Bee sting therapy

A form of apitherapy – the medical use of bee products, including honey and royal jelly – bee sting therapy is a sort of acupuncture using bee venom. Bee sting therapy is touted as a cure for inflammation and other ailments, and can be performed with acupuncture needles dipped in venom, or by using instruments that manoeuvre a live bee’s stinger directly into a patient’s skin. Evidence of its efficacy is patchy and conflicting. Some believe bee venom can be an effective anti-ageing agent. In 2018 a woman died in Spain after developing a severe reaction to the therapy which she was undergoing to “improve muscular contractures and stress”.