BEES AND RHEUMATISM.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume XXIX, Issue 7815, 7 June 1909, Page 1

BEES AND RHEUMATISM.

A remarkable euro for rheumatism has just been tried with complete success at the important Belle Vtie Hospital m New York. It appears that the doctors at this hospital. have recently had to deal with exceptionally severe cases of rheumatism, m which: all routine remedies failed completely to gixe* any relief to the patient or itf any way to lesse.'i the severity of the symptoms. Everything else haying failed,.-it was decided '..to sco "whether ' bee-stirigs (which among some-races-have a reputation for curing rheumatic disorders) would benefit the patient m this particular instance. The Belle Vue Hospital doctors therefore procured a swarm of- bees, which were allowed to sting the patient m various places, and it is stated on good authority that this veryunusual method of treatment was fol-low-d by the most successful results, a practical cure being quickly established. ■' . > , ' ; As a matter of fact, the application of bee-stings to rheumatic disorders is a remedy of great antiquity, and according to certain ancient records was practised- m Eastern Europe two or three thousand years ago"., , ;. ■ . *1 ■: There appears to be a comparatively simple explanation to r the eifleacy tof bee-stings ill rheumatism < Bee-Btiiig poison is very acid,, containing forinjc acid or other acids of a similar nature y and it has been known for years ithajb... formic acid arid its 'compounds, :the i 'Jfo,rmates, will sometimes cure obstiiiatei cases of rheumatism when all other r^niedies have failed. _ , , Hence itj. seems fairly certain that the bee with its "sting.-acts the .part M a: physician with his hypodermic syringe,' and cures the patient by injecting into his system a close of -formic acid or similar substance. Of course^: the; more bees there are,the bigger. thei:dps.ejt Fop some reason ov other,;the formic■-aeipi treatment of. rheumatism ■ has ' "neve^ been much taken up by the medical: profession, though those who have haki experience of it have reported...miinei--ous instances of rheumatism, rheumatic; gout, lumbngo. and sciatica having been cured by this method. v::