Disgusting up Close Video Shows Why Bee Stings Hurt
A mosquito bite? It’s itchy but it’ll pass. A wasp sting. Painful. But a bee sting? For those who’ve had the unfortunate experience, they’ll know just how much it hurts. And now a close-up video showing exactly why it hurts so much has gone viral.
So, here’s what happens…
When bees sting they release a chemical called melittin into their victim. This venom immediately triggers pain receptors, causing a burning sensation. Because the stinger is barbed like a jagged sword, the bee ruptures its abdomen when it flies off, leaving the stinger in place. The bee dies soon after.
The video voiceover video says: ‘When the bee rips her stinger off your flesh, muscles continue digging and pumping long after she’s gone.’
The longer the stinger stays in the skin, the more venom is released, continuing its toxic assault for up to a minute. The clip proceeds to show what the stinger looks like close up, with liquid pumping into the victim’s body.
The voiceover says: ‘It’s made of three parts – a stabilising rod down the middle and two barbed digging blades’. As the blades move back and forth, it pumps inside the venom bulb and squirts it deeper into the wound, until the venom sack is completely empty.
While bee stings are a risk, especially during the summer, home treatment is usually all that’s necessary to ease the pain. Bee stings can produce different reactions, depending on who has been stung and where – ranging from temporary pain and discomfort to a severe allergic reaction.
Having one type of reaction doesn’t mean you’ll always have the same reaction every time you’re stung or that the next reaction will necessarily be more severe.
Most of the time, bee sting symptoms are minor and include:
- Instant, sharp burning pain at the sting site
- A red welt at the sting area
- Slight swelling around the sting area
In most cases, the swelling and pain go away within a few hours. As long as you’re not allergic to bee venom, your immune system will react to the sting by sending fluids there to flush out the melittin.
The pain can be soothed with a cold compress or an antihistamine. Twitter users were left in awe at how complex the bee’s sting is.
