimulating hormone, Luteinizing hormone and Testosterone) were found to be non-significant (P<0.05) in all the groups. It was concluded that prolonged administration of honey and beebread in normal mice improves spermatogenesis but, the mechanism involved in the increase of spermatogenesis without altering the levels of reproductive hormones needs to be investigated further.