Mosquitoes are more than a nuisance.
They’re potential health hazards as Aedes mosquitoes are vectors for diseases and infections such as Zika, chikungunya and dengue fever.
As you’ve probably seen from the outreach posters and banners about dengue clusters around your neighbourhood, dengue is a pertinent and endemic issue in Singapore.
Most people might be familiar with the effects of dengue fever, but Zika might be a lesser-known disease here. Although it is rare, serious neurological complications and foetal abnormalities have been associated with Zika virus infection.
The virus can be passed from a pregnant woman to her foetus, which can result in certain birth defects in the baby, including microcephaly (when a baby’s head is much smaller than expected).
If you’ve been feeling the itch of mosquito bites at home, and fear contracting dengue fever or Zika, here are four things at home that could be attracting the pests.
1. Stagnant water
A nice puddle or bucket of stagnant water is like an advertisement for mozzies saying: “Perfect place to have kids!”
All a female mosquito needs is a drop of water the size of a 20-cent coin to lay up to 100 eggs.
Some common receptacles that could be collecting water and serving as ideal mozzie breeding spots are:
- Pails and containers
- Flowerpot plates and trays
- Vases
- Roof gutters and drains
- Trash bins outside landed houses
- Canvas or plastic sheets
To prevent mosquito breeding, check for areas with stagnant water and practise the "B-L-O-C-K" steps.
- Break up hardened soil.
- Lift and empty flowerpot plates.
- Overturn pails and wipe their rims.
- Change water in vases.
- Keep roof gutters clear and place BTI insecticide inside.
2. Certain plants
You might be enjoying the lovely smell of your flowers at home, but you aren’t the only one drawn towards them.
Flowering plants that contain nectar and honeydew are a lure for male mozzies which feed on them.
Although only female mozzies bite humans and not males, having this food source for the latter could aid in the mozzies’ population growth.
Homeowners with ponds or water features, take note — plants such as water lilies, water hyacinths and water lettuce commonly found in ponds can attract the insects as well, as mozzies can also lay their eggs in the axils of plants.
3. Dark corners
Studies have shown that mozzies are drawn to dark hues, and this includes dark-coloured clothes and even dark paint in your homes.
Dark corners indicate a shady area where mozzies can rest and avoid desiccating from the heat.
So if the walls of your home are painted in dark colours, that could be one reason for the mozzies.
To ward off these pesky pests, spray insecticide in the dark corners of your house.
4. You
Yes, you.
And it’s not just about the blood that the mosquito is so keen to suck from you.
According to Science.org, your body odour, the carbon dioxide you exhale, and your own body heat set off alarm bells in a mosquito, alerting it to your presence.
Mosquitoes have olfactory neurons on their antennae, which allow them to zero in on a human target.
In fact, the insects are capable of smelling your body odour from up to 60m away.
Those with more bacteria on their skin are also more likely to attract the flying pests.
Nasty.
What to do?
One way is to practise the B-L-O-C-K steps to prevent mosquito breeding, and the S-A-W steps to ward off mozzies.
Another would be to download the myENV app on your phones.
The app contains a comprehensive suite of information and services covering dengue hot spots, weather, air quality, water levels in PUB’s network of drains and canals during rainfall events, alerts on flash floods, water service disruptions, hawker centres, food safety, and more.
You can also receive real-time alerts on dengue and Zika clusters and high Aedes mosquito populations.
The myENV app is available on Apple App Store and Google Play store.
This is a sponsored article by NEA.
Top photo by Unsplash and NEA Stop Dengue Now / FB