Bee Sting Treatment

What to Do for Minor and Severe Reactions

Bee sting treatment ranges from simple home remedies to life-saving medical treatment at a hospital. The most important first step in treating a bee sting is removing the stinger.

Female bees are the only ones that can sting. When you get stung by a bee, a venom sac is left behind with the barbed stinger stuck in your skin. The stinger can keep injecting venom into your body until it's taken out.

In most cases, removing the stinger will cause sudden intense pain, as well as swelling, redness, and itching around the place that got stung.

Symptoms will continue and potentially get worse until the stinger is removed. In some cases, a bee sting can cause a potentially fatal allergic reaction.

This article goes over how to treat a bee sting, including how to tell if you're having a serious reaction to a bee sting that requires immediate medical attention.

Signs of an Emergency From a Bee Sting

Before trying to self-treat a bee sting, it is important for you to check yourself for signs of a severe allergic reaction (anaphylaxis):

  • Itching or burning that's away from the site of the sting itself
  • Hives (raised welts) elsewhere on the body
  • Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
  • Difficulty swallowing
  • Scratchy throat
  • Dizziness
  • Weakness

While these signs and symptoms typically show up within two hours of a bee sting, a reaction could take more or less time to come on.

If you have serious symptoms after a bee sting, use any epinephrine auto-injector (EpiPen) that's available and call 911.

When to Call for Help Immediately

Someone can have an allergic reaction to a bee sting even if they do not have immediate symptoms.

Whether the above signs and symptoms are present or not, you should get medical help for a bee sting as soon as possible if:

  • The person who was stung has a known bee, wasp, hornet, or yellow jacket allergy
  • You or someone else has been stung 10 or more times

Multiple local reactions can cause a lot of pain and the more venom there is in your body from a sting, the more likely it is you'll have an allergic reaction (even if you don’t have a history of reacting to bee stings).

How to Treat a Bee Sting

How to Treat a Bee Sting

Verywell / JR Bee

If you do not have an immediate, severe reaction to a bee sting, and you do not have a known allergy, you can probably handle a bee sting on your own by following these steps.

Step 1: Take Out the Stinger

First, look at the stung area closely. You'll likely see a red bump. If a stinger was left behind, you'll also see a small black filament sticking out of the center. It may have a bulbous end, which is the venom sac.

If the skin around the stinger is loose, pull it tight to get a better look. This will also make the stinger easier to grasp. 

Next, pull the stinger out. Do this quickly—the longer the stinger is in and is pumping out venom, the more the sting will hurt and increase your risk of having an allergic reaction.

Should I Scrape or Pinch the Stinger?

You may have heard that you should always scrape bee stingers off because pinching the venom sac could push in extra venom—but that's one of the biggest myths of first aid.

Research has shown that pinching the stinger does not seem to inject more venom; however, being slow to pull it out does. How fast you get the stinger out is much more important than how you do it.

Once you get the stinger out, leave the area where the sting happened. 

When the stinger is left behind, it actually kills the bee. When bees die, they release a scent that sends a sign to other bees that there’s a threat. 

While the bee that stung you is no longer a problem, its hive mates will be when they arrive. Clearing everyone out of the area as soon as possible will help prevent more stings.

Step 2: Treat Local Reactions

Once you're in a safe place and have removed the stinger, clean the stung area with soap and water. It will hurt, but this is an important step to making sure it does not get infected.

Bee stings almost always cause a reaction at the place where the sting happened (a local reaction). This reaction even happens in people who are not allergic.

There are a few things you can try to ease the redness, swelling, itching, and pain of a bee sting:

  • Ice the area to reduce swelling (just make sure to avoid getting frostbite if you're using an ice pack)
  • Use an over-the-counter (OTC) antihistamine like Benadryl (diphenhydramine) to reduce swelling and itching
  • Take an OTC pain reliever Advil (ibuprofen), Aleve (naproxen), or Tylenol (acetaminophen)
  • Apply calamine lotion or hydrocortisone cream along with a bandage to help with pain and itching
  • Do not scratch, as doing so can make the discomfort worse and put you at risk of infection

Time is the best medicine for a bee sting. The pain will usually go away quickly, but the swelling and itching can last for a day or longer.

Step 3: Continue to Watch for Warning Signs

Anyone can develop a severe allergic reaction to a bee sting. You can still have a severe reaction even if you’ve been stung before and didn't react. You may also get stung and not show any signs of anaphylaxis right away.

Keep checking yourself or the person who was stung for symptoms of a reaction for the next couple of hours.

Any symptoms of anaphylaxis are an emergency and you need to call 911 right away.

Treating a Severe Bee Sting Reaction

Emergency treatment for a severe reaction to a bee sting may include:

  • Epinephrine (adrenaline), a drug that stops the body’s allergic response.
  • CPR if the reaction is so severe that your heart stops or you stop breathing
  • Oxygen to help you breathe
  • Intravenous (IV) medications to bring down inflammation
  • Possible rescue inhaler treatment, such as albuterol

If you've had any kind of allergic reaction to previous bee stings, you have a higher chance of having a life-threatening allergic reaction the next time you get stung.

If you have ever had an anaphylactic reaction after a bee sting, you should always carry an EpiPen with you in case you are stung. This medicine can stop the reaction and keep you alive until you can get medical care.

Home Remedies for Bee Stings

Home treatments for bee stings are not backed up by scientific research—they’re just simple remedies that some people have claimed help ease the pain of a sting.

You should only try at-home treatments if you do not have a severe reaction to a bee sting and were able to remove the stinger.

Apple Cider Vinegar

Some people claim that apple cider vinegar can neutralize the venom from a sting and reduce inflammation.

You can apply apple cider vinegar in a couple of ways:

  • Soak a cloth in vinegar and apply it to the sting
  • Soak the stung body part in a solution of water and vinegar

After you apply the treatment, leave it in place for about 15 minutes.

Baking Soda

While this remedy has not been researched for bee stings, some evidence has shown that it might help treat jellyfish stings.

A paste made with baking soda and water may alleviate the pain of a bee sting and help reduce inflammation.

Here's how to make the paste:

  1. Measure one quarter-cup of baking soda
  2. Mix the baking soda with 1 to 2 tablespoons of water
  3. Cover the area on and around the sting (gently) with the paste
  4. Bandage the area and leave it on for 15 minutes or longer

Toothpaste

Similar to making a baking soda paste, some people claim that dabbing a little toothpaste on a sting helps; however, there is no scientific evidence that it works.

Honey

Ironically, honey might be an effective treatment for bee stings. Just put a little on the site of the sting.

Honey has long been known to have properties that reduce inflammation, speed wound healing, and kill germs that may cause an infection.

Aspirin Paste

Taking aspirin may help with the pain of a sting, but some people go a step further and crush up a tablet with water to make a paste, similar to the baking soda treatment.

Aspirin as a bee sting treatment has gotten some research attention in the paste, but did not exactly find that it worked.

For example, a 2003 study found that using a topical aspirin paste on a sting did not help with swelling and pain and actually made the stung area stay red longer. 

Instead, the researchers found that ice was a much better bee sting treatment.

How to Prevent Bee Stings

If you know that you are allergic to bees, or if someone close to you is, take steps to prevent stings when you’re doing outdoor activities.

Remember that bees, wasps, hornets, and yellow jackets like sweet smells and bright colors.

Here are a few tips to make yourself less attractive to stinging insects:

  • Cover food and soda can openings
  • Stay away from garbage cans
  • Avoid wearing clothing with bright colors or floral prints
  • Avoid using body care products that smell sweet
  • Stay away from flowers

Stinging is how insects protect themselves and their hives from danger. One way to prevent stings is to avoid making the insects feel threatened.

Here are a few things to keep in mind when you're outside and stinging insects are around:

  • Stay away from their hives or nests
  • Don't swat at them—try to stay calm and still
  • Wear shoes in case you step on one

Determining a Bee Sting Allergy

A healthcare provider can test you to find out if you have an allergy to bees or other insects.

If you got stung and had a reaction but do not know what insect stung you, sometimes, doing testing can help figure it out. 

Some tests involve putting allergens on your skin to see if you have a reaction.

There are also ways to test a sample of your blood to see if you will have an immune response to bee venom. 

Summary

For many people, a bee sting is just a minor—and often surprising—one that can be easily treated at home and gets better within a day or two. However, it's important to know the signs of a severe reaction to a sting because it can be life-threatening.

If you or a loved one has a known allergy to insect stings, make sure that you always carry an EpiPen and know how to use it. 

It's also helpful to take steps to prevent the insects from stinging you—or even being interested in you—when you're outside.

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Which insects cause the most stings?

    The insects that cause the most stings are apids (honeybees and bumblebees), vespids (wasps, hornets, and yellow jackets), and fire ants. It is said that honey bees and yellow jackets alone make up 95% of stings.

  • How do I know if a bee stung me?

    Bites from different stinging insects can have similar symptoms. If you notice a stinger left behind, you were stung by a honeybee; it's the only insect that leaves behind this kind of calling card.

  • How long does pain and swelling from a bee sting last?

    The initial pain and burning from a bee sting last about one to two hours, but swelling can increase for up to 48 hours after the sting or longer depending on where a person was stung. An allergic reaction to insect stings can take longer to clear up—in some cases, up to 10 days.

13 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read our editorial process to learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
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By Rod Brouhard, EMT-P
Rod Brouhard is an emergency medical technician paramedic (EMT-P), journalist, educator, and advocate for emergency medical service providers and patients.