Most of us take whatever measures we can to avoid getting stung. Yellow jacket stings are particularly painful. Moreover, unlike honeybees that sacrifice their lives with a single sting, yellow jackets can sting a person multiple times. We have heard from some readers, though, that there may be a silver lining to this agonizing experience.
Yellow Jacket Stings Eliminated Foot Pain
Q. While washing windows this evening, I was stung by a yellow jacket on my left foot. I have terrible osteoarthritis in that foot, and I have been putting off an operation on it due to the down time required for recovery.
It wasn’t until I was in the bathtub several hours later that I realized I had no pain! I get in the whirlpool every night to let the water ease the constant arthritis pain. NO PAIN for the first time in about two years. It’s been about five hours now. WOW!
Can Stings Really Help Joint Pain?
A. Readers have been sharing stories for decades about the benefits of stings for arthritis pain. This concept is called apitherapy when it utilizes honeybee venom.
You might think this sounds like an old wives’ tale, but scientists have been studying bee venom therapy for years. (Yellow jackets appear far less popular as study subjects.) Bee venom contains compounds known as melittin, apamin and phospholipase A2 with strong anti-inflammatory action.
In one review, researchers note:
“Bee venom offers a natural, powerful approach to combating the inflammation and related chronic disorders.” (Naunyn-Schmiedeberg’s Archives of Pharmacology, Aug. 2025).
They call for clinical trials that could help “…establish bee venom therapy as a mainstream therapeutic agent.”
You can find more information about bee sting therapy at the American Apitherapy Society website. Any treatment should be conducted only by someone who is experienced and equipped to deal with a possible serious allergic reaction. Anaphylaxis is a life-threatening emergency!
Yellow Jacket Stings Banished Knee Pain
Q. I was stung on my left leg five times by yellow jackets. I have osteoarthritis in my left knee, and the pain has been gone since I was stung. I’m hoping that it will last!
If I had a choice, though I would definitely pick honeybee stings over yellow jackets as they’re much less painful.
A. You’re not the first person to share such a story with us.
Years ago a reader wrote,
“While snoozing on the porch I was stung on the finger by a tiny bee. The result: intense pain, and after that a great reduction of arthritis in my arm.”
What Is Apitherapy?
Early in the 20th century, doctors used bee venom therapy to treat arthritis. Hospital pharmacies even stocked bee venom for these injections. After World War II, though, this approach appeared antiquated and unscientific and was no longer widely used.
Apitherapy, which uses bee stings medicinally, is undergoing a resurgence. Some proponents claim that honeybee stings can alleviate the pain of arthritis, shingles or tendinitis. Yellow jackets can be dangerous, however, and should not be used.
We talked to a number of experts at a meeting of the American Apitherapy Society for Show 661. People allergic to bee stings must avoid this approach, since the reaction can be lethal.
Citations
- Bhardwaj V et al, "Harnessing bee venom for inflammatory diseases management: from traditional medicine to nanotechnology." Naunyn-Schmiedeberg’s Archives of Pharmacology, Aug. 2025. DOI: 10.1007/s00210-025-03991-6
