Disgusting up close video shows why bee stings hurt 

A mosquito bite? It itches but it passes. A wasp sting. Painful. But a bee sting?

For those who have had the unfortunate experience, they will know how much it hurts.

And now a close-up video showing exactly why it hurts so bad has gone viral.

So, here’s what happens…

When bees sting, they release a chemical called melittin into their victim. Because a bee’s stinger is actually barbed like a serrated sword, when it penetrates the victim’s skin, it is detached from the bee and stays there

A clip shared on Twitter shows how a bee sting works, with many viewers saying it’s much more “complex” than they ever guessed.

When bees sting, they release a chemical called melittin into their victim. This poison immediately activates pain receptors, causing a burning sensation.

Because the stinger is barbed like a serrated sword, the bee rips its abdomen when it flies away, leaving the stinger in place. The bee dies soon after.

The video’s voiceover says, “If the bee rips her stinger from your flesh, the muscles keep digging and pumping long after she’s gone.”

The longer the stinger remains in the skin, the more venom is released, allowing the toxic attack to continue for up to a minute.

The clip then shows what the stinger looks like up close, pumping fluid into the victim’s body.

The voiceover says, “It’s in three parts – a stabilizing bar in the middle and two barbed digging knives.”

As the blades move back and forth, it pumps into the poison sphere and sprays it deeper into the wound, until the poison sac is completely empty.

The clip shows what the stinger looks like up close, as fluid can be seen pumping into the human’s body from the end

To show what the tip of the stinger looks like as it moves back and forth, the voiceover says, “It’s in three parts – a stabilizing bar in the middle and two barbed digging blades.”

While bee stings are a risk, especially in the summer, home treatment is usually all that is needed to relieve the pain.

Bee stings can cause different reactions depending on who got stung and where – ranging from temporary pain and discomfort to a severe allergic reaction.

Having one type of reaction does not mean that you will always have the same reaction every time you are stung or that the next reaction will necessarily be more severe.

Usually, the symptoms of a bee sting are minor and include:

• Immediate, sharp burning pain at the site of the sting
• A red border on the puncture area
• Slight swelling around the puncture area

In most cases, the swelling and pain subside within a few hours.

As long as you’re not allergic to bee venom, your immune system will respond to the sting by sending fluids there to flush out the melittin.

As the blades move back and forth, it pumps into the venom ball and injects venom into the wound until the venom sac in the bee’s tail is empty

The pain can be eased with a cold compress or an antihistamine.

Twitter users were amazed at the complexity of the bee sting.

One person commented, “God’s design is incredible to me.”

As another said, ‘So much more complex than I guessed! Thanks for sharing!’

While a third said: ‘How fascinating! I keep wondering how our engineer of life made all this possible.’

Another wrote: ‘Bioengineering at its best!… also explains why it hurts!’