What’s Going on When The Bees Stings You?
The sting of the bee often causes pain and burning, redness and swelling which usually takes off after 1-2 hours. The swelling on the face can stay up about two days. However, if there’re a lot of bites, the toxic reaction can begin. In the most of cases, the sting of bee is just painful and unpleasant.
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The symptoms of a bee’s sting
In most cases the bite effects manifested as edema which is stored for no longer than 20 hours. You will also have redness and feel the itching. You will definitely feel strong enough pain and burning. The temperature of your body can increase.
What’s the apitoxin (the bees’ poison) consists of?
You can discover essential macro- and microelements, such as calcium, magnesium, phosphorus in the constitution of bees’ poison. There’re proteins, fats, carbohydrates, acids (phosphoric and hydrochloric).
A special role is played by certain active substances:
- Meltittin: it’s the most dangerous toxin. It contributes to the destruction of red blood cells. Moreover, it violates exchange processes and stimulate the realize of substances that cause inflammation.
- Histamine: it causes an allergic reaction that is the cause of edema, bronchospasm, vasodilation and a fall in blood pressure.
- Apamin: it has a stimulating effect on various parts of the nervous system.
- Phospholipase A2: damage the cell walls.
- Hyaluronidase: it’s an enzyme that depletes micopolysaccharides including hyaluronic acid which is one of elements of connective tissue. That leads to a rapid spread of edema.
What’s the harm of a bee's sting?
Just a one bee’s sting only leads to a local reaction for the normal person. Of course, this person feels a strong enough pain. It’s really strong and, moreover, very burning. Edema appears and spread rapidly; the skin gets red. When the bee stings in a head, the most severe effects are possible.
If the bee stings into the eye, this eye completely closes because of the pronounced swelling of eyelids. The pain is very strong; lacrimation appears. The development of complications is possible.
The sting into the lips or mucous membranes of the mouth accompanied by significant local edema that can lead to difficulty of breathing.
For children and pregnant women it’s harder to carry the bee’s sting. It’s more difficult to help pregnant women because many medicine are banned in this period. Children just always have a stronger reaction on external influence than alders.
What’s the usefulness of a bee's sting?
The bees’ poison can to not only harm but is to be useful too. The direction of traditional medicine exists – apitherapy. Many disease can be treated by bees’ poison.
The components of the poison which are harmful for organism also have a therapeutic effect. It contributes to improvement of metabolism, activation of the enzyme and hormonal system , reduction of inflammatory activity , the suppression of vital activity of harmful microorganisms , lowering blood pressure , spasmodic and analgesic effect , normalization of cardiac activity and heart rate, improvement of microcirculation , anticoagulant effect , and so on.
The first aid
There’s nothing special or scaring in the fact that the bee stings you. It’s just better to know what to do in this case.
- Remove the sting: the sting, remaining in the skin, should be removed carefully (without touching a bag of poison). It’s better to use the tweezers. The instrument must be handled by the alcohol or disinfectant.
- Neutralization of bee’s poison: you can neutralize the poison by the suds. Why is the suds? Bee poison has an acidic pH environment so it can be neutralized by the alkaline solution. It’s a soap in this case.
- Disinfection: you should process the arm, leg, or other bitten place by hydrogen peroxide solution of ammonia (it can also remove edema) or potassium permanganate or an alcohol tincture of calendula. The edema of the bite can be removed by the solutions of water and salt.
- The elimination of pain, itching, swelling: people often use a cold compress to relieve the pain, for example, ice wrapped in a towel. Many benefits can be taken from medications and ointments with antihistamine effect.
I like bees and honey.
Thank you for your attention!
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Our friend is a beekeeper. Few years ago, he used two bees to sting him into a place under his genitals to improve his sexual vitality. Voluntarily, because apitherapy is really interesting cure - as well as other products, from honey to propolis.
If you get a sting and nothing is around, you can also dig a bit of soil and press it on the place for few minutes. Tested it just a week ago on my toe :)
Nice article!
I can tell you joke about sexual vitality) When the man got stung by a bee and the wife said: let's get the apiary intead of business
lol! I can tell you, he is being called dragon sometimes. I bet the part of it comes from this, haha.
ahahaha, lol! you are funny)
@kental, I see, I've heard about bee stings being used to cure to inflammation and wanted to try it for my RSI back then but knowing that a bee would die, I did not.
May I request that you please post about what kind of bees live here?
what do they need to survive and how long does it take before hatching? I had them since spring and nothing came out - does it take a year to hatch them? Should I cover this to keep them warm in winter? If I should, with what then?
Thanks in advance!
No, you don't have to keep them warm. If very cold, it is necessary to pour to the hive of snow. Ok. I write article about this)
Sometimes the winter gets very strong here so I worry about it. I'll be looking forward for that post. I bookmarked and followed you ! Thank you in advance! Have a great weekend!
The more bees in the hive, the greater the chance that they will survive the winter.
They maintain the temperature in the hive, the expense of wings.
Nothing goes in there anymore, there's just eggs or cocoons maybe, I don't really know I don't want to unclog it because I'm still hoping they're alive.
@englishtchrivy: I'll write about it tomorrow. Most likely it's the eggs. They are alive.
I published article for you. There all answers for your questions
https://steemit.com/bees/@kental/what-s-the-leaf-cutter-bees-hive-how-bees-live-there-bees
For those who are allergic to bee stings, is the anaphylaxis usually due to the Meltittin?
yeah, but the bees seem to treat and allergies. Last year I was bitten by 20 bees. I went to an allergic reaction. I'm all swollen, all itched. This year does not have this, though have bees cured me.
Bee stings are a pain :) But we need the bees to sustain human life here on planet Earth. They're so important, they were created with a pretty capable self-defense mechanism, their sting.
Their bites are healing, I will make about this a separate article. Their poison gets into your blood and warms the body. Subscribe to me.
My comment was about how they pollinate the plants and make them grow, which we need. I do subscribe.
Bees increase the crop, they pollinate plants. Thank you for your comment!
This is why wise gardeners do like plants which virtually attract bees and other useful polinators. Can not wait once I will have time, knowledge and funds to take care of few families in our garden.
@greenwayoflife: Join the club of beekeepers!!
I remembered when I got a bee sting. I was really young and it felt like I stepped on a burning nail! Great info.
yes, thanks! Your comment is delightful
I love your Bee posts.
Thank you. Glad to see your comment
thx for this post! learning so much about bees ^_^
Bees - our all. Salvation) Follow me if you learn more about bees!
@kental, thank you for keeping me posted.
now, I know what to do in case I get stung...
haven't been
I'm a friend of them bees...
well, I did get stung by a bumble bee but it was my fault, I wanted to caress it and feel it between my palms the lil' guy was new so he gave it to me
but it wasn't a biggie not really
it's great!