Sunday, June 29, 2014

Can Bee Sting Venom Help Cure Parkinson’s Disease?

Honey bee venom is the “buzz” and it seems to help. Here’s a surprise scientific report.
At the 18th International Congress of Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorders, in Stockholm, Sweden (June 8-12, 2014), a very interesting paper was presented showing that a combination of acupuncture and bee venom improved symptoms of patients with Parkinson’s Disease.
It’s a bit of a surprise. Acupuncture has been used for years in Asia to relieve Parkinson’s symptoms—it seems to protect nerve cells like the ones the disease destroys—but it’s not like Western drug-bound science to even cast a glance in its direction. This is a milestone!
Bee venom (Apis mellifica) is another holistic remedy that’s been around for centuries. Homeopaths use it for pain and swellings (because bee venomcauses pain and swelling: like treats like, get it?)
Bee venom also eases inflammation in nerve cells; again, because it causes it. The venom was injected into acupuncture points.
This highly innovative study is one of the first studies ever to test whether acupuncture combined with a remedy like bee-venom can work therapeutically.
In the study, 35 patients with Parkinson’s disease who had been on a stable dose of medication for at least a month were randomly assigned to three groups. One group received only acupuncture, another received bee-venom acupuncture, and the third group received neither. The treatment was repeated twice a week for 8 weeks.
Symptoms improved in those who received bee-venom acupuncture or regular acupuncture. There were no serious side effects in either group. One person who received bee-venom acupuncture complained of itchiness. Those who received no treatment had no change in their symptoms…

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