What Indoor Pests May Make You Sick?

All indoor pests are a nuisance. But some pests represent a genuine danger to you and your family. Many types of pests carry or contribute to illness, which means that when they invade, they could cause harm to you and your family.

Identifying and Eliminating Disease Carrying Pests

Prevention is important, because many of the most common pests carry some type of disease, or can contribute in some way to making you sick. Some of these pests include:

• Cockroaches – Roaches can carry salmonella, and other bacteria that can make you sick. They also have oils and “roach dust” that can contribute to allergies and asthma.
• Rodents (Rats and Mice) – Both rats and mice carry bacteria and can cause allergens like cockroaches. But these pests can also carry Hantavirus, Plague, Lymphocytic Choriomeningitis, and many other very dangerous viruses. As such, rodents may be some of the most dangerous of pests.
• Mosquitos – Mosquitos have killed more humans than any other living being, including other humans. They are also best known for their ability to carry disease. Although issues like Zika, Malaria, and other deadly diseases are rare in the US, they may still carry West Nile Virus, Western Equine Encephalitis, and several other minor diseases.
• Flies – Like roaches, flies have a tendency to carry bacteria on their skin that they spread to foods when they eat. Flies, quite literally, eat garbage and poop, so they come into contact with diseases like salmonella and hepatitis A fairly regularly. That’s why eliminating foods they have contaminated is important.

Most other pests do not make you sick. Bed bugs, for example, may cause numerous itchy bites, but they are not known to carry disease. Scorpions, spiders, and wasps can all cause pain when they sting or bite – and in some cases, this pain can be severe or even deadly – but they do not necessarily carry any diseases. Rather, it is their venom that causes illness and pain.

Still, with most pests causing either illness or pain, there’s a reason that preventative pest control in Arizona is so important. If you are looking to prevent pests on your property this year, call Green Home Pest today at 480-568-3752.

See the original post: What Indoor Pests May Make You Sick? on our official Green Home Pest website.