Mosquito Season Returns: Tips and Best Practices for Prevention

In this animal, it is only the fuss that stings. She actually needs the blood of other animals, including humans, to obtain the nutrients essential to the development of her eggs.
Mosquitoes are very ancient insects, since they have been populating the earth from the Jurassic, 170 million years ago. They therefore rubbed shoulders with the dinosaurs (Poke Jurassic Park), however the species then were three larger than those current. We let you imagine the dart! (At the same time, it was necessary to pierce the leather of the T-Rex…).

Today, mosquitoes are still present and populate the whole planet, with the exception of Antarctica and Iceland. So you know what you have to do if you can no longer endure this little animal and its bites.

If we no longer want to rub shoulders with them, another solution would be to live in a perpetual winter. Indeed, temperatures of less than 10 degrees kill females, who therefore seek to spend the winter warm, for example by sheltering in caves.
As for the larvae, they also have their tips. They are stuck in ice water, or sheltered in puddles. The larvae then enter into diapause. It is a dormancy that freezes their development.

The life cycle of females and larvae will resume in fine weather. And the two will be hungry, very hungry … So they will bite and suck the blood. All to shelters, especially since, most of the time, these bites are certainly harmless, but sometimes they can transmit diseases to us …

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Sometimes serious vectors of diseases …

Most of the time, mosquito bites cause only redness and itching. However, sometimes they can do much worse and infect us with diseases that can be serious.

Malaria, dengue, chikungunya, zika virus disease, yellow fever, Japanese encephalitis, Western Nile fever … So many sometimes severe infections for humans. They are called vector diseases because they are transmitted by a vector, here the mosquito.
Moreover, it should be noted that mosquitoes ultimately represent the most dangerous animal for humans. They are thus responsible for 725,000 to 1 million dead per year worldwide.

The tiger mosquito, Aedes Albopictusvehicle of viruses responsible for chikungunya, dengue and zika.
Dengue is mainly present in tropical and subtropical regions, but the disease is also quickly spreading in other regions of the globe, especially in Europe and mainland France, although the cases are still quite rare.

Chikungunya is permanently present in Africa, Asia and India. The disease has also spread to Reunion Island and some cases are getting stronger in mainland France.
As for Zika, it is still little present in mainland France.

The three diseases, although different, often cause fever, fatigue, aches that are sometimes very painful and disabling, especially in the case of chikungunya. Skin or nausea rashes may also appear.

Most of the time, symptoms disappear after a good week, but sometimes serious cases can develop.
In the case of Zika, links have been established between infection and nervous system malformations in the fetus.
Regarding malaria, he was responsible for more than 600,000 deaths worldwide in 2022 and parasites are becoming more and more resistant to treatments.

All these diseases and their consequences indicate that it is important to take measures in order to limit the spread of mosquitoes.

>> Read also: Why do mosquitoes bite more at dusk?

Mosquitoes: good practices to protect themselves from it

© Shutterstock/Bearfotos

There are many anti-mosquito protections whose efficiency varies.
Credits: Shutterstock/Bearfotos

For our well-being and our health, it is important to reduce the spread of mosquitoes when arriving at sunny days.
Several tips and good practices can be implemented, in particular with regard to the tiger mosquito.

First of all, it is important to remove the larval lodges inside and around houses. Understand by that, to remove all the stagnant water areas around your home and at home (when possible, we are not talking about going to dry all the ponds). Indeed, mosquito larvae develop in these stagnant waters.
Regularly empty the saucers and other underflower pots in your gardens, everything that is watering, bowls, tires … in short, any container that can contain water. If it is not possible to return or move them, you can also cover them with an airtight tarpaulin.

Several outdoor mosquito traps are also available for sale. Some use fragrant attractive, to imitate the smell of human skin, others use carbon dioxide to imitate human breathing.
Their efficiency is relative, but better than the interior traps, since they will trap the mosquitoes directly in their habitat.

Then, to protect yourself from the bites, you can adopt different practices. Already, avoid putting too much skin in the open air (for example, walking in swimwear). It is better to wear long and ready -made clothes of the body, which will offer good protection. Beware of the color of these clothes! Mosquitoes are attracted to dark colors, such as black or dark blue. So prefer clothes to light colors.

You can also use repellents with active ingredients, such as permethrin or icaridine. Do not hesitate to consult a health professional to find out.
The fans are also effective because mosquitoes do not like too large air trips.

Finally, you can equip your mosquito net windows which will stop a good number of species, including the famous tiger and will allow you to appreciate your summer nights more serenely …

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