When were you last stung by a bee? Did you marvel at the effects, including pain, caused by the superficial injection of such a tiny, tiny dose of venom? It is indeed a very powerful toxin.
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Bee venom consists of a variety of toxic proteins, peptides (parts of proteins), enzymes, histamine, hyaluronidase. The major component is a protein called melittin.
Stinging is the bees' defence mechanism against predators and there are many, each with differing sensitivities to individual toxic substances.
By giving the bee a venom with a variety of components nature provided a formidable arsenal to a wide range of enemies.
While the immediate detrimental effects of bee stings are well known, from nuisance to potentially fatal, the long term effects of multiple stings are not so well understood.
In a person with a healthy immune system, repeated stings evoke a decreasing response.
Hence we see the intrepid beekeeper happily working with minimal protection, but don't let one kid you that stings don't hurt, they still do!
If you are allergic to something in the venom, the opposite occurs with ever increasing reaction and the ultimate possibility of fatal anaphylaxis.
Are there any real health improving effects of bee venom? There are many anecdotal claims of benefits and research is directed to seek the truth of these.
One of the oldest claims is that bee stings are 'good' for arthritis. There are many forms of arthritis, and one could hardly claim that venom is likely to help the result of wear and injury to joints, osteoarthritis.
The auto-immune rheumatoid arthritis is a possibility, but there is no proven evidence to support claims.
For a long time beekeeper, who suffered badly from psoriatic arthritis which also has an auto-immune basis, and bee stings didn't help avoid several joint replacements.
Serious research is directed to the effects of venom on cancer cells, on multiple sclerosis and dementia.
It is used topically in atopic dermatitis and acne.
The active protein melittin has been shown to be active against the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV).
So how do you collect these tiny droplets of venom? The bees must be provoked to sting, and remembering that their sting is so barbed that the bee cannot remove it from skin and dies in the attempt, how can the venom be collected without damage to the bee?
The principle is simple - provoke the bees to sting on a surface which allows the sting to be withdrawn.
This scientific and commercial interest in bee venom provides another potential source of income for professional beekeepers.
