• Question: can wasp's kill you?

    Asked by anastasiaabalo to Paula, Laura, Katy, Hermine on 16 Jun 2010 in Categories: .
    • Photo: Paula Salgado

      Paula Salgado answered on 14 Jun 2010:

      Hi Anastasia

      Not exactly my area of expertise, but as far as I know, it depends if your allergic or not. Even if you are allergic, it depends how serious your allergic reaction is – it can range from just some itchiness to a serious reaction, that if not treated promptly could kill you.

    • Photo: Katy Mee

      Katy Mee answered on 15 Jun 2010:

      I would imagine they could if there was a large swarm of them and they stung you enough times. I would think it’s pretty uncommon though – my advice is just ignore them……

      Just read your comment – probably not the best thing to tell someone who is scared of wasps! But anyway, it’s very unlikely – certainly one wasp sting is very unlikely to kill you, even if you are allergic and it’s very unusual to come into contact with a swarm of wasps. You’d have to disturb a nest but unless you’re digging around for one it’s highly unlikely you’d do it by accident!!

    • Photo: Hermine Schnetler

      Hermine Schnetler answered on 15 Jun 2010:

      Yes. There sting contains venom, which is not normally enough from one wasp to kill a person. You should note you get different kinds of wasps but for the most common one there is very little venom produced through the sting. If your allergic this venom can cause anaphalitic shock whch could kill you. If you are stung in the mouth or neck you could find your mucus glands swell and maybe enough to shut off your breathing and suffocate yourself. For a standard sting to kill you it would need to be repeated a lot and is unlikely to happen.

    • Photo: Laura Dixon

      Laura Dixon answered on 16 Jun 2010:

      Yes, if you’re badly allergic to the sting or if there’s a swarm of wasps stinging you. I’m mildly allergic to wasp stings and end up with a pretty good fever after being stung 😛

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