Inflammation, Bee venom therapy, Rheumatic disease, Pain, Autoimmune disease

Charles Mraz and the Art of Bee VenomTherapy

By Dr. Douglas Lobay, BSc, ND

Of bees, the American writer, poet and and philosopher Henry David Thoreau once said, “there are certain pursuits which, if not wholly poetic and true, do at least suggest a nobler and finer relation to nature than we know. The keeping of bees, for instance…”

One of my favorite books growing up was the American classic Walden by Henry David Thoreau. In the mid-1800s Thoreau moved to Walden Pond in Concord, Massachusetts, and decided to live simply in close harmony with nature for two years. The book Walden chronicles his experience and insight with his life there. I had the good fortune of visiting Walden Pond after attending a Dr. Jonathan Wright weekend seminar in early October of 1994 in Marlborough, Massachusetts. I was just two years graduated from Bastyr College and now practicing in Kelowna, British Columbia. I was young, impressionable, and eager for knowledge and practicalities of naturopathic medicine. After the conference I rented a car and travelled to Walden Pond and then drove to Middlebury, Vermont, to visit the legendary beekeeper Charles Mraz.

Driving through the White Mountains of New Hampshire and Green Mountains of Vermont one late afternoon was spectacular. The fall foliage was out in full bloom. The oaks, maples, hickory, birch, and sumac were the bright colors of watermelon red, lemon yellow, and apricot orange. The sun glinted off the windshield of the rental car and reflected on the array of autumn colors. I pulled late into Middlebury, Vermont, and stayed in a nondescript motel for the night. I woke early the next day and found my way to the home of Charles Mraz, the pioneer beekeeper who championed the use of bee venom therapy in people afflicted with arthritis and multiple sclerosis.

Mr. Mraz was a tall, slender, stately gentleman in his 80s whose distinguished demeanor resembled Joe Dimaggio. He invited me in his home and offered me a cup of tea. We had a long conversation of his experience with bee venom therapy. An elderly lady with arthritis showed up during our visit, and he gave her a few stings with live bees from the hive that he had in his house. He adroitly picked up the honeybee with a pair of tweezers on the thorax and applied gentle pressure on the insect’s abdomen to the lady’s skin. She winced a few times, thanked him, and left.

Afterwards Mr. Mraz took me to see his apiary and farm. He showed me his ingenious method of extracting bee venom from the honeybees without killing them. He made a device from a one-foot square piece of half-inch-thick white plastic and copper wire. He made a grid of exposed copper wires running parallel to each other and separated by slightly less that every half inch. Another set of copper wires were running at ninety degree to the first set. He attached each set of parallel wires to a twelve-volt car battery. He inserted a rheostat in the circuit to adjust the amperage delivered to the grid. When a honeybee landed on the plastic sheet, he turned up the current to give the insect a slight electric shock. The startled bee tried to sting the apparatus, deposited venom on the plastic sheet, and then flew away. Charles then collected the bee venom that was deposited on the plastic sheet, purified it and reconstituted the bee venom into vials for injection.

After our visit I thanked Mr. Mraz for his time and hospitality. I drove back to Boston, visited the old Boston Gardens arena where Bobby Orr and the Boston Bruins played hockey and the bar that was based on the television show Cheers. Inspired and enlightened, I returned to my clinic and continued to incorporate bee venom therapy into my practice with vigor.

Bee venom is the fluid extracted from the stinger of the common honeybee, Apis mellifica. Honeybees are literally milked for their venom. The venom is collected, purified and sterilized before human use. Bee venom is then used and given as a intracutaneous or subcutaneous injection in the form of blebs or “quaddles” that resemble a real, live bee sting. Bee venom has shown to be a remarkably effective therapy for generalized pain and inflammation. It has been widely used to treat different rheumatic diseases. It has also been used to treat a variety of autoimmune diseases.

The therapeutic effects of bee venom have been known for hundreds of years. Beekeepers throughout the world have observed the remarkable medicinal effects of this therapy. In folklore, it has been known that beekeepers seldom developed arthritis. And if they did, they would let the honeybee sting them for relief. Bee venom is widely used throughout the world, including China, Korea, Russia and Eastern Europe. Interest in bee venom therapy has been renewed in France, Germany, Switzerland, Canada, and the United States.

Bee venom is a complex mixture that contains at least eighteen different pharmacologically active constituents. Isolated ingredients include melittin, apamin, adalopin, phospholipase A2, hyaluronidase, and mast cell degranulating peptide. Melittin content ranges between 40 to 60% of the dry weight of the venom, with an average content of about 50%. Melittin is a short, basic peptide that is 26 amino acids long. It has demonstrated both pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory activity and shows analgesic effects. Adolapin prevents the formation of inflammatory prostaglandins. Apamin also shows strong anti-inflammatory activity. Apamin is believed to be the active ingredient that is effective for neurological disorders like multiple sclerosis. Hyaluronidase, phospholipase A2, and mast cell degranulating peptide also contribute to the overall effectiveness of bee venom therapy. Whole venom appears to be considerably more effective than the isolated constituents alone.^1,2

Bee venom therapy can be used in the treatment of degenerative joint disease or osteoarthritis, rheumatoid arthritis, tennis elbow, carpal tunnel syndrome, shoulder problems, neck pain and whiplash, low back pain and sciatica, ankylosing spondylitis and degenerative disc disease. It has also been used in the treatment of autoimmune disorders, lupus, scleroderma, fibromyalgia and multiple sclerosis. Bee venom has also been used for immune stimulation in common infections like colds, flus, sinusitis, and bronchitis. Mood elevation and improved energy are frequently reported by many individuals receiving bee venom therapy. Trace amounts of neurotransmitters such dopamine, norepinephrine and serotonin have been found in bee venom.^4,5,6

Bee venom injections are administered in a manner similar to a regular bee sting in nature. Venom is injected intracutaneously or subcutaneously below the surface of the skin. A large, itchy red welt where the sting has been administered is a normal reaction to a bee venom sting. This usually indicates that the person’s immune system is awake and ready to respond. All the chemicals in bee venom begin to act and stimulate the body and initiate healing. Bee venom can activate some chronic disease and should be administered with caution in individuals with latent infection or tuberculosis.^1,2,3

Relief of pain can be instantaneous. Within two hours, patients usually report a significant reduction of pain and inflammation. Just how long the relief lasts is highly variable. For some individuals the pain relief from a single bee venom injection can last for several months. In others, the relief can last for several days to week. The effects of bee venom therapy can be individualistic.

The exact course and duration of bee venom therapy depends on the individual and specific illness being treated. Conditions such as bursitis, gout, and tendonitis usually require only one session of one to four stings. Osteoarthritis usually responds in two to six weeks of bee venom therapy. Rheumatoid arthritis usually responds in four to twelve weeks of treatment. The number of stings depends on the extent of inflammation and the number of joints involved. Fibromyalgia can be treated over two to twelve weeks for positive results. Diseases such as multiple sclerosis involve multiple stings and sessions. A typical MS patient might require ten to forty stings per session two to three times per week. Some MS patients have had up to 4000 stings per year. MS patients usually report decreased muscle cramps, increased flexibility, increased range of motion, and pain relief. Other diseases such as Lou Gehrig’s disease have been treated and while not curative, have reported positive results.

There is an enormous amount of scientific research that supports the medicinal use of bee venom therapy. A quick search on Pubmed on the National Institute of Health website revealed over 1600 articles have been published throughout the world in scientific journals in the past sixty years. Research was originally conducted in China, Japan, Korea, Russia, and Eastern Europe. New research is being conducted in France, Germany, and Switzerland.

Research has consistently demonstrated that bee venom is a potent anti-inflammatory and analgesic. Bee venom has both local and generalized effects throughout the body. Local effects include activation of the immune system to prevent swelling and inflammation. Bee venom prevents the release of chemicals that promote inflammation. Bee venom stabilizes local nerve conduction and prevents transmission of pain impulses. Bee venom stimulates the body to produce endogenous cortisone in the adrenal glands. Unlike corticosteroids, bee venom does not seem to produce deleterious side effects other than the characteristic feeling of a bee sting.^1,2

The most important side effect of bee venom therapy is the risk of anaphylactic reaction. Although rare, anaphylactic shock can occur with potentially fatal results. For this reason patients should be carefully screened for the potential benefits and risks of applying this treatment. Every patient should be asked whether or not they have been stung by a bee, how long ago, and what reaction occurred.^7,8

A great deal of confusion exists about allergic reactions to bee venom. Most people confuse local itching and swelling as an allergic reaction. A certain amount of pain, swelling, redness and inflammation is normal after a bee sting and usually does not constitute an allergic reaction. Bee venom therapy should only be administered by a licensed medical practitioner who is trained in this therapy and who fully understands the risk and treatment of anaphylactic reactions. They should know how to administer adrenaline, antihistamines such as diphenhydramine, and how to use corticosteroids. Oral antihistamines, such as Benadryl or generic alternatives, may be used to decrease bee sting reactions. Swelling and itching from the venom is caused by release of histamine at the site and possibly throughout the body. As a rule, bee venom is not administered to the head and face region. It is also not to be used on those who are pregnant or on young children. It is used with caution in all individuals with heart and cardiovascular conditions.

I have used bee venom therapy for over 25 years in my clinical practice. I have found it to be a useful, practical and effective the treatment of chronic pain conditions in some patients. I usually screen patients for the risk of allergic reactions and the possibility of anaphylactic shock. I perform a small test injection equivalent to a single bee sting. Occasionally I put in an equal amount of local anesthetic such lidocaine or procaine and occasionally sodium bicarbonate to help neutralize painful reaction to the sting. I usually wait for 5 to 10 minutes before proceeding with any further injections. For new patients, I usually administer less stings than with long term patients whom I am comfortable with and know how they react.

I have been fortunate to have only a few minor reactions. In one patient with carpal tunnel syndrome, his wrist and hand swelled up after the administration of the equivalent of four bee stings. Antihistamines, ice and conservative therapy was good enough to treat the reaction. Interesting the carpal tunnel symptoms went away after the swelling subsided. In another older patient with chronic pain and arthritis, I administered the equivalent of six stings which produced the typical reactions on the affected joints. After waiting in the office for 30 minutes after injections, the patient appeared stable and then went home. However about one to two hours after treatment, the symptoms of swelling seemed to be more systemic. The area injected was red and swollen and even her eyelids were slightly red and swollen. I instructed her to come back to the office for further evaluation and then administered injectable antihistamines and a small amount of adrenaline. I then waited in the office for one hour to monitor her condition. She appeared stable enough to discharge and send home with additional oral antihistamines to continue for three days. Of course, I cannot over-emphasize the need to be vigilant about screening patients for risks versus benefits of bee venom therapy and stress the need to be comfortable with the use of emergency medical procedures.

Early in my career I discovered the remarkably powerful effectiveness of bee venom therapy. I was lucky enough to have met the renowned New England beekeeper, Charles Mraz. I was fortunate enough to have him as a kind and compassionate mentor. I learned that bee venom is a wonderful, effective natural treatment for both acute and chronic pain. I believe it is the closest thing I have seen to a natural cortisone shot. I tell patients it has strong anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects. And despite the discomfort associated with the stings, I have many patients who routinely come back and ask for their bee venom shots. It seems to help relieve their pain and inflammation.

Henry Thoreau once made a journal entry, “If I were a physician, I would try my patients thus. I would wheel them to a window and let Nature feel their pulse. It will soon appear if their sensuous existence is sound. The sounds are but the throbbing of some pulse in me.”

References

1. Chen J, Lariviere WR. The nociceptive and anti-nociceptive effects of bee venom injections and therapy: A double-edged sword. Prog Neurobiol. 2010 Oct; 92(2) 151-183.

2. Zhang S et al. Bee Venom Therapy: Potential Mechanisms and Therapeutic Applications. Toxicon. 2018 Jun 148: 64-73.

3. Hossen MS et al. Impact of Bee Venom Enzymes on Diseases and Immune Responses. Molecules. 2016 Dec 22(1):25-34.

4. Soo Lee M et al. Bee Venom Acupuncture for Musculoskeletal Pain: A Review. J Pain. Apr 2008; 9(4), 289-97.

5. Lee JA et al. Bee Venom Acupuncture for Rheumatoid Arthrits: A Systematic Review of Randomised Clinical Trials. BMJ Open. 2014 Nov; 4 (11): e006140.

6. Chen SY et al. Treatment of Rheumatoid Arthritis by Bee-Venom Acupuncture. Zhen Ci Yan Jiu. 2018 Apr; 43(4):251-254.

7. Cherniak PE, Govorushko S. To Bee or Not to Bee: The Potential Efficacy and Safety of Bee Venom Acupuncture in Human. Toxicon. 2018 Nov; 154:74-78.

8. Park JH et al. Risk Associated With Bee Venom Therapy: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. PLoS One. 2015 May 10(5): e0126971.