Cockroaches
Cockroaches
Cockroaches are annoying pests that can cause damage to your property, household appliances, clothes, wires, telephone cables, food, etc. They make things dirty, carry fungi, and leave unpleasant odor on food, things and places they come into contact. As their distinctive behavior, after when cockroaches eat or run on food, they release or excrete their fecal that contaminates food, making it inedible, stinking and dirty with germs and parasites potentially harmful to our health. Cockroaches are mainly nocturnal. Therefore, it can be assumed that if only a few cockroaches are seen during daytime, there are a lot of them lurking in that place. The traces indicating the presence of cockroaches include their carcasses, sloughed-off skin, blank egg capsules (already hatched out) and excrement of various sizes, ranging from a very small size to the one as large as rodent excrement. If a lot of cockroach excrement is found in the corners or on shelves, it suggests that the area is infested with a great number of cockroaches.
Problems brought by cockroaches:
- Loss of Money
Cockroaches cause disturbance and destroy people's properties, documents, clothes, telephone cables, wires, etc. They contaminate food that they feed on and leave a foul smell on it. Moreover, they spread microbes and fungi on food, making it impossible to be sold or eaten. This is the reason why we need to control the pests and purchase pesticides.
- Health Problem
Cockroaches eat almost every kind of food including vegetable, fruit, flour, fat, burnt oil, sugar, meat, dirty and rotten food, rubbish, and common dish. They carry germs on their body, legs and antennae or in their stomach. They also excrete their feces on food, infecting it with germs and parasites that are potentially harmful to our health. Cockroaches can spread germs of various kinds which are to be described below.
- Cockroaches as Disease Carriers
Cockroaches are disease carriers. Almost every part of a cockroach, both inside and outside its body including its feces, contains microbes of several types that can spread diseases to human. Their excrement is often found to contain Salmonella, which is the cause of food poisoning. The Salmonella Oranienburg bacteria found in the excrement of American cockroaches can contaminate food or food containers. To make things worse, such bacteria can stay alive for more than three years.
Toxoplasma protozoa carried by American cockroaches can cause birth defects. The circle of infection starts when a cat eats a bird or rat that carries the microbe. The cat feces then will contain the Toxoplasma protozoa. When cockroaches and flies feed on or make contact with the feces, they become the carriers themselves. Besides, cockroaches may be eaten by a bird or cat, thus spreading the protozoa among animals in the circle of infection.
Cockroaches can also be mechanical carriers as they pick up germs on their body’s parts from dirty places.
Bacteria
Some significant diseases caused by bacteria include cholera, anthrax, tuberculosis, Salmonella disease, leprosy, plague, dysentery, digestive system disease, food poisoning, abscess or impetigo skin disease, typhoid, diarrhea in children, infection in urinary tract, etc.
Protozoa
Several types of protozoa are found in cockroaches. Toxoplasma can lead to birth defects. There are also many types of protozoa that can cause diarrhea and dysentery, such as Entamoeba Histolytica.
Parasitic Worms
Cockroaches may become an intermediate host of several types of parasite such as Ancylostoma Duodenale, Ascaris Lumbricoides, Hymenolepis Nana, Taenia Saginata, Schistosoma Haematobium, etc. Parasite-caused diseases include schistosomiasis, inflammatory bowel disease and anemia. There are about 12 types of cockroaches the feces of which may contain parasitic worms.
Virus
It is never found that cockroaches can spread virus to human. However, a laboratory study indicates that cockroaches can be carriers of virus that causes hepatitis.
Fungi
Two kinds of fungi are found to be the cause of respiratory and skin diseases, i.e. Aspergillus Fumigatus and Aspergillus Niger respectively.
Cockroach as a Direct Threat to Human
Some species of cockroach like Diploptera Punctata and Leucophaea Maderae give off bad smell. Making contact with theses cockroaches can lead to dermatitis. Their excrement and carcasses in dirt and in the air can also stimulate allergic reaction. When fungi on their wings and legs, which is the cause of respiratory and skin diseases, is inhaled into human lungs, ones may develop asthma. Furthermore, it is believed that the cockroach feces of the species Periplaneta Americana and Leucophaea Maderae contain carcinogenic compounds. Some tiny cockroaches, such as those of the species B. Germanica, may even enter human ears. According to a survey conducted among crew on ships infested with a large number of cockroaches, it was found that American cockroaches (Periplaneta Americana) and Australian cockroaches (P. Australasiae) would nibble the crew’s skin and nail while they were sleeping. To prevent this, they needed to wear gloves and socks while asleep.
Cockroaches as a Cause of Allergy
According to domestic and international researches, cockroaches are found to be a major cause of allergy and asthma, especially in children. Cockroaches leave allergen around the area they roam or release it into the air. When people make contact with the allergen to certain level for a period of time, they may develop allergy and asthma. Such allergen is believed to come from excrement or certain substances on their body. Several researches also show that many patients suffering from allergy and asthma react to allergen extracted from American and German cockroaches. These two species are proven to be among the important factors behind the development of allergy and asthma diseases.
