Monday, April 05, 2010

MS Sufferer Claims Relief Through Bee Venom Therapy

'I was Stung by 1,500 Bees and I Feel Great': MS Sufferer's Pioneering Therapy
By Luke Salkeld, The Daily Mail (UK), 4/4/2010

Multiple Sclerosis sufferer Sami Chugg clearly believes there is no gain without pain.

Once bed-ridden and unable to leave her home, she is now back on her feet with a much improved quality of life.

And she puts the recent dramatic improvement in her condition down to a course of treatment which involved subjecting herself to 1,500 bee stings.

The 45-year-old was diagnosed with MS 12 years ago and says she was numb and unable to move until she tried a treatment known as Bee Venom Therapy or Apitherapy.

The treatment involves holding a live bee in a pair of tweezers and deliberately stinging an area of skin on the patient's body.

Proponents of the method believe the venom in the sting helps ease the pain of MS symptoms and also stimulates the body to fight back.

Miss Chugg says she was stung around 1,500 in eighteen months, and feels much better for it.

She said: 'Most people would be terrified by the prospect of being stung by a bee.

'But when you have a condition like MS, that involves the numbing of the body, any kind of sensation is welcome - even if it's from a bee sting.'

She continued: 'You use a pair of tweezers and get hold of a single bee.

'Then you gradually de-sensitise your body to the sting by injecting it in and out of your skin a few times.

'You have to be very careful, in case your body is prone to anaphylactic shock – which can be fatal. You can't just walk in there and encourage the bees to sting you randomly.'

She added: 'Sadly bees are killed by stinging, so you certainly only want to do this for a very good cause. But the relief it gave me was tremendous.'

Researchers claim that certain compounds in bee venom reduce inflammation and pain and a combination of all its ingredients helps the body to release natural healing compounds…

No comments: