bee suits!in the shed or in the house?

[greatbritishhoney]

Correct, and so is house dust and look at how many are allergic to that. My wife is allergic as soon as she enters the house of someone with a cat. Miniscule maybe, but breathed in does eventually raise you risk of developing an allergy.

Adam

But dust and cat hair are constantly entering the house and build up over the years (no matter how fastidious about cleaning you are).
I would imagine one cat would shed more hair in a week than the equivalent amount of bee vemon that would normally be shed by the average bee suit in a lifetime.

And, how come us beekeepers aren't adversely affected? Surely we'd breathe in more of the dried vemon whilst putting on and wearing the suit.

 

[djg]

Existential riddle for Friday afternoon: I have no option where I keep my beesuit.

* Do I live in my shed?

Or

* Do I have no shed at all ?

 

[drstitson]

"And, how come us beekeepers aren't adversely affected? Surely we'd breathe in more of the dried vemon whilst putting on and wearing the suit."

the problem is much more likely in atopic ie allergy prone individuals.

however - since bee venom is a pharmacologically active mix of substances would could easily believe that if inhaled not only could it elicit an allergic response but is also likely to actively cause local changes in the lungs which would further enhance allergen exposure ie by making alveolar and capillary walls "leaky" and stimulating immune response.

also your IgE expressing plasma cells (antibody makers) are present in high numbers in the lining of the upper aerodigestive tract.

so exposure through that route IS likely to cause problems in some individuals.

 

[bee ginnner]

, just in case it's not the total b*ll*cks it seems, I'm going to keep my bee suit in the car or shed from now on.

Thats a good idea, nice confined space which is often subjected to extreme temps........ good luck

 

[For want of a better word]

protein allergies....... chicken, guineapig, cat, mouse, rat all seem to present an Ihg / /?? responce so why not bee /??

Think mine will stay in the shed!

 

[victor meldrew]

Thats a good idea, nice confined space which is often subjected to extreme temps........ good luck

Both mine and my wifes' beesuits are hung on the back of the door in my Radio shack/computer room ! the room is 7'x7'x8' high ! I'm in here happen 3/4 hours daily , the only thing I notice is they smell of smoke for a couple of days after use

John Wilkinson

 

[bee ginnner]

Both mine and my wifes' beesuits are hung on the back of the door in my Radio shack/computer room ! the room is 7'x7'x8' high ! I'm in here happen 3/4 hours daily , the only thing I notice is they smell of smoke for a couple of days after use

John Wilkinson

Well perhaps you should turn the linear down a bit..... 400w max john

 

[victor meldrew]

Well perhaps you should turn the linear down a bit..... 400w max john

As if I'd exceed the legal limit?
How very dare you !!

John Wilkinson 73s

 

[RoseCottage]

GBH,

The reports I read (and which are linked in earlier posts) stated that as beekeepers tend to get stung and take venom in via the sting (in higher concentrations) allergy development tends to be less of a risk than those associated family members who don't get stung but who receive low doses of dried venom components.

One of my links explains how very effective venom inhalation is with small amounts of compounds.

From a summary paragraph:
"Most beekeepers are stung so many times they develop antibodies which protect them against the proteins found in venom. However the rest of the family may not be so lucky. The clothing of the beekeepers becomes imbued with residual amounts of dried bee venom that the other family members in the house will unknowingly inhale. Exposure of very low amounts of bee venom protein on an erratic basis will program the body to produce the inappropriate antibodies that lead to an allergic reaction to the bee venom."

All the best,
Sam

 

[Der Alte Fritz]

I've heard that keeping your bee suit in the house for long periods of time,can reduce your imunity to bee stings,is this correct? if so how?

Easy question for a medic.
Immunity comes from your bodies own defence systems recognising the threat. You need sufficient exposure to a threat so that the body recognises it correctly and produces the right counter. When that is done, it makes no difference being constantly exposed to the threat UNLESS your body's immune system makes an error and over reacts which can be very serious or even fatal. This is where anaphylatic shock comes from - a massive over reaction to a minor threat that shuts a major body system eg an airway. As you get older your body's defence systems get more inclined to error and so the risk increases slightly with age.

So get stung once or twice and your body will have got all the protection it needs. And keep your suit in the car or shed.

 

[greatbritishhoney]

Very interesting.

Also a good argumant for keeping your bees calm (i.e - limiting the number of stings) and for washing your suit more often.

Mine usually lives in the car during swarm season and in the shed during winter, but I have to occaisionally take it out and air it otherwise it goes mouldy.

 

[Erichalfbee]

I wash my suit and gloves between inspections..........errrr is this overkill?