• Question: why is it that when bees sting you it hurts so much what is it that they do that gives people pain?!!?

    Asked by roses to Daniel, Jon, Louise, Sharon, Zoe on 22 Jun 2010 in Categories: .
    • Photo: Sharon Sneddon

      Sharon Sneddon answered on 21 Jun 2010:

      When a bee stings, its stinger pierces the skin and releases apitoxin, or bee venom. This is a bitter colorless liquid. The active portion of the venom is a complex mixture of proteins, The main component of bee venom responsible for pain is the toxin melittin and histamines also contribute to pain and itching. The venom is produced in the abdomen of worker bees. A honeybee can inject 0.1 mg of venom via its stinger. Apitoxin is similar to snake venom and nettle toxin. It is estimated that 1% of the population is allergic to bee stings. Apitoxin can be deactivated with ethanol (alcohol).

      Bee venom therapy is used by some as a treatment for rheumatism and joint diseases due to its anticoagulant and anti-inflammatory properties, so they do have some good properties!

      When a honey bee stings a person, it cannot pull the barbed stinger back out. It leaves behind not only the stinger, but also part of its abdomen, and its digestive tract, plus muscles and nerves. This massive abdominal rupture is what kills the honey bee. Also, it’s only honey bees that die after stinging, not other bee species. Queen and worker bumblebees can sting, but unlike that of a honey bee, a bumblebee’s stinger lacks barbs, so they can sting more than once.

      In people who are allergic to bee stings, a sting may trigger a dangerous anaphylactic reaction that is potentially deadly. Honey bee stings release pheromones that prompt other nearby bees to attack.

    • Photo: Jon Copley

      Jon Copley answered on 21 Jun 2010:

      Most of the pain comes from the venom that the bee sting injects into your skin. The venom is made of something called mellitin, which kills cells. There are also some enzymes in the venom that attack the skin tissue.

      These chemicals trigger the pain receptor cells in your skin to let your body know that damage is being done, and that’s the pain that you feel.

    • Photo: Louise Dash

      Louise Dash answered on 21 Jun 2010:

      The bee injects you with a poison using its stinger, which is a bit like the needle you get injections with from the doctor. The poison is called apitoxin which makes your skin swell up and itch. It’s worse for the bee though, because if the stinger breaks off in your skin the bee dies! 🙁

      I’m lucky that I’ve only been stung by a bee once, when I was about 8, but it hurt so much I can still remember it clearly!

    • Photo: Zoe Duck

      Zoe Duck answered on 22 Jun 2010:

      Bee stings contain various toxins such as histamine, and mellitin which cause itching and inflammation.

Comments

  • Moderator - Annabel commented on :

    The good(?) news is that folk like beekeepers can develop a tolerance to the pain and venom, after being stung a lot over a long time! My dad’s a beekeeper and is frighteningly lax about wearing his protective beesuit, often ambling into the house with arms full of stings and a mild comment of ‘Well, they really got me today…’

    The bad news is that ordinary folk like beekeeper’s daughters often tend to get stung, and it hurts!