May 31, 2012 – Insects And Public Health
QUESTION:
As pest professionals we likely want to feel we are offering a legitimate and valuable service other than just killing bugs because they are icky and annoying. This pertains in particular to vector control and the pathogens arthropod pests are known to transmit to people. Do you know of any great source that will list some of these various pathogens? I know I can find some here and there, but does the CDC, for example, have this information compiled all together? I know pest control is recommended for most homes and buildings to control potential vectors such as roaches, ants, and other insects, and we fight with the occupants over the subject of sanitation and its role in the presence of the pests. So, do pests really make people sick? Also, I notice that a lot of outdoor flying pests will run to and rest on the lower parts of buildings. Is it better to spray a barrier treatment higher up as to kill less of these? Is a barrier treatment actually helpful in deterring pests (including ants) from crawling up the building?
ANSWER:
The bottom line for one of your questions is that ABSOLUTELY arthropod and rodent pests will make people sick, and coincidentally we posted a news article just today on PestWeb's "Pests In The News" that highlights a new and growing epidemic with Chagas Disease, a terrible disease vectored by kissing bugs and so common in Latin America that at any one time up to 8 MILLION humans are infected with the disease, with many tens of thousands of them dying annually. Sadly, I would bet that almost no one in the U.S. is even aware of the disease outside of those in pest management. This is all about to change though, with the new publicity this disease is now going to receive, as new evidence tells us that there may be as many as 300,000 people in the U.S. are now infected, many of them immigrants who may have come into the U.S. already infected, but serving as the reservoirs for the pathogen to infect other people.
View past Ask Mr. Pest Control questions.
As pest professionals we likely want to feel we are offering a legitimate and valuable service other than just killing bugs because they are icky and annoying. This pertains in particular to vector control and the pathogens arthropod pests are known to transmit to people. Do you know of any great source that will list some of these various pathogens? I know I can find some here and there, but does the CDC, for example, have this information compiled all together? I know pest control is recommended for most homes and buildings to control potential vectors such as roaches, ants, and other insects, and we fight with the occupants over the subject of sanitation and its role in the presence of the pests. So, do pests really make people sick? Also, I notice that a lot of outdoor flying pests will run to and rest on the lower parts of buildings. Is it better to spray a barrier treatment higher up as to kill less of these? Is a barrier treatment actually helpful in deterring pests (including ants) from crawling up the building?
ANSWER:
The bottom line for one of your questions is that ABSOLUTELY arthropod and rodent pests will make people sick, and coincidentally we posted a news article just today on PestWeb's "Pests In The News" that highlights a new and growing epidemic with Chagas Disease, a terrible disease vectored by kissing bugs and so common in Latin America that at any one time up to 8 MILLION humans are infected with the disease, with many tens of thousands of them dying annually. Sadly, I would bet that almost no one in the U.S. is even aware of the disease outside of those in pest management. This is all about to change though, with the new publicity this disease is now going to receive, as new evidence tells us that there may be as many as 300,000 people in the U.S. are now infected, many of them immigrants who may have come into the U.S. already infected, but serving as the reservoirs for the pathogen to infect other people.
The list of insect and arachnid (ticks, mites, etc.) borne pathogens is virtually endless, and new ones are discovered all the time - witness the relatively recent knowledge of Hantavirus, Lyme Disease, West Nile Virus. Entire books are dedicated to the topic, such as one of my old textbooks in Entomology just called "Medical Entomology". However, the Internet is our new Encyclopedia, and with just a few key words you can find what you are looking for. I "Googled" "insect borne disease list" and found nearly 2 million possible hits, including the Centers for Disease Control. This brilliant website not only lists all of the diseases, but also offers statistics on where they are occurring, vaccinations recommended for travel, etc., along with fact sheets on most of them.
The American Mosquito Control Association is also going to offer the same kinds of thorough lists of pathogens vectored by insect pests. There are books and websites, such as the Avitrol and Bird Barrier websites, that list all of the diseases associated with birds. Similarly books and websites list all of the rodent-borne diseases. So yes, with just a short search you will easily find compilations of the information you want.
With respect to treating outdoors, it sounds like you prefer to avoid killing many of those flying insects that occur sitting on structures but which are really not pests. Thank you for that attitude, and it is one I strongly encourage. We need to spend just a little more time properly identifying the bugs that occur in homes and yards and avoid spraying insecticides when those bugs do not need to be killed. A landscape is much better off with many insects and spiders living in it than without any of them. Barrier treatments around the base of the structure can be effective in intercepting crawling insects, so the use of contact insecticides is a very legitimate use of the products. Perhaps it is unfortunate that some beneficial insects are also going to be affected by these applications, but it may be unavoidable. It is hard to pick and choose which critters come crawling along the base of the foundation at night, and in order to keep out the earwigs and ants and crickets there may be some spiders and soldier beetles killed as well.
View past Ask Mr. Pest Control questions.
