DEAR DR. GOTT: Do you have any information on “bee sting therapy” for the chronic pain of fibromyalgia?

DEAR READER: This therapy dates back more than 3,000 years in China and involves placing live bees on strategic pressure points of a patient’s body. It is similar to the needles used in acupuncture, but in this instance, the therapy uses the stingers to control the pain of diseases such as rheumatism, arthritis, shingles, lupus, herniated discs, MS, diabetes and fibromyalgia. The treatment relies mainly on the poison of the bees, which can help blood circulation, ease pain and reduce inflammation.

Following a sting, our adrenal glands produce cortisol, a natural hormone with anti-inflammatory properties. Supposedly the therapy jump-starts our immune systems to trigger the production of endorphins, the body’s natural painkiller. [Read more...]