Bee Stings at Camp

Technorati tags: camp safety, bee stings, insect bites

Want to avoid a bee-sting? Easy, don’t try to be a flower. What does that mean?

• Avoid fragrances. That includes hair spray, scented soaps or lotions.
• Don’t wear brightly colored clothing, especially floral patterns or you’ll look like a flower patch.
• Are you too sweet for your own good? Opened soda cans, kids juice boxes, something as small as a forgotten raspberry jam stain on a sweater can make you attractive to bees.

If a bee does land on you,

• Don’t panic. Hold still as statues. If you make a rapid movement, the startled bee will react by stinging.
• Try blowing gently on the bee. This can encourage it to move on while not startling it.
• If you know the area is prone to bees, cover your bare arms and legs with clothing.

Treating a Bee Sting

If you do all that and still get stung, remove the stinger quickly. In the act of stinging, the stinger is torn from the bee, along with the venom-filled poison sac and attached muscles. The barbs continue to work the stinger deeper into the flesh for several minutes, while venom continues to be injected.

The video below shows you how to use a credit card to scrape it off, which is the conventional wisdom. However, scientific studies suggest when it comes to removing bee stings, speed matters, method doesn't. So, if you don't have a card handy, use your fingers instead of slowing down the removal of the sting.

For more posts on camping safety, click here. We even have a video on how to avoid a bear attack.

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