How to Treat Bee Stings

How to treat all the symptoms and results of bee stings, from itching and pain to swelling and general discomfort.

When a bee decides that you’re in its way, the resulting sting is painful – for you AND the bee. Their barbed stingers lodge in the victim, causing half of the bee’s guts to pull out after the attack.

Knowing that the bee just killed itself, however, does not make the sting any less painful. The venom in your system collects at the sting site, causing a swollen lump – and lots of pain.

Here’s how to ease the pain, make the swelling go away and otherwise treat that nasty sting.

First, you’ll need to remove the stinger. Some experts – such as researchers from California and Pennsylvania – have found that the most important thing is to remove the stinger as soon as possible after you’re stung. Even if the quickest removal involves tweezers, you should get the stinger out as fast as you can. The longer this nasty thing remains in your body, the more you will swell up afterward.