Air from beehives comforts patients in Turkey
FILE PHOTO: Hives owned by beekeeper Huseyin Ceylan, who runs a facility for therapy using air from beehives to aid people recover from their ailments, are seen by a olive tree, in Karaburun, located in Turkey's Aegean coastal province of Izmir, Turkey, May 22, 2025. REUTERS/Umit Bektas/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Beekeeper Huseyin Ceylan, who runs a facility for therapy using air from beehives to aid people recover from their ailments poses in Karaburun, located in Turkey's Aegean coastal province of Izmir, Turkey, May 22, 2025. REUTERS/Umit Bektas/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Beekeeper Huseyin Ceylan, who runs a facility for therapy using air from beehives to aid people recover from their ailments checks his hives in Karaburun, located in Turkey's Aegean coastal province of Izmir, Turkey, May 22, 2025. REUTERS/Umit Bektas/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Senay Ilhan and Ulku Ozman breath in air from beehives through ventilators in hopes of recovering from ailments at a facility owned by beekeeper Huseyin Ceylan in Karaburun, located in Turkey's Aegean coastal province of Izmir, Turkey, May 22, 2025. REUTERS/Umit Bektas/File Photo
KARABURUN, Turkey - At his farm tucked away in an idyllic valley near the Aegean Sea, beekeeper Huseyin Ceylan helps people recover from ailments by having them inhale air from hives.
Ceylan says people come regularly in late spring to Karaburun, in Turkey's Aegean coastal province of Izmir, mainly to supplement conventional treatment with traditional "apitherapy," a term derived from the Greek for bees.
Guests tend to stay several days in cabins in lush greenery, inhaling air from beehives for up to three hours a day, which Ceylan says helps with issues from allergies to migraines.
The government does not officially recognise the therapy though it is practiced by many other beekeepers round Turkey as well as in other countries including Germany and Russia.
Ceylan, who comes from a family of beekeepers and studied agriculture, started his bee farm in Karaburun 30 years ago. He has lobbied for years for the sector to be accepted, conducting research and presenting findings to officials.
"We are not against what we call Western medicine. After all, it is also very important too," he said, adding that his method goes hand-in-hand with conventional treatment.
"I have been doing this for fifteen years, trying to bring this into medicine."
CHILDHOOD NOSTALGIA
Ulku Ozman, 69, decided to try the therapy method after a friend suggested it when several surgeries and frequent use of medicines weakened her immune system.
In her nearly week-long visit, Ozman and others enter a cabin where ventilators connected to beehives deliver air.
Each session lasts 45 minutes, with participants moving every 15 minutes to breathe from three different beehives, each with a different smell. Guests pay around 5,000 lira ($128) per day for the treatment plus accommodation and food.
Seated across from the beehives with ventilators on their faces, the guests take deep breaths.
Senay Ilham, 68, has breast cancer that metastasized to her spine but is in remission after receiving conventional treatment.
"This smell seems familiar. It's like it is (coming) from my childhood," she said, recalling being stung by bees while playing outside as children with beekeepers working nearby.
"(The beehive air) always brings me a breeze from these things. It relaxes me both psychologically and physically." REUTERS
Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Straits Times
12 hours ago
- Straits Times
Hunger and disease spreading in war-torn Sudan, WHO says
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Sudanese medics wearing face masks prepare the infusion for patients suffering from cholera at a United Nations-Run makeshift clinic, in Tawila north Darfur, Sudan, August 5, 2025. REUTERS/Mohammed Jamal LONDON - Hunger and disease are spreading in war-torn Sudan, with famine already present in several areas, 25 million people acutely food insecure and nearly 100,000 cholera cases recorded since last July, the World Health Organisation said on Friday. Sudan's conflict between the army and rival Rapid Support Forces has displaced millions and split the country into rival zones of control, with the RSF still deeply embedded in western Sudan, and funding cuts are hampering humanitarian aid. "Relentless violence has pushed Sudan's health system to the edge, adding to a crisis marked by hunger, illness and despair," WHO Senior Emergency Officer Ilham Nour said in a statement. "Exacerbating the disease burden is hunger," she said, adding that about 770,000 children under 5 years old are expected to suffer from severe acute malnutrition this year. Cholera has also hit a camp for Darfur refugees in neighbouring eastern Chad, the United Nations refugee agency said on Friday. An outbreak in the Dougui refugee settlement has so far resulted in 264 cases and 12 deaths, said Patrice Ahouansou, UNHCR's situation coordinator in the region, leading the agency to suspend the re-location of refugees from the border with Sudan to prevent new cases. "Without urgent action, including enhancing access to medical treatment, to clean water, to sanitation, to hygiene, and most important, relocation from the border, many more lives are on the line," Ahouansou told a briefing in Geneva. REUTERS
Straits Times
a day ago
- Straits Times
Light aircraft crashes in Kenya's capital killing six people
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Debris is scattered on the ground at the scene where a Cessna plane operated by AMREF Flying Doctors crashed into buildings in the Githurai suburb of northeastern Nairobi, Kenya, August 7, 2025. The aircraft, carrying four passengers, was en route to Hargeisa, the capital of Somalia's breakaway territory of Somaliland. REUTERS/Monicah Mwangi NAIROBI - A small plane carrying medical staff crashed in a densely-populated neighbourhood in Kenya's capital on Thursday afternoon, killing six people, local authorities said. The Cessna plane, run by AMREF Flying Doctors, came down as it was flying to Hargeisa, the capital of Somalia's breakaway territory of Somaliland, the charity said in a statement. Kiambu County Commissioner Henry Wafula said the four people on board and two people on the ground were killed. The Kenya Civil Aviation Authority said the plane took off from Wilson Airport at 02:14 PM (1114 GMT) and lost contact with air traffic control three minutes later. "We are deeply saddened by this tragic incident involving an air ambulance mission," KCAA said in a statement. One witness, who asked not to be named, told Reuters she heard a loud sound, then saw a fireball and debris scattered over the neighbourhood. Unverified videos shared on social media showed firefighters trying to douse burning debris inside what appeared to be a residential compound. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Singapore Liquor licences for F&B, nightlife venues extended to 4am in Boat Quay, Clarke Quay Singapore Chikungunya cases in Singapore double; authorities monitoring situation closely Singapore Student found with vape taken to hospital after behaving aggressively in school; HSA investigating Asia Cambodia, Thailand agree on Asean observers monitoring truce, but fundamental differences remain Asia Trump ratchets up tariff pressure on India, sparking despair among exporters and growth fears Singapore CDC and SG60 vouchers listed on e-commerce platforms will be taken down: CDCs Asia Australia's purchase of Japanese frigates signals a new era for Indo-Pacific security Singapore Some ageing condos in Singapore struggle with failing infrastructure, inadequate sinking funds Crashes involving light aircraft are relatively common in eastern Africa. In April last year, Kenya's military chief was among 10 people killed when their military helicopter crashed shortly after take-off. REUTERS
Straits Times
a day ago
- Straits Times
Americans eating (slightly) less ultra-processed food
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox Americans on average get 55 per cent of their total calories from ultra-processed foods, data showed on Aug 7. WASHINGTON - Americans still get most of their calories from ultra-processed foods, but consumption is trending down among both adults and children, official data showed on Aug 7. The survey results from the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) come as Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr promotes diet reform, and suggest that awareness of the risks around burgers and sodas may already have been taking hold before he came to office. Between August 2021 and August 2023, the mean percentage of total calories consumed from ultra-processed foods (UPFs) among those aged one year and older was 55 per cent. That still places the United States at or near the top of the table globally, alongside countries like the United Kingdom and Canada. Among Western nations, Italy consistently records lower UPF consumption – less than 20 per cent, according to a paper in 2024 in Public Health Nutrition that credited the Mediterranean diet. Breaking down the new US results by age, the percentage of energy consumed from UPFs was 61.9 per cent for youths aged one to 18, and 53 per cent for adults – a decline from 65.6 per cent and 56 per cent respectively during the last survey period, 2017–18. First Lady Michelle Obama spearheaded a campaign in the 2010s to encourage healthier eating and more exercise, while a landmark 2019 study in Cell Metabolism found people ate more calories when exposed to ultra-processed foods. Ultra-processed foods tend to be 'hyperpalatable, energy-dense, low in dietary fibre, and contain little or no whole foods, while having high amounts of salt, sweeteners, and unhealthy fat,' according to the CDC. They have been linked with ill health effects including higher risk of cardiovascular disease and all-cause mortality. Sandwiches, including burgers, topped the list of UPFs for both US youth and adults, followed by sweet bakery products such as donuts. Sweetened beverages were high up on both lists. Since taking office, Mr Kennedy has launched a pressure campaign on industry to remove synthetic food dyes, which appears to be paying dividends, with cereal maker Kellogg's one of the latest brands to sign on. A dozen states, meanwhile, have moved to restrict access of people with Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programme benefits – known colloquially as food stamps – to junk food at grocery stores. AFP
