Your Best Life: The Deadly Bite
SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (Ivanhoe Newswire) — Longer, hotter summers and shifting weather patterns — fueled by a warming planet — are bringing about more than just sunshine and higher temperatures. Mosquitoes are thriving earlier and later and are spreading to new areas as rising temperatures and changing rainfall patterns create the perfect conditions for these pests to multiply. Mosquito-borne illnesses, such as West Nile Virus, affect thousands of Americans each year, with the CDC reporting over 2,000 cases or West Nile alone annually.
They're small, bloodthirsty, and sometimes even deadly. And you might not know as much about mosquitoes as you think. First, how many different types are there?
If you guessed 150, wrong!
There are actually 3,700 types of mosquitoes!
True or false: mosquitoes only spread disease in tropical climates? False!
'Now we're starting to see them in other places,' said Desiree LaBeaud, MD, MS, professor of pediatric infectious disease at Stanford University.
According to the CDC, diseases like West Nile and dengue fever have been reported in almost every state.
'The ones that spread dengue and chikungunya and Zika and yellow fever, really like it hot. So as the climate warms, they just are better and better at spreading disease,' explained Dr. LaBeaud.
And it doesn't take much for them to multiply. Just a single tablespoon of standing water can become a breeding ground.
'The dog dishes, the flowerpots, just that little bit of water can actually breed these mosquitoes and potentially make you sick,' Dr. LaBeaud told Ivanhoe.
So, how can you protect your kids? Doctors say to drain outside standing water once a week, use EPA approved insect repellent containing 20-30% DEET, there will be an EPA registration number on the back of the bottle, and also, wear protective clothing.
'You can wear long sleeves, long pants. If you notice a lot of dead birds around your neighborhood, that's a signal that West Nile may be circulating, so contact your mosquito control board,' Dr. LaBeaud stated.
If your child has a high fever, rash, or joint pain after a mosquito bite, see a doctor right away.
Symptoms of mosquito-borne illnesses can range from mild fever to severe brain infections. Parents should also check the EPA website to ensure their child's insect repellent is safe and appropriate for their age.
Contributors to this news report include: Marsha Lewis, Executive Producer; Joe Alexander, Videographer; and Bob Walko, Editor.
Produced by Child Trends News Service in partnership with Ivanhoe Broadcast News and funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF).
To receive a free weekly e-mail on positive parenting from Ivanhoe, sign up at: http://www.ivanhoe.com/ftk
Sources:
https://www.cdc.gov/mosquitoes/about/index.html
https://www.epa.gov/insect-repellents/find-repellent-right-you
If this story or any other Ivanhoe story has impacted your life or prompted you or someone you know to seek or change treatments, please let us know by contacting Marjorie Bekaert Thomas at mthomas@ivanhoe.com
Sponsored by AGEWELL
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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