“One can no more approach people without love than one can approach bees without care. Such is the quality of bees…” ~ Leo Tolstoy
I live in an suburban cul-de-sac. This last weekend, we had one of those parties where the whole street is invited to congregate and get to know each other.
Straight up, I didn’t want to go. I’m a card-carrying introvert and would much rather hang out in my greenhouse or otherwise eat glass.
But along we went. My neighbours are nice people. Some of them I have known for over 20 years.
And because I have a huge veggie patch in my front yard, my neighbours are always polite and inquisitive about my garden. Since I have zero talent for small talk, I tend to bore people with stories of Russian seed revolutionaries, or how mealworms could be the new superfood or the virtues of suburban agrihoods.
So when they ask as to what I do to keep myself off the streets and out of mischief while the kids are at school, pretty soon, I’m going to steer talk to my all-time-favourite-conversation.
BEES!
And the reaction is always interesting, as it is varied.
Tell some people you keep bees in suburbia and they will recoil from you as quickly as if you told them you bake meth in your garage. Or if you let your kids juggle fire for sport.
Reckless, public menace! Shoooo!
Others are instantly curious and what to know more. They’re my favourite kind of people. Then I’m all…
“Pour yourself another glass of wine and prepare to be amazed!”
But naturally, there’s always a fear of the unknown. And one neighbour, who said his kid was allergic* to bees, asked me an intriguing question…
“What are the odds of someone actually dying from a bee sting?”
I didn’t know!
This last week, I’ve delighted in researching this very subject. And while that may seem morbid, I assure you it is much more interesting because as it turns out, humans are actually really rubbish as determining relative risk.
While you might freak out because you discover your neighbour has a beehive, chances are you’re more likely to die from falling out of bed, slipping over in the bath, or driving to work in the morning.
Here’s my master list of all the things that are more likely to end your time on earth sooner than a bee sting, in likely order (with a little sting at the end of the list)...
Odds of dying from heart disease: 1 in 6.
Odds of dying from cancer: 1 in 7.
Odds of dying from stroke: 1 in 28.
Odds of dying from accidental poisoning by toxic substances: 1 in 130.
Odds of dying from a fall: 1 in 171.
Odds of dying from a car accident: 1 in 303.
Odds of dying from a gunshot: 1 in 306.
Odds of dying from a motorcycle accident: 1 in 770.
Odds of dying from accidental drowning: 1 in 1,123.
Odds of dying from exposure to smoke/fire: 1 in 1,177.
Odds of dying from cycling: 1 in 4,717.
Odds of dying from air and space transport accidents: 1 in 7,032.
Odds of dying from exposure to electric current, radiation, temperature or pressure: 1 in 9,943.
Odds of being injured by a toilet this year: 1 in 10,000.
Odds of dying from exposure to excessive natural heat: 1 in 12,517.
Odds of being murdered today (in the United States): 1 in 19,000.
Odds of dying from an asteroid or comet: between 1 in 3,000 and 1 in 250,000.
Odds of dying in a cataclysmic storm: 1 in 46,044.
Odds of getting struck by lightning in your lifetime: 1 in 84,079.
Odds of dying from being bitten/attacked by dog: 1 in 120,864.
Odds of dying from being in an earthquake: 1 in 148,756.
Odds of dying in a flood: 1 in 175,803.
Odds of dying from a fireworks discharge: 1 in 386,766.
Odds of getting killed by a shark: 1 in 3.7 million.
Odds of dying from a bee sting: 1 in 6 million.
Odds of winning the Lottery: 1 in 13,983,816. Dammit!
But the real moral of this story is, please do not fear bees in your suburb or neighbourhood.
Provided you are not threatening or trampling their hive, bees will most likely ignore you, as they have far more important work to be doing rather than loitering around, harassing humans. A stinging bee is a bit like a Kamikaze pilot. They will only sacrifice their own life if they have reason to believe that you intend harm to their hive, or as a last resort defence.
Unless you are one of those very rare souls who experiences anaphylactic reaction* to bee stings (estimated to be about 3% of the general population) rest assured you would need a good serve of bee venom to experience a fatal dose. That’s about 1000 stings for adults, 500 for children.
So if your neighbour confesses to being a backyard beekeeper, how do you think you would feel about it now? Of course, not all backyard beekeepers are created equal, so that’s a post for another time. But as long as your neighbourhood bees are well cared for, I bet you wouldn’t notice bees were there at all.
I’m actually more amazed at how frequently people just don’t notice the bees that are around. I’m usually the one looking up at the blossoming trees saying “Wow! Look at all the bees!”
Do you have an urban hive? Do live near one? Please drop me a comment and share your experience, I love to hear from you!
*Usually, when people tell me they’re allergic to beestings, I ask if they carry an epi-pen everywhere with them. An anaphylactic reaction is life threatening business. But 99% of the time, the answer is no. “But when a bee stings me, my skin goes red and it gets itchy.” So if this is your “allergic reaction” you’re talking about, you can relax a little. Bees sting with venom. A bit of swelling, pain and itchiness is a normal skin reaction to the toxin. Applying raw honey and ice will ease the sting.
Sources:
Really enjoying all your posts! I’ve been there with beehives and neighbors being concerned. 3 years ago I got the wild idea to have a hive even though I’d had absolutely no experience keeping bees. A quick trip to the apiary store and a call to order my bees and there I was holding a buzzing box of bees with no earthly idea what I was doing lol.
No gear, no smoke, I took out the queens cage and placed her in the hive and the opened box of bees on top. They didn’t seem the least bit interested in me. For over a year I’d open their hive every few days to take a peek and to make sure they didn’t seal the top with propolis. In all that time I’d never used a veil or gloves or smoke and I’d never been stung. We had a good thing going and not he rare occasion if you listen you’ll hear when they’re getting agitated they’d start to have a different hum and I’d close their hive back up and leave them be for awhile. One morning I go out to feed them and decide to take a look inside, take off the inner cover and blam! I immediately get whacked right in the eyebrow by one ticked off bee. The hive really got excited then and I got out of there fast! Then a couple minutes later I start getting a stomach ache, another minute or so and I start having trouble breathing. Uh oh…I’m allergic! Some antihistamines and sitting wondering if I should go to the hospital but luckily I started feeling better. It sucked but I sold my hive, one bee sting was dangerous but what if I’d been stung 2 or more times? Then I thought why was I so worried about 1 sting in nearly 2 years of playing around with a hive? Just imagine, I’d been around nearly 500,000+ different bees in the time I owned my hive and out of all those there was only one nut that decided they were having a bad day and they took it out on me. If I had been wearing protective gear I’d still have my hive and wouldn’t know I was even allergic. Seeing my foolishness I now have an order of bees and will have a new hive starting in April!
So for those neighbors worrying about being stung just watch where you step if your barefoot out in the grass and you’ll be fine. Bees are amazing little creatures. Thanks for this blog, you inspired me to try something I loved once again.
Hi Mike,
Wow! Thanks for sharing that. If you’re in Australia, you should be able to get your local GP do an allergy test for you. If it confirms you are still allergic, she should be able to prescribe you an epi-pen which is subsidised under Pharmaceutical benefits. I’m not allergic nor is my family, but for the very reasons you describe, I keep an adult and child epi-pen in my emergency kit, along with antihistamines. You don’t need a prescription to purchase from the chemist, but they cost about $100 each. Worth it though!
Research shows that frequent stings help build a resistance to the venom, whereas intermittent hits like the one you experienced are more likely to trigger an allergic response. Checkout “A Sting a Day Keeps the Allergy Away” from New Scientist. Admittedly, copping regular stings to prevent allergy is a bit of a hard sell to the wider public!
Are you a member of your local beekeeping club? My local WAAS has been a great source of specialised, local knowledge for me. Plus, there’s usually someone who has a healthy nucleus for sale or share.
And yep, get yourself protected with the best suit & gloves you can afford. Bee suits are in no way attractive, (I like to pretend I’m an astronaut while wearing mine) but at the very least, keep the bees from your nostrils!
Let me know how you go? Good Luck Mike!
Cheers
Melissa
Where are you getting your numbers? I used you as a reference, however, I would like some data to back up your figures.
Hi Dan,
At the bottom of that post I linked to three different articles, (they have red font) the links still work, hope that helps!
But of course you know the saying, “Lies, damn lies, and statistics!” So while the odds are good you won’t die of a beesting, I wouldn’t tempt fate. My own bee buddy needed a course of immunotherapy after developing anaphylaxis after getting just one sting, years after she started beekeeping. I still suit up every inspection and take precautions.
Cheers
Melissa
wow!
Reading the facts, I’m reading this cause my dad just expierenced the anafalicticx shock( I know I spelt that wrong I bet .) I saw him in a state I wish I didn’t. we didn’t know what was going on, we called 911, and we gave him cpr and my dad was turning all puffy and sure as hell was fighting to live, trying to talk and was trying to maintain his eyes on me! His heart stoped for like three minutes and then the paramedics came, he’s all good now. But holy shit… now I’m reading stuff about bees cause I can’t seem to relax. I hope this doesn’t happen again.
Sorry to hear about your Dad, it is frightening to witness someone experience anaphylaxis!
My bee buddy developed a severe allergic reaction with just a single sting after a few years of beekeeping.
She received a course of immunotherapy for about 9 months that, although uncomfortable, got her back to normal, bee stings are no longer an issue for her. She also carries an EpiPen everywhere just in case. In Australia that treatment and Epi-en are heavily subsidized by our government Medicare, so I understand the cost to her was minimal.
I can buy an EpiPen over the counter here without a script, which costs about $100. If you have a script it’s much cheaper! It lives in my beekeeping kit, just in case.
I’m not sure what the availability or cost would be in the US, but would heartedly recommend your Dad get one too. It could save his life next time!