Some Syrians are turning to bees for alternative medicine

STORY: Instead of prescribing pharmaceuticals,

this doctor is stinging his patients with bees

Location: Damascus, Syria

For centuries, apitherapy has been used

as a natural remedy for a variety of cases

Issam Odah started his clinic with

two bee hives and now, he owns 200

(Issam Odah, Expert in apitherapy)

"With the repetitive cured cases, we are witnessing a great turnout, which made us expand the clinic and move to another location that responds to the needs of people."

A session with Odah includes eight to

ten stings and costs 10,000 Syrian Liras

which is considered cheap but still profitable

(Khadijah Mousilli, Patient and nutrition expert)

"The high cost of current medical treatment may be a reason, it may be people's awareness that increased because of social media. People now hear more about those who are treated with natural means, did not use chemicals and benefited. People are sharing their experiences. For example, a woman who benefited would tell her sister, 'I didn't take any medication, any cortisone, I just took a bee sting, I took propolis drops in my mouth and found myself better in the morning, I didn't have to take a painkiller or an allergy medication before I go to sleep.' There's more awareness among people about all natural treatments."