More Natural Remedies

Bee stings are harmless for most people. Bee stings are sometimes painful but how much pain you feel depends on the kind of bee that stung you, where you were stung, and your sensitivity to the particular bee venom. For most people being stung by a bee is insignificant most of the time. The sting may create some minor temporary localized pain and maybe some excitement but for some people highly allergic to bee venom, bee stings are both painful and life threatening. It is estimated that about 40 to 50 people dead from bee stings every year.

The most important first step in treating a bee sting is to stay calm. Panic and anxiety can exacerbates the pain from the bee sting and can result in serious secondary accidents, and can make treating the bee sting more difficult. The simple truth is that the less fuss that is made of a sting, the less painful it seems.

Once everyone is calm and collected, the next step to treating a bee sting is to remove the stinger as quickly as possible to reduces the amount of the venom injected and reduces its effects. Bees usually leave a visible stinger in the wound and it can be brushed off, scraped off or removed with a tweezers. It does not matter how the stinger is removed. Speed is the most important factor in minimizing the effects of the venom from a sting.The area where the stinger punctured the skin will likely be swollen, itchy and painful.

The most effective home remedy for treating a bee sting seems to be a paste mixture made from baking soda and vinegar, which tends to draw out the venom from the sting area.

Besides baking soda, a mixture of vinegar and meat tenderizer, which contains papain, an enzyme found in papaya that supposedly breaks down the toxins in bee venom.

Toothpaste appears to be another effective home remedy to treat bee stings. The toothpaste provides a tingling sensation to the applied area of the skin. Most toothpastes have glycerin as their ingredients. Some doctors suggest that the glycerin dries out the venom at the area of the sting. But others doctors suggest that the tingling sensation is the result of the alkaline toothpaste neutralizing the acid in the bee’s venom. In either case, toothpaste provides quick relieve to the itching and swelling associated with bee stings.

Another effective home remedy for treating a bee sting is ice. You can apply ice directly to the sting area or use a cold compresses to soothe and to keep the swelling down. The cold reduces swelling by constricting the blood vessels and slowing the spread of the venom. The numbing effect of the cold also minimizes the pain and itching in the affected area.

Honey is another natural remedy that’s effective in treating bee stings at home. This folkloric favorite for anything and everything and will reduce the pain from a sting with its cool and soothing effect.

As mentioned before, some people are allergic to bee venom. This allergy can cause its victims to go into anaphylactic shock. This can occur within a matter of a few minutes, even seconds. This allergic reaction to the bee venom can occur in anyone at any time. A person experiencing difficulty breathing, nausea or general feelings of illness should immediate be treated by qualify medical professionals.

The natural remedies mentioned above should always be kept handy even when traveling, especially a common household item like toothpaste. A bee sting can happen when you least expect it and it is always safer to err on the side of caution. Be prepared to protect yourself and your family by learning the signs of a bee sting and knowing the home remedies that you can use to treat this potentially life threatening situation.