In hot summer, mosquitos bother many people every night, leading to a poor night’s sleep and swelling and itching of skin. We have heard many stories of mosquitos, such as “ only female mosquitos bite human” and “ mosquitos prefer to bite one blood type rather than the other.” Are these stories true? What is really going on when mosquitos bite humans.
about.com gives a quite informative explanation. It proves that “Only the female mosquito feeds on humans, and she needs a blood meal in order to produce eggs. During a feeding, the female mosquito bites the human skin, and injects saliva. The saliva contains various proteins that prevent the blood from clotting, as well as proteins that keep the blood flowing into the mosquito’s mouth.
Also, about.com attributes the swelling and itching of our skin to allergy. “Many of the mosquito saliva proteins can cause immune reactions, including allergic reactions. Typically, however, most people have a variety of reactions to mosquito bites, and the symptoms change over time, depending on the amount of bites a person received. These reactions can include both immediate and delayed swelling and itching around the bite area. These reactions tend to decrease in frequency after being bitten by mosquitoes over many years. Generally, people with the above described reactions are not diagnosed as being mosquito allergic.”
Thus, that’s what going on inside our body when mosquitos bite us. The following image could help us how to alleviate the swelling.
Sources: http://allergies.about.com/od/insectallergies/a/mosquitoallergy.htm
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2998662/Why-people-attract-mosquitoes-Genes-blood-type-beer-drinking-blame.html
This post is really interesting, and I liked how you discussed more than one mosquito story. Something I’ve always tried to figure out is how to prevent the bites from happening in the first place, and when I looked online I found this great article from Consumer Reports about that. The article discusses various types of mosquito repellent, which ones can have harmful side effects, and which ones are most effective. The most intriguing part of the article is the method they used to test the repellents!
Living in Lagos, Nigeria, which is not only a tropical state but is also surrounded by water is a huge mosquito breeding ground. What i find most interesting about this article is the fact that reactions to mosquito bites aren’t typically treated as an allergic reaction; but it make so much sense now you have pointed it out. It also raises the question on whether one can become accustomed to an allergic reaction.
My family always jokes around with me that I am the “sweet” one in the family because I seem to attract all the mosquitoes. When we go on vacations or even just hang outside in the summer, mosquitoes tend to bite me the most. The huge, itchy, red bumps all over my body keep me scratching all day and night. My mom always would apply after bite or anti-itch cream on my bites but usually they would sting and would not satisfy my need. I usually make an X with my nail in order to make the itchiness go away. However, I find it interesting that you can use the inside of a banana peel or even a lemon to relieve the itchiness. My grandparents have this sign in their house and it always cracks me up.
This is really interesting! I had no idea that the “bites” that mosquitos leave are actually injections of their saliva and thats why they swell up. The mosquito bites in the summer are the worst!!