Hebo Honey Bee complications...

[GaijinGirl]

Was wondering if anyone else ever had this problem. I live in NYC, and finally found, and tasted Hebo two days ago. Not bad, though pricey. An enjoyable experience.

What was perhaps not surprising in hindsight: I've had a slight allergic reaction to the bees. Two days later, and my lips are still puffy. (I don't think there's any need to see a doctor - breathing is just fine) BUT - do they not remove the venom sacs in Hebo? ARE there venom sacs in baby honeybees?

It's a shame - the Hebo experience itself was rather fun...!

--Janet (GG)

[torakris]

Janet,

I am sorry to hear about this. I have tried searching a bit on the Japanese web and came up with a lot about bee allergies but none specifically dealing with ingesting them...

I posibly suffer from bee allergies as well. I have only been stung once (at the age of 15) but I suffered from severe sweeling that actually took days to heal and I was warned the second time could be much worse.

Honestly I probably would have eaten hebo if they were offered to me without ever giving it a thought...

I hope someone can find more than I did.

[prasantrin]

Was wondering if anyone else ever had this problem.  I live in NYC, and finally found, and tasted Hebo two days ago.  Not bad, though pricey.  An enjoyable experience.

What was perhaps not surprising in hindsight: I've had a slight allergic reaction to the bees.  Two days later, and my lips are still puffy.  (I don't think there's any need to see a doctor - breathing is just fine)  BUT - do they not remove the venom sacs in Hebo?  ARE there venom sacs in baby honeybees?

It's a shame - the Hebo experience itself was rather fun...!

--Janet (GG)

←

I've not tried Hebo, but I needed to say...even if your breathing is fine you need to go to the doctor. Puffy lips are not a good thing.

Edited June 5, 2005 by prasantrin (log)

[Hiroyuki]

I've never heard of anyone allergic to hebo (hebo means bee larvae, right?), although my father comes from Nagano, where people love to eat them.

I agree with prasantrin. We are not doctors. I think you should see a doctor.

[GaijinGirl]

I appreciate the concern - but I think I will be fine. (Day three, and it's fading.)

But I had been wondering if such a reaction had been known to happen in Japan (where people are much more likely to be eating Hebo.)

Mind you, I've never been diagnosed as being particularly allergic to bees.

So--Torakris, I *definitely* would stay away from Hebo, given your childhood history!

And now I'm hesitant to try out Inago (although there's no venom there...!)

[helenjp]

You might want to get the possibility of allergy checked out - it's serious. My sister reacted badly to a bee sting, and by the time my mother got her to the doctor, her heart stopped beating - luckily she responded to a stimulant injection, but she was also warned that a second reaction would be worse.

[prasantrin]

I asked a friend, and she said that people have had allergic reactions to hebo, though she has never heard of anyone dying from eating hebo. However, I also asked her if it was an allergic reaction to the bee larvae, or from possible preservatives used, and she said she didn't know (if the reaction was to preservatives or if preservatives are used with hebo).

Regarding the doctor visit, I know we're probably all sounding like nags, but if you ever have an allergic reaction resulting in puffy lips, you're just one more reaction away from your throat closing. If you don't already have an epi pen, it's time to get one. In this case, if it's the actual bee larvae you're allergic to, you'll need to be careful of bees. But if it's the preservatives, then you'll have to be very very careful--you will never know what they might be in next.

[GaijinGirl]

Prasantrin,

I do appreciate the concern, and will look into it - and (of course) I'll definitely be avoiding Hebo from now on. And bees in general.

I tend to think it was the bee larva and not the preservatives, because I imagine that whatever preservatives were used I've already had somewhere before.

All that said - the reaction is finally subsided, and I'm glad to have tried it (if not the experience itself.) Thanks.

--Janet (GG)

[MomOfLittleFoodies]

All that said - the reaction is finally subsided, and I'm glad to have tried it (if not the experience itself.)  Thanks.

--Janet (GG)

←

Should you have swelling like that again, it's still best to seek medical treatment. The prednisone a doctor would give you works much faster to reduce swelling than antihistamines do.

[Pan]

Prednisone can cause nasty side effects itself. I never plan on taking any ever again.

[dornachu]

Now I'm really interested in trying, however a bit scared from it. I'm not allergic to bee sting, but I'm not sure about Hebo, anyone has a pic? Is it widely avail in Jap supermarkets?

[Hiroyuki]

Yeah, we absolutely need a picture, just to make sure that we are talking about the same thing.

Here's one:

http://www1.inacatv.ne.jp/~hatitori/resipi2.html

[dornachu]

Hmmm... interesting. Its a bit scary, I think it'l take me a while to be have the courage to try it, i thought it was in honey form... so wrong!!

Thanks Hiroyuki!