Why mosquitoes bite some people more than others

Summer gatherings by the river or lake are often ruined by packs mosquitoeswithout the mercy of attacking picnic lovers. In desperation, many are wondering how these bloodsuckers do without people at another time and why they lack forest inhabitants. But the matter is in the mechanism by which insects search for their victim and mosquito feeding method. A person with bare skin is easier to detect and easier to pierce his skin.

Why bite

Mosquitoes are not as bloodthirsty as they might seem. All male mosquitoes feed only on plant nectar. Females need bloodto produce eggs. Females of the remaining species need protein to produce more eggs than if they ate nectar. The main goal of a mosquito when attacking a victim is reproduction and continuation of life.

Bite mechanism

Having found a victim, the insect does not just pierce the skin and gets drunk with blood. If you consider mosquito under the microscope, you can see that the oral apparatus is piercing type and has a complex device: it consists of 6 needles, closed with a protective sheath.

The last pair of needles has teeth that help the insect pierce the skin. The second pair spreads the tissues after the bite to facilitate the penetration into the skin of the main working tools - the middle pair of needles. These needles are hollow.

On one of the main needles there are receptors with which the mosquito finds a blood vessel. She then uses the same needle to suck out blood. The second needle from this pair simultaneously injects a secret into the wound, due to which itchy mosquito bites.

Who is more willing to be bitten by a mosquito

Mosquitoes are looking for their prey, focusing on three factors:

• the smell of lactic acid (detection radius of several kilometers);
• the smell of carbon dioxide emitted by the body (detection radius of several hundred meters);
• thermal radiation (detection radius of several meters).

These are the main criteria by which a mosquito selects a victim for a bite.

Gender preferences

The eternal debate about whether a mosquito distinguishes victims by gender is humorous. Men have rougher skin and are less likely to notice bites. But physical activity in men is usually higher and more lactic acid is released along with sweat. Basically, in the “first” risk group are athletes of both sexes who are currently engaged in physical exercises.

When approaching, the mosquito “switches” to a source of carbon dioxide. The lung volume in men is greater than in women, and the amount of expired CO₂ is also greater. Children exhale carbon dioxide less than women.

At the near turn, the bloodsucker focuses on body temperature. And here a lot depends on who is “hot” at the given moment. In children, body temperature is higher than in adults.

Interesting!

In the “family at a picnic” situation, the mosquito in the search will first fly to the smell of carbon dioxide, and on approach will switch to the child. In other cases, everything will depend on who has the “warmed up” muscles or dark clothes.

Blood: myths and reality

You can often find information that mosquitoes less bite people with a certain blood type. The information is not statistically confirmed by anything other than “it seems to me”.And they “notice” such a peculiarity usually after reading an article about mosquitoes and blood types. No one captures additional factors:

• what they ate before;
• what is the body temperature now;
• what color is the clothes;
• how many people are around;
• what is the body temperature of others;
• what color do the neighbors wear:
• Have you taken any medications?
• what was the clothes washed;
• what perfume did you use;
• mass of other factors.

Only taking all these points into account, we can confidently say that mosquitoes do not like to bite people with a certain blood type. But a lot really depends on the composition of the blood.

The dependence of the number of bites on the composition of the blood

Ways to repel mosquitoes with the help of herbs, it is known to many, but few people think that the same functions of the spices are performed when they are regularly consumed with food. The saying "we are what we eat" is fully true. With the regular use of herbs, the smell of sweat changes. Mosquitoes begin to fly around the spice lover.

Important!

A single use inside an edible repellent will not give a result. Therefore, it makes no sense to chew basil or mint before a picnic. The result will be after daily consumption of these herbs for several days. And the dose should not be homeopathic.

The situation with cancer is similar. After detecting cancer, even at the first stage, chemotherapy is immediately started. Medications change the composition of the blood and the smell of sweat. Mosquitoes do not find such an object. Therefore, stories about the fact that mosquitoes do not bite cancer patients have a foundation. But concern only those who have already been diagnosed and started treatment.

The only exception is leukemia patients. A female mosquito needs red blood cells, the number of which with leukemia is much lower than normal.

On a note!

But alcohol mosquitoes do not care. The human body independently produces a small amount of ethyl alcohol and mosquitoes have long adapted to this substance. Freshly drunk alcohol does not interfere with mosquitoes, and then alcohol is eliminated from the body.

Clothes color

Insects do not have color vision, they have a thermal imager. Mosquitoes fly to the hot object. Dark clothes normally warm more than white and are very “fonit”. Therefore, when choosing between dark and white T-shirts, the mosquito will prefer black. But if a person in white clothes has a fever, and a person in black has just doused himself with cold water, then the mosquito will sit on a white one.

Mosquito smell

This sense organ is well developed in them, but they only care about the smells of prey and repellents. This is the basis of action mosquito spray. The spray applied to the skin interrupts the natural aroma of a person, which is regarded by a mosquito as the smell of prey. With a regular shower with aromatic gels, the mosquito is also less likely to find a person, since the first signal is washed off - sweat with lactic acid.

On a note!

The smell of bacteria that feeds on sweat is very fond of mosquitoes. If you have a choice, the insect will prefer a couple of days not washed man.

Are emotions important

Not. Mosquitoes equally bite a crying or laughing person. But it is common for a person to not pay attention to small distracting factors when the nervous system is excited. Therefore, in a stressful situation, it may seem to him that he is not interested in mosquitoes.

Conclusion

If you protect yourself from insects you need right now, and mosquito repellent not at hand, you can wear light clothing that covers hands and feet. This will dissipate heat from the skin. If there is time for preparation, then in the diet you can include spices from among those that scare away mosquitoes.