Bee Venom

Bee venom is made by bees. This is the poison that makes bee stings painful. Bee venom is used to make medicine. Don’t confuse bee venom with bee pollen, honey, or royal jelly. Other venoms are derived from related members of the insect order Hymenoptera.

Uses

Bee venom is given as a shot for rheumatoid arthritis, nerve pain (neuralgia), multiple sclerosis (MS), reducing the reaction to bee stings in people who are allergic (desensitization) to them (venom immunotherapy), swollen tendons (tendonitis), and muscle conditions such as fibromyositis and enthesitis.

Cosmetics

As skin ages, it loses its naturally-occurring collagen which results in sagging skin and fine lines and wrinkles. Sometimes referred to as nature’s Botox, bee venom therapy works to reverse the effects of ageing by encouraging the stimulation of natural collagen and elastin.

Applying small amounts of bee venom creams to the skin fools it into thinking it has been stung. Blood is sent to the affected area which in turn stimulates the production of collagen, which strengthens body tissue, and elastin, which helps the skin stay firm and youthful. Regular users of bee venom therapy beauty products like eye cream, venom masks, ointment and serum can notice a number of benefits including improved skin texture and firmness, the reduction of pores, fine lines and wrinkles, and reduced pigmentation and sun damage.

It’s important to reiterate that you shouldn’t just squeeze the venom out of a bee and dab it on your wrinkles. The difference between a bee venom cream and an actual bee sting is the dosage. Bee venom beauty products like eye cream, moisturiser, venom mask and venom ointment contain a low-dose variant of bee venom, which means a user can still enjoy the skincare benefits it provides without actually being stung.

Giving repeated and controlled injections of bee venom under the skin causes the immune system to get used to bee venom, and helps reduce the severity of an allergy to bee venom.

Bee venom is safe for most people when injected under the skin by a trained medical professional. Some people might get redness and swelling where the injection is given. Side effects include itching, anxiety, trouble breathing, chest tightness, heart palpitations, dizziness, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, sleepiness, confusion, fainting, and low blood pressure.

Side effects are more common in people with the worst allergies to bee stings, in people treated with honeybee venom, and in women.
Live bee stings have been safely administered under medical supervision in doses up to 20 bee stings three times weekly for up to 24 weeks.
Pregnancy and breast-feeding: Bee venom seems to be safe when injected under the skin by a trained medical professional at recommended doses. Though harmful effects at usual doses have not been reported, some healthcare providers decrease the maintenance dose by half during pregnancy. High doses of bee venom are UNSAFE during pregnancy because they can increase release of a chemical called histamine, which can cause the uterus to contract. This might lead to miscarriage. Avoid high doses of bee venom if you are pregnant.
“Auto-immune diseases” such as multiple sclerosis (MS), lupus (systemic lupus erythematosus, SLE), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), or other conditions: Bee venom might cause the immune system to become more active, and this could increase the symptoms of auto-immune diseases. If you have one of these conditions, it’s best to avoid using bee venom.

Moderate Interaction Be cautious with this combination:

Medications that decrease the immune system (Immunosuppressants) interacts with BEE VENOM:
Bee venom might increase the immune system. By increasing the immune system, bee venom might decrease the effectiveness of medications that decrease the immune system.
- Some medications that decrease the immune system include azathioprine (Imuran), basiliximab (Simulect), cyclosporine (Neoral, Sandimmune), daclizumab (Zenapax), muromonab-CD3 (OKT3, Orthoclone OKT3), mycophenolate (CellCept), tacrolimus (FK506, Prograf), sirolimus (Rapamune), prednisone (Deltasone, Orasone), corticosteroids (glucocorticoids), and others.