DT
PT
Subscribe To Print Edition About The Tribune Code Of Ethics Download App Advertise with us Classifieds
search-icon-img
search-icon-img
Advertisement

Air from beehives comforts patients in Turkey

This farm is tucked away in an idyllic valley near the Aegean Sea
  • fb
  • twitter
  • whatsapp
  • whatsapp
featured-img featured-img
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, Turkey. REUTERS
Advertisement

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.

Advertisement

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.

Advertisement

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.

Advertisement

“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.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
tlbr_img1 Classifieds tlbr_img2 Videos tlbr_img3 Premium tlbr_img4 E-Paper tlbr_img5 Shorts