I hate cockroaches. In fact, I am not a fan of creepy crawlies at all. Cockroaches really scare me. Once I read a book where it said that cockroaches could survive a nuclear blast. That's scary. Their exoskeleton makes them exceptionally strong and a health hazard of gigantic proportions.

But the main problem with cockroaches is that they carry germs and allergens which result in “them spreading diseases”. They carry bacteria which are often multidrug-resistant. They can cause various types of stomach ailments.

But now I have discovered worse – they can cause asthma and lung infections too!

Cockroaches are responsible for causing 65% of total cases of insect allergens causing indoor air pollution. This is a common problem in urban overcrowding with damp, moist homes. Exposure to indoor allergens due to cockroach infestation, causes asthma which makes up for quite a bit of the doctor visits. In times like these with the COVID19 pandemic raging, you need to be healthy and your lungs should be strong. Asthma, COPD, and other lung infections and allergies make your lungs weaker. Act now and kill those asthma causing cockroaches.

The cockroach droppings are highly allergenic indoor pollutant. Exposure to these allergenics can trigger childhood allergies and asthma in children who have a family history of such diseases.

They are tough to get rid of. They are attracted by the smell of food and to damp surfaces. The pheromones of a cockroach attract other ones, and that's the super scary part.

They will eat anything and are ecological recyclers. Their menu consists of human food, pet food, cardboard, bookbinding gum, wallpaper paste, hair, fingernail clippings and what not. They can climb on beds and fly too. They are nocturnal and come out when it's dark.

To give you a little glimpse of what happens in my home is that if I see them before my husband, I scream!

"Mommy kills them by making them lose their hearing." That's what my daughter says. So you can imagine how loud I scream when I see a cockroach because I know they spread diseases.

But then I take my slipper to throw at it, and try to injure them. I cover my face and nose and carefully spray Lal HIT. I always take care that my child is in a different room. Ensuring proper ventilation after spraying is vital. Apart from Lal HIT, nothing else seems to work and trying other solutions only ends up in wasting time & money. That’s several years of experience talking having lived in hostels and six different homes in three cities. So, I know what works and what doesn’t.

In India, with the hot and humid climate, cockroaches can visit anyone's home. But if you are careful, you can keep your home safe and almost insect-free.

How to keep the cockroaches away
1) Keep food in a tightly closed metal or glass container. This makes them more likely to seal in the smell.
2) Never ever keep dirty dishes piled up anywhere at night! Not on the sink or under the sink. It’s a feast for diseases spreading cockroaches
3) Keep cracks and crevices adequately sealed. If you see cockroaches remember to regularly check for their skin eggs and excertions. Clean the area, don't just let it be as it is
4) Always clean kitchen counters, floors, sinks, so that food bits and scraps are not lying around. Remember to keep food debris covered. Vacuum under the fridge. Check and clean all dark corners. These include the back of shelves, behind kitchen counters, below sinks, in edges of pipes, cracks, and crevices of doors and in places where daily cleaning is not possible.
5) Always use a dustbin with a good lid, which closes well. Daily trash clearing and washing the dustbin goes a long way in keeping homes clean.
6) Especially at night, wipe down the gas tips and keep gas stoves clean to keep the roaches away. Spraying Lal HIT increases your chances of keeping disease spreading cockroaches out of your home and keeping your family safe and healthy.

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Article written by: Dr. Amrita Basu