However, t he reality is that bee stings are only mildly acidic, and wasp stings are more or less neutral, and both are injected into the skin not onto the skin. What does this mean if we want to answer the question about using baking soda for bee stings, and vinegar for wasp stings as mentioned above? There is a fair amount of advice around the web supporting the above remedies. Wasp venom is close to neutral – pH 6.8 – so it is not so alkali as many people may think! To give you some idea of the pH values of some well known substances, here’s a list with a comparison of where bee and wasp venom sit within the pH scale: AcidicĪs can be seen from the table above, bee sting venom has a pH between 4.5 and 5.5 (1) – so it is acidic, although not highly acidic (and only slightly more acidic than milk and human saliva). liquid drain cleaner), with pH 7 being neutral. battery acid) to 14 (highly alkaline – e.g. The scale goes from 0 (highly acidic – e.g. Let's investigate! What is the pH of bee sting and wasp sting venom?Īcidity / alkalinity is measured and referred to by what is known as the pH scale (pH stands for ‘power of Hydrogen). Many are familiar with the old adage: ‘bee stings are acidic so treat them with baking soda (an alkali), but wasp stings are alkali so treat them with vinegar (an acid)'.īut can baking soda really neutralize a bee sting, and will splashing vinegar on a wasp sting actually help? The motive for asking this question is often related to treating a bee or wasp sting. Is A Bee Sting Acidic Or Alkaline, And What About Wasp Stings?
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