Why they bite us at all, why some people are more attracted to them than others, and how to stop it.
For some, summer is associated with summer cottages, barbecues, outdoor recreation, swimming and other pleasant things, while for others, with mosquito bites.
For example, you honestly try to enjoy a beautiful warm summer evening, but you literally go deaf from mosquito itching, do not stop scratching and slapping your arms, legs and other parts of your body, and your friends sitting next to you are only surprised that something is wrong with you, because mosquitoes pay no attention to them.
Why do mosquitoes need our blood, why do some people attract mosquitoes like a magnet, while others leave them indifferent? And in general, is it possible to somehow reduce its attractiveness to mosquitoes? Here’s what science has to say about it.
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1. Why do they need our blood?
There are over 3,500 species of mosquitoes in the world, which are divided into 112 genera. These insects live on all continents of the planet, they are not only in Antarctica, Iceland and several other islands close to the North Pole. For example, the common mosquito (Culex pipiens) lives wherever its main prey, humans, is present.
The fact is that, despite all the diversity of species and genera, all mosquitoes have one thing in common: their females need blood, so only they bite. Blood is a source of protein, without which the production of eggs, that is, reproduction, is impossible.
Most mosquitoes, or rather mosquitoes, prefer the blood of warm-blooded mammals, and some like people more, and some like other animals.
2. How do they find us and how do they choose?
As it turns out, female mosquitoes basically sniff us out – it is for the search for blood sources that their olfactory system is mostly tuned. Moreover, the sense of smell of mosquitoes is incredibly sensitive, their olfactory receptors are able to respond to certain chemicals released with sweat and breath when a potential victim is at a distance of hundreds of meters and even several kilometers.
First of all, female mosquitoes react to the carbon dioxide we exhale, it is by the trail of CO2 creeping in the air that they find us. At the same time, there is an assumption that the amount of gas in the exhalation in itself does not affect the attractiveness of the victim.
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True, there is another opinion – pregnant women and overweight people emit a lot of CO2 and heat, to which mosquito females also react, so they are bitten more often.
Be that as it may, the main factor that affects the attractiveness of the victim is the smell exuded by the skin. This is a very complex composition of volatile organic substances, which largely depends on our innate physiology and the composition of bacteria that live on the surface of the skin.
The main components of the smell of human skin that attract mosquito females are ammonia, acetone, sulcatone and lactic acid, which is especially abundant in sweat. The aroma of lactic acid, spread by a heavily sweating person, is able to attract mosquitoes from all over the area, so if, for example, you went for an evening run in a summer park, you are guaranteed a full house of mosquitoes.
It is worth noting that the chemical composition of sweat is largely dependent on genes, so you may be genetically predisposed to being a victim of blood-sucking insects.
In general, it is the individual cocktail of aromas that you exude, where the smells are mixed in various proportions and affect each other in different ways, that determines whether you will suffer from bites or not.
15 amazing facts about your health – in our gallery:
The Dutch and Swedes hardly suffer from lactose intolerance, as in Europe they mastered dairy farming earlier and received the necessary gene, which became a competitive advantage. But in Southeast Asia and among the indigenous peoples of the United States, almost everyone has it. (Shot: “Bitter Moon”)
Frederic Begbeder said: “All lovers get tuberculosis.” Love first of all squeezes the lungs. It is foolish to say: “I have a broken heart”, you need to be more precise: “My lungs were squeezed.” (Frame: “Shrek”)
The body of an adult has 20-30 kg of muscle. The longest – the large gluteal – reaches 20 cm, and the shortest – the stirrup – is located in the ear. It is only 1.27 mm. (Shot: “Baywatch”)
An adult has 206 bones. At birth, there are more than 270 of them, but in adulthood this number decreases: mainly the bones of the skull, pelvis and spine are fused. (Shot: “Corpse Bride”)
Nerve cells are restored. The existence of neurogenesis was shown back in 1962 by Joseph Altman, who destroyed a section of the rat brain. Later, new cells appeared there. This process is similar for all mammals and humans. (Shot: “Regions of Darkness”)
According to calculations, in 78 years (that is, in one average life), a person sleeps for 25 years, spends 9 years in front of the TV, 4 years in the car, 92 days in the toilet and 48 days of sex. (Shot: “Wrong”)
Up to 6-7 months, babies are able to breathe and swallow at the same time. Then they lose this ability and gradually learn to alternate skills. This is due to the lowering of the initially raised larynx. (Shot: “Boss Baby”)
The average weight of an adult is 62 kilograms. The body is approximately 60% water. That is, a little more than 37 liters of water is “poured” into an adult. At the same time, it becomes proportionally smaller with age. (Shot: “The Shape of Water”)
When running, keep in mind that it will be easier for the foot, spine and joints to transfer the load if there is a relatively soft surface under your feet, for example, the ground or a modern track in a stadium. (Shot: “Forrest Gump”)
According to scientists, in a lifetime, each of us eats about 55 tons of food. The blue whale, the largest animal on Earth, weighs the same. It is also the equivalent of almost 10 savannah elephants. (Shot: “Julie & Julia: Cooking Happiness with a Recipe”)
“Acute respiratory viral disease” is a common diagnosis that is made with a cold. Bacteria and viruses are different organisms of a dissimilar structure, so it is useless to treat this situation with antibiotics. Always. (Shot: The Flintstones)
Sounds above 85 decibels can cause hearing damage. This corresponds to a human scream or the roar of a motorcycle. It is known that from a third to a half of DJs have hearing problems. So don’t listen to loud music regularly. (Shot: “A Quiet Place”)
Entertainer Michel Lotito ate supermarket carts, televisions, beds and skis, and once consumed a Cessna 150 aircraft for two years. His stomach contained a large volume of hydrochloric acid and had thick walls. (Shot: “Top Gun”)
Most people have between 80,000 and 120,000 hairs on their heads. Blondes have more of them than redheads and brunettes. At the same time, according to average estimates, about 90% of the population are brunettes or brown-haired. (Shot: Rapunzel: Tangled)
The brain erases our dreams as useless information. The activity of neurons that regulate rest and appetite blocks the recording of dreams in the hippocampus. These cells are especially active during REM sleep. (Shot: “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind”)
3. Blood type
There are suggestions that whether mosquitoes love you or not is also affected by your blood type: allegedly, the owners of 0 (I) groups are the most attractive, B (III) groups are in the middle, and the owners of A (II) attract females the least. groups. Whether this is really so, and how exactly mosquitoes calculate which blood type the victim belongs to, is unclear. Research on this topic shows the most conflicting results.
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4. How to become “invisible” to mosquitoes
In addition to the usual advice to wear tight, body-covering clothing in light, soothing colors (for some reason, female mosquitoes are more attracted to dark, as well as bright red and bright orange colors) and use effective repellents, less standard recommendations have appeared in recent years.
Thus, American researchers, whose article published in the journal iScience, found that our attractiveness to mosquitoes is influenced by the hygiene products we use, or rather, their smell. The scent of the soap or shower gel you wash with mixes with your own scent and changes it in a certain way.
So, scientists recommend abandoning the soap and gel with floral scents, which are especially attractive to mosquitoes, because they feed on flower nectar.
It is better to use products with coconut flavor or no smell at all.
More one recent discovery – there are substances on human skin that can “disguise” us for female mosquitoes. One such compound is methylpiperazine, which deprives mosquitoes of their sense of smell. As experiments have shown, after the females sniff methylpiperazine, even their favorite lactic acid ceases to attract them.
It is possible, scientists believe, that the secret of the attractiveness or unattractiveness of certain people for mosquitoes is connected precisely with how much methylpiperazine is secreted by their skin.
Methylpiperazine is odorless, so scientists suggest it could be used as a safer alternative to existing repellents by adding it to a variety of sprays, lotions and other beauty products.
According to the materials of the sites mcgill.ca, healthline.com, wikihow.com
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2023-07-14 16:01:31
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