The comments below reflect the personal experiences and opinions of readers and do not represent medical advice or the views of this website. The information shared has not been evaluated by the FDA and is not intended to diagnose, treat, or prevent any disease or health condition. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional for medical concerns.
Apple Cider Vinegar and Baking Soda
Posted by Joyce (Raleigh, North Carolina) on 09/06/2010
★★★★★
My grandmother and mother always used baking soda and ACV on bee stings. It just boils them out-I too have a planters wart and am cosidering trying this to "oil" it out. Will let you know if it works.
Meat Tenderizer
Posted by Robert (Martinez, Ca) on 09/02/2010
I wanted to expand a bit on the meat tenderizer whose prime ingredient is MSG. I was once told by a Pharmacist that MSG, (monosodium glutamate), is 'protiolytic', meaning it breaks down the protein bonds of the bee venom. So making a paste of this & applying to the affected area will work & is probably the only good use of MSG which was, as I understand, first used by the Japanese in WWII to keep their field rations fresh tasting. Some of these rations were taken back to the U. S. & analyzed whereupon the MSG was found. I was told by a Chinese chef that MSG is harmfully activated when heated & should be added after the food is cooked. I have had bad experiences ingesting Chinese foods heavily 'laced' with MSG & found a quick cure in using sudafed or other antihistamines. If you don't have MSG available for the sting, use a mud pack & you can get creative by mixing in vinegar, or good air dried salt. Homeopathics to have on the shelf are Apis, Arnica, Rhus Tox, or the poison oak/ivy combo. Homeopathic sting/insect bite gel works very well. Calamine w/Benadril works well in a pinch.
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by Laurie (Saukville, Wi) on 08/13/2010
★★★★★
I was outside on the deck yesterday and got stung by a wasp. I rushed inside to see what Earthclinic viewers recommended. Took some ACV and applied it with a cotton ball, then held it there about two minutes. Pain gone and redness gone. It works!
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by E.j. (Brevard, N.c., Usa) on 08/09/2010
Hi Trevor, Started to use last month and it helped lower my number. (I am a prediabetic). Would like to ask if anyone knows the different from blackstrap molasses and sorghum syrup? The reason I am asking is sorghum is grown local in my area of NC. And N. GA. It is also a grass! I have some in my shelves. Thank you for any answer! E.G.
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by Trevor (East Corinth, V.t. Usa) on 08/09/2010
★★★★★
The Apple Cider Vinegar remedy worked very well. My sting went away immediately.
MSM
Posted by Paolo (Bloomington, In, Usa) on 08/04/2010
★★★★★
A few weeks ago when I was weeding I accidentally grabbed a bee in the process and got stung really hard on my palm near the thumb. I had listened to David Wolfe's lectures who once talked about how he got stung and cured it with MSM. He claimed to carry some in his pack whenever hiking. He said once when stung he poured some on his bite and took all the rest of the MSM he had. Well I decided to repeat this process by making a salve of MSM and water and taking about 10 pills. I suppose that's about 5000 mg worth. Though quite swollen at first the swelling did seem to subside quite a bit. After washing off the salve I put on the bentonite healing clay that the Native American's used as a topical remedy. Finally after letting this dry I washed this off too. I then used ACV soaked cotton ball which really helped with the pain. Long story short before I went to bed it was all but gone... And by morning not a trace was left that I had ever been stung. All this was done without the use of antihistamines. I call that quite a testament for the healing power of nature.
Toothpaste
Posted by Iluvigs (Springfield, Mo, United States) on 07/27/2010
★★★★★
I had read that toothpaste would relieve the pain of bee stings... Have used it myself, my husband and even used it on a dog with great success. Also worked on wasp stings .It does not relieve itching but does relieve initial pain. It was recommended to use paste rather than gel but if gel was all I had, I would sure try it. We keep a tube of paste clearly marked for stings only.
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by Molly (Greenville, N.c Usa) on 07/19/2010
I raise ducks and geese as pets and my neighbors wanted two. So when they came over to pick them up, the ducklings jumped out and ran to a bush. Well, we didn't know that there was three yellowjacket nests there. Within minutes there were 30 or so on this one duckling (3 weeks old) and he was dark colored so it attracted them even more. I picked out all the YJ's and ran inside and got Dawn dishwasher detergent and washed the wounds. Then I picked out the stingers and drowned the wounds in ACV. When I taught a water safety course at school, I learned that putting ACV on a jellyfish wound would stop the pain, so I tried putting it on a YJ sting. It worked in a short period of time. Thanks! :))
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by Jamie (San Jose, Ca, Usa) on 05/20/2010
★★★★★
My poor grandmother suffering from dementia was stung by a bee recently. She tried icing it for about 10 minutes and was still in pain so i checked this website and read that ACV was good for bee stings. We soaked a cotton ball with organic ACV and applied it directly to the sting and her pain was completely gone in 3 minutes!! I love ACV!!
Tobacco
Posted by Diane (Lonsdale, Mn) on 01/24/2010
We have used tobacco poultices since I was a small child for infections. I also used to feed a cigarette monthly to my goats and pigs to worm them. Works overnight!
Tobacco
Posted by Texaninsweden (Siknas, Norbotten, Sweden) on 01/20/2010
★★★★★
Swedish Snus (steamed tobacco leaf), it is already wet and acts fast. I was stung below the ear and on the ear I applied the snus immediately. The pain was alleviated immediately and there as no swelling the next day.
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by Turtlewalk (Santa Ana, Ca) on 11/21/2009
★★★★★
My daughter was saving a bee from the pool today (doubt she'll do that again) and got stung on her thumb. It began to swell immediately. We put baking soda on it and iced & elevated it. She kept asking for relief from the pain. I found this site and dunked her thumb in Apple Cider Vinegar a few minutes ago. She says the pain is almost gone.
Apple Cider Vinegar and Baking Soda
Posted by Laurie (San Antonio, Tx) on 10/21/2009
★★★★★
I was stung by a bee or wasp earlier today. I put tea tree oil on it immediately, which helped a little, but I kept having shooting, stinging pains all day and by the evening the area around the sting was hot, red, and sore. I read your site and tried the apple cider vinegar and baking soda remedy and it worked instantly! All the pain is gone and it feels fine. Thank you!
Apple Cider Vinegar and Baking Soda
Posted by Valeria (Windsor, Sc) on 09/18/2009
umm my dad just got stung by like 5 yellowjackets should i just use 2tbls and a shake or more than that for my remedy??
Apple Cider Vinegar, Turmeric
Posted by Cathy (Pattonville, Tx) on 08/29/2009
★★★★★
Today while mowing by the bee hives, I was stung at least 20 times by my honey bees. Once I was able to get back into the house I quickly took 1 tablet of Turmeric and then grabbed the gallon bottle of Apple cider vinegar (ACV) and gauze pads. I checked all the stings and removed the remaining stingers, then soaked the gauze with the pure ACV and wiped all the stings. I was stung on my face, in my ear, on my arms and back. Within minutes I could feel subsidence of the stings except for a couple, so I also took 30 drops of white willow in water for pain. I began to feel woozy and tingly on my feet so I layed down and concentrated on lowering my heart rate. Within an hour of the stings, there was only some redness on most stings and small pain if I touched the sting sites. No swelling occurred at any of the sites and now I feel just fine. I believe my quick action noted above curbed the potential for a very serious reaction to the stings.
Apple Cider Vinegar
Posted by Russell (Denton, Texas, Usa) on 08/27/2009
★★★★★
Hi,
I was stung on the toe (ouch!) by a nasty red wasp this morning while taking out the trash... my business partner referred me to this site and I read about Apple Cider Vinegar. Thankfully, I had just bought some last night for the first time, and quickly submerged my toe. Within 10 seconds, the pain was almost completely gone. 5 minutes ago I was unable to sit still because of all the pain, and now I feel great!
Thank you for the great advice.
Sincerely,
Russell
Baking Soda
Posted by Stacy Edgar (Agoura Hills, CA) on 07/19/2009
★★★★★
I set my arm down on a bee this afternoon and was stung (for the first time). I remembered reading about baking soda and bee stings from this site so I mixed baking soda and water together (just enough water to make a nice, thick paste) and put it over the bee sting sight. I held it there by putting a bag over it to keep it from drying out too quickly. It immediately helped to take away the pain and within an hour or so, almost all of the pain was gone. Thanks!
Tobacco
Posted by Antonio (Tuscumbia, Alabama) on 05/22/2009
yea i just got sting by a wasp and the first thing i thought of was tobacco
Copper Penny
Posted by Baldelune (Rainier, WA) on 05/14/2009
★★★★★
Bee/Hornet Sting Remedy:
While we welcome Spring, the bees and hornets (and their stings) can make for a bad day. IF YOU KNOW THAT YOU ARE NOT ALLERGIC TO BEE/HONET STINGS AND KNOW THAT YOU ARE NOT SUBJECT A LIFE-THREATENIG STING REACTION, try this very simple remedy for a bee or hornet sting: tape a copper penny directly over the site of the sting and leave it in place for several hours. UNLESS YOU ARE ALLERGIC TO STINGS, this simple remedy will reduce the effects of a or bee/hornet sting. It also helps reduce the swelling and soreness that follow a sting. I don't know why it works, nor do I care; it works. Once you have tied this remedy, I believe you will agree that a simple penny has great value.. If you ARE allergic to insect stings, however, disregard the above suggestion and promptly go to the nearest Emergancy Room for medical treatment.
Toothache Drops
Posted by Pete (Brisbane, Australia) on 04/18/2009
★★★★★
Toothache drops: If you have been stung by a bee, ant or any other insect use a few drops of toothache remedy from your local pharmacy on the affected area. It numbs the area in seconds, no more pain.
Dairy Cream
Posted by Shirley (Yuma, Az. US) on 04/15/2009
★★★★★
After being stung by 2 bees, I imediately ran for the dairy cream, as I remembered a story I read many years ago about this. I put the cream on the stings, and the welts and pain were gone in 45 SECONDS. Amazing! I will always use this remedy, and spread the news everywhere I can.
EC: Dairy cream - aka heavy whipping cream
Vitamin C
Posted by WT (Spartanburg, SC) on 05/29/2008
★★★★★
Vitamin C for Insect Bites and Allergies: I had a spider bite once that swelled on my forearm like a half-egg under the skin. I took 3-4G of ascorbic acid, the cheap Vitamin C from Sams club, about once every hour and a half or so. By dark the swelling was down to maybe 10%. I continued overnight and all day the next day. During that time, while in the yard working, I felt something on my arm. I looked down to see a "fireant" biting feverishly the back of my hand. I assumed there must be something wrong with him as I didn't feel any burning. Another one bit me later with the same results. I only noticed a feeling like something was crawling on me. The wounds never swelled, turned red or itched! It must have been the massive doses of C circulating in my blood.
I estimated I consumed about 40 grams of C over a 24hr period. Normally that much C will give you severe diarrhea and gas! I had neither.
I also take it for severe allergy flareups with great and quick relief, though only last for 2-4 hours, depending on the intensity of the allergen.
Mud
Posted by Anna (St Julians, Malta) on 09/21/2008
★★★★★
I want to thank you all for this website. I use it for every ailment any of my family might suffer from. It is always the first place I look. I have tried turmeric for boils, garlic for colds and many others and thank god they all worked, so thanks again. I am also allergic to bee stings and swell up straight away. Since I was a child when ever my brothers and sisters got stung which was often as we were always in the garden my father always made a mud pack and placed it on the bite. Just plain soil and water. Leave it on till it dries and then brush off. I have always used it on my kids and friends and it works every time. As the mud dries it draw out the poison and the swelling. Hope you find this useful.
Activated Charcoal
Posted by Ruth (Dennisport, MA) on 09/20/2008
The symptoms you describe are a localized reaction to the bee sting, not an allergic reaction. Allergic reactions are systemic (through your whole body) like hives. Even though the reaction can be painful and scary, it is not an allergic one. Treatment includes elevating the affected part, steroids and antibiotics (main stream medicine). Don't worry about an epi-pen unless you have some kind of affected breathing.
Mud
Posted by Lin (Yellow Springs, Ohio) on 08/26/2008
★★★★★
Mud has cured my family's external bee stings for over 35 years. Wherever you are, there is mud, all you need is a little water. Just make a paste and slap it on. I've used it for a one year old baby whose piercing screams stopped within seconds, for a panic d customer in a store to our dog's paw just yesterday. The mud does it all, draws out the stinger and the poison - fast. Leave on from 2-20 min. Rinse off, then wash with soap and water. Relax and have a glass of water.
Bounce Dryer Sheets
Posted by Lore (Walnut Creek, Ca 94595, U) on 08/08/2008
★★★★★
To stop yellow jacket attraction: "Bounce"sheets as repellents for yellow jackets, pieces tucked into golf shoes, belt and rubbed around ears and neck. It helps but smell is so bad.
