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Individuals suffering from pain and other health issues often get little or no relief from traditional prescription medications. Chronic pain from any cause reduces the quality of life for sufferers, often significantly restricting their ability to take part in normal activities. Apitherapy, or bee venom therapy, is a unique therapy that may affect patient outcomes.
Apitherapy or bee venom therapy is not yet widely accepted as a treatment in this country, but has been used for centuries in other parts of the world as a treatment for many health conditions. It is becoming more and more difficult for patients to find apitherapists because one of the foremost producers of bee venom therapy, Michael Simics, has retired several years ago. We continue to provide bee venom therapy for those patients we find suitable.
How Does Bee Venom Therapy Work?
An analysis of bee venom identified roughly 40 ingredients in bee venom, including mellitin, which is currently the subject of a variety of studies. Mellitin is reported to be an incredibly strong anti-inflammatory agent. To be universally accepted by the medical community as a treatment, bee venom would have to undergo studies and testing that are actually difficult with this type of treatment. Double-blind tests, for example, would be hard to accomplish, as the symptoms of bee venom are virtually impossible to duplicate, making the use of placebos a difficult task at best, not to mention the costs of studies for a product that won’t have a profit for the company investigating.
A certain percentage of the population is allergic to bee venom, making them ineligible for the treatment. Practitioners generally have bee sting kits on hand to deal with any allergic reactions that might occur, reducing the likelihood of negative consequences for patients unaware of an allergy.
Any treatment should be carefully considered before it is used. As with traditional medications, mixing with other substances can produce side effects. Naturopathic doctors or other skilled practitioners should be consulted to ensure the treatment is appropriate for the condition and that this treatment is the best option available.
Bee venom contains several important peptides which can act in different ways:
- By stimulating the body to produce natural cortisol.
- By increasing blood flow to the affected joints.
- By inhibiting the synthesis of prostaglandins which increase inflammation.
Is Bee Venom Therapy Right for Me?
Health Canada prohibits advertising of IV medicines or other of our therapies associating them with any disease, health condition or showing the studies of these medicines. Please give us a call or email for further information.
Book an appointment or call our office today at (204) 775-4539 to discuss potential treatment options. Our naturopath Winnipeg experts will guide you in the right direction.