When you make the decision to become a beekeeper, you are inevitably agreeing to experience bee stings. Overall, the risk of being allergic to honey bee venom is low, but when you are a beekeeper, you are constantly exposing yourself to honey bees, and, therefore, that means you are likely to learn if you’re allergic. In this week’s blog we will discuss why people experience a reaction after being stung by a honey bee.
Honey Bees – Doing Their Own Sting
The venom of a honey bee is composed of protein allergens,
peptides, toxins and histamines. The major allergen in their venom is
phospholipase A2 (Golden, 2005). So, when we are stung there are two types of
responses that can occur. The first type is localized inflammation. A local
inflammatory response is more common to occur, and rarely requires medical
attention. Typically, this reaction will cause pain and swelling for a few
minutes to a few hours at the site of the sting. If swelling is greater than 10cm
this is considered a large local reaction (Golden, 2009). If this large local
reaction is near your neck this may be cause for concern. Having too much
swelling around the neck could cause difficulty breathing and will require
medical attention immediately.
The second type of response is an adaptive immune response,
where the body destroys venom. When stung, the body will produce antibodies to
remove toxins from the body. But when the adaptive immune response fails, an
over-reaction, or an anaphylactic response, can occur. When an anaphylactic, or
acute, response occurs, there are a variety of signs and symptoms to look for,
including: swelling of the tongue and throat, airway obstruction, drop in blood
pressure, hives and/or rash, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and/or abdominal pain.
An anaphylactic response has no correlation to amount of venom, or the number
of stings, but rather is a result of how the antibodies interact with bee
venom. It is important to understand that factors such as age, medications and
pre-existing health conditions can cause anaphylaxis to be more serious. In
fact, fatality of bee stings is more likely in men and adults over 40 (Graft,
2005).
Despite how serious bee stings can be, there is good news
for beekeepers. A study done by Bousquet et al. (1989) determined that
beekeepers who are stung upwards of 50 times a year are less likely to
experience a reaction. Beekeepers stung less than 25 times a year are more
likely to experience a reaction. Basically, frequent exposure to bee venom decreases
the risk of having an anaphylactic response. This could also be the reason why
the first few stings of the season can cause a bigger reaction in beekeepers
who haven’t been stung over the winter. The reason for this phenomenon is that
the number of antibodies to venom lessens over time.
If you are allergic to bees, or do not know if you are, you
should carry an EpiPen®. The use of EpiPens® can be critical to preventing full
anaphylaxis once symptoms start. This treatment slows the allergic response by
relaxing the muscles and helps stop decreasing blood pressure. If you experience
an allergic reaction, you must still seek medical attention after
administrating the EpiPen® (EpiPen, 2022).
There are several things you as a beekeeper can do to
prevent bee stings. Always wear personal protective equipment (boots, pants,
bee suit/jacket, veil, and gloves). Have your smoker nearby to keep bees calm and
deter them from stinging. Additionally, if you get stung, be sure to smoke the
area to mask the smell of alarm pheromones.
If you’d like to connect with ATTTA specialists or learn more about our program, you can:
visit our website at https://www.perennia.ca/portfolio-items/honey-bees/
Email abyers@perennia.ca
References
Bousquet et al. (1984) Clinical and immunologic survey in beekeepers in relation to their sensitization. Journal of Allergy & Clinical Immunology. 73(3). 332-340
Golden, DBK. (2005). Insect sting allergy and venom
immunotherapy: A model and a mystery. Journal of Allergy & Clinical
Immunology. 115(3). 439-447
Golden, et al. (2009). Venom immunotherapy reduces
large local reactions to insect stings. Journal of Allergy & Clinical
Immunology. 123(6). 1371-1375
Graft. DF. (2006). Insect sting allergy. The Medical Clinics
of North America. 90. 211–232