Why is your second bee sting more dangerous than your first?

For most people a second sting is not more dangerous than the first. In fact, as most beekeepers will testify, the more stings you have over a period of time, the less you react to them.

However, a very few people build up a hypersensitivity to the venom, much in the same way as the body builds up antibodies to a disease bacteria or virus after the first infection, and the next time they are stung they do have a stronger reaction to the venom.

In most cases, this can be treated, and there has been a lot of success by doctors treating people with very tiny, but gradually increasing, amounts of bee venom for the body to become more used to it.