Monday, March 15, 2010

Bee Venom Therapy Used in India to Treat Pain

A Sweetened Sweat Story
S.S. Kavitha, The Hindu, 3/12/2010

The farm at Kondayampatti foothills is one of the archetypes of rural life, a treat both aural and visual. The vibe of the rustic setting is brought into life with the buzzing of the bees. My inquisitiveness to peep into the box is interrupted by an ‘ouch' sound and the shying away is but natural to save the skin from a sting...

Her diary is filled with dates for schools and colleges where she waxes eloquent on honeybees, honey cultivation and other products including the royal jelly, bee venom, wax, pollen and propolis. She also sells more than a dozen varieties of honey such as - Thulasi honey, rose honey, naaval honey, neem, amla, pepper, lichi, crunch (punnai), coorg - under the brand name VIBIS. The taste, colour and medicinal values differ as it is based on the nectar and nature of flower, she notes. She is exports to Sri Lanka and Singapore...

“One need not be afraid of the sting. It actually helps in curing nerve problems. Worldwide bee venom therapy is very famous and people go to the centres just to get the sting,” she adds.

Apparently, nearly a dozen people from Madurai and neighbouring districts have visited her farm to specifically get a ‘bee sting” as they believe it relieves them of the Chikungunya pain...

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