Most people try to avoid being stung by bees, but people with degenerative diseases such as Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and arthritis might choose to be stung up to 100 times.

Bee venom therapy, also known as Apitherapy, has been practiced for over 2,000 years. It can be traced back to ancient China, and has appeared in the texts of the Greek physician, Hippocrates.

Apitherapy is a medically recognized treatment in some European nations, said Sue Cobey, an entomologist who studies bees at Ohio State. It is also very popular in Cuba because a lot of people are unable to afford medicine.

There are many advocates of the bee venom therapy, although the majority of the medical community does not support it.

Most doctors who work with MS patients do not believe Apitherapy works, said Dr. Kottil Rammohan, of the Ohio State University Medical Center.

“It’s an unproven theory. Venoms are biologically active substances that have been used for the treatment of various disorders and have other uses in the laboratory,” Rammohan said.

For example, cobra venom contains Alpha Bingarotoxin, which is used to purify some receptors of muscle tissue, he said. Before cobra venom, viper venom was used, however, its use was ceased when no positive effects occurred.

“A lady in Maryland with MS supposedly improved miraculously after being stung by bees,” he said. “That led to Apitherapy for MS. I haven’t seen anyone get better.”

“The experience of patients who go through (Apitherapy) has not been anything convincing, although most patients say they feel better,” Rammohan said.

Rammohan said he tells patients all the information they need about the procedures and to speak with others who have undergone Apitherapy, then letting them make up their own minds.

There is little risk associated with the treatment, but often the price tag is too high for some patients.

“I don’t think that the treatment is harmful unless you are allergic to the bees,” Rammohan said. “I don’t object to the treatment, I just hope that someone is not charging them an exorbitant price.”

“My only concern is they might give up on proven therapies in the place of Apitherapy – which has happened,” Rammohan said.

Don Downs, an Apitherapist and electrician, said he has treated a variety of conditions over the past ten years at his home in Wellington, Ohio.

“I’ll sting anyone who knows how to say yes,” Downs said.

People seek treatment for anything from MS, to arthritis and scar tissue, he said.

Downs became interested in Apitherapy after reading numerous articles and hearing testimonials of people who said the stings helped them.

He has helped burn victims, people who have had skin grafts and has even healed a gunshot wound from World War II, Downs said.

Bee venom is composed of 30 different components including the anti-inflammatory peptides melittin, and apamin. Melittin stimulates the hypophyseal-adrenal system and produces cortisone. It is 100 times more potent than hydrocortisone, according to the American Apitherapy Society.

The melittin also stabilizes cell membranes to protect against inflammation. The Apamin helps to produce cortisone, an anti-inflammatory.

Apitherapy is not a cure-all for MS, Downs said. It gives people a swift kick to help them start moving, but they must also help themselves. Having a proper diet and taking nutritional supplements is necessary for recovery.

Maureen and Darren Watkins, of Delaware, Ohio, a married couple who both suffer from MS, decided to try Apitherapy because traditional treatments from the medical community didn’t seem to do much for their illness.

“Doctors and neurologists will tell people it doesn’t work, that it’s just an adrenaline rush,” Maureen Watkins said. “But I have seen miracles happen.”

Maureen, who works as an occupational therapist, does not like to mix her job at Riverside Methodist Hospital with the bee venom therapy.

“A lot of people at work just think it’s a lot of hogwash,” Maureen said.

Part of the reason the medical community will not support Apitherapy is that there is no money in it for the medical communities or the pharmaceutical companies, said Maureen.

Bee venom turns on the body’s immune system and stimulates the production of cortizol, while drugs like steroids suppress the production, Maureen said.

The Watkins perform Apitherapy at their home in Delaware, Ohio free of charge to anyone willing to make the trip.

“If you like where you are, stay there,” Maureen said. “But if you want to get better, try the bees.”

Walter Hinks, professor emeritus in the Department of Entomology at OSU, was diagnosed with MS in 1984.

“I tried Apitherapy for five months several years ago, but didn’t notice any beneficial effects,” Hinks said. “I decided to try Apitherapy based on the testimonies of people with MS who said it had benefited them.”

The results are unpredictable because MS can vary from individual to individual, Hinks said. Some people have a progressive type of MS and some people might go into remission at any time. People can experience vision problems, others lose mobility, and still others may become completely incapacitated, Hinks said.

One of the controversies of Apitherapy is that there are no clinical studies being done, Hinks said. Another is that people can experience severe allergic reactions, and can die as a result.

“Due to the testimony of other people with MS who have tried the bee stings, I am still convinced that it has been beneficial and has relieved a number of symptoms of the disease,” Hinks said.