Do beekeepers live longer

[fatshark]

Just came across this ageing thread while doing some research. Three years after the conversation above this paper was published:

Nasir et al., (2015) The relationship between telomere length and beekeeping among Malaysians in Age 37:58

Quote from the abstract ... Interestingly, we found that the telomere length of male beekeepers was significantly longer than those of male non-beekeepers with a p value of less than 0.05, suggesting that beekeepers may have longer life compared to non-beekeepers. We further found that the consumption of bee products for a long period and frequent consumption of bee products per day are associated with telomere length.

Telomeres are repetitive bits of DNA at the ends of chromosomes. As you get older (well, not you obviously as you're a beekeeper!) these shorten significantly. It's a well documented marker of ageing.

The paper hasn't really left it's mark on science, having been cited only 6 times subsequently ...

[Adam]

So - a spoon full of honey every day then!
One of the shops that sells my honey has commented on some dog owners giving it their pets for various ailments and it seems to work (no placebo effect with a dog, I assume). Honey is good stuff!