Key Takeaway
Comprehensive 2024 review concluding royal jelly shows antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, metabolic, hormonal, cardiovascular, and neuroprotective effects across preclinical and clinical evidence, with 10-hydroxy-2-decenoic acid as a key bioactive.
Summary
Systematic review summarizing the composition, bioactive components, and health effects of royal jelly across preclinical and clinical research. The authors screened PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar for studies on royal jelly's therapeutic applications, synthesizing findings across metabolic, hormonal, cardiovascular, neurological, immunological, and dermatological domains.
The review highlights 10-hydroxy-2-decenoic acid (10-HDA) as the signature fatty acid of royal jelly along with major royal jelly proteins (MRJPs) as key drivers of biological activity. Evidence summarized includes improvements in glycemic control and lipid profile in diabetic populations, reductions in menopausal symptoms, modulation of testosterone and fertility markers, antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, and emerging neuroprotective and wound-healing data.
The authors conclude that royal jelly is a promising functional food and therapeutic intervention with mechanistic plausibility and consistent preclinical support, but emphasize that most human trials are small, short, and heterogeneous. They call for standardized formulations, larger dose-ranging RCTs, and better characterization of active constituents before strong clinical recommendations can be made.