How to stay disease free in monsoon!

Monsoons are one of the most favourite seasons for people of all ages as they bring in pleasant weather, blissful rains and steamy hot eating options to binge on. The season offers relief from the scorching summer heat but often brings viral infections and fever with it. This is the time of the year when people usually fall sick with cold and flu, malaria, jaundice, typhoid, and other water-borne diseases. So, are you getting second thoughts about enjoying the blissful season of monsoon? Of course not! While the rage that comes upon the environment bringing flies, mosquitoes and other diseases to haunt you, how would you be prepared to welcome monsoon on a happy note? Well, in this blog we are providing you with some useful facts to keep you and your family disease-free and make the best out of the rains.

Here are some Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) that oftentimes remain unanswered about what precautions need to be taken to keep yourself free from diseases in the monsoon. What are you waiting for? Let’s get going and explore:

• What happens when water accumulates in your surroundings?

Do you know, the water accumulated near plants, in flowerpots, water coolers or any other site across your house which has standing water can be a mosquito breeding ground? Female mosquitoes love to lay eggs in standing water and that can be a big factor in spreading mosquito-borne diseases at your home.

So, all you need to do is to remove standing water in any form in and around your home and prevent the spreading of diseases in the future. Clean all the items that can collect water at least once a week. Such regular practices will help ensure reduced breeding of mosquitoes and hence reduced spread of diseases. If there are damp corners outside your home, get them fixed to not accumulate water. Use bleaching powder to clean the place and prevent the spreading of mosquitoes.

• • Precautions to save yourself from mosquito bites

  Mosquito bites are the main source of many life-threatening diseases including dengue, chikungunya and malaria. It becomes important to save yourself from mosquitoes in monsoons because this season is best suitable for mosquitoes to multiply.

  Apply skin-friendly mosquito repellent creams or roll-ons on the exposed parts of your body. These mosquito repellents keep mosquitoes at bay with their strong odour. You can also make use of mosquito patches to stay safe from mosquito bites.

  Do you know that mosquitoes are attracted to dark coloured clothing? It is suggested that you wear light coloured clothes if you wish to avoid mosquito bites. Clean the dark nooks of your house now and then to prevent mosquitoes from hiding there.

  6 P.M. to 7 P.M. are the peak hours when mosquitoes are super active, and the chances of getting bit by them are higher. So, ideally, you should avoid staying outdoors during this time.

• Symptoms to look for remedies immediately

Mosquito-borne diseases can have life-threatening complications, even though the symptoms may last only for a few days or not seem severe.

You must rush to a doctor in case you suspect any of the following symptoms:

# Rashes
# Eye redness or Conjunctivitis
# Joints or muscle pain
# Persistent headache
# Difficulty in breathing
# Feeling of exhaustion
# Unusual body ache with muscle soreness
# A fever of 101°F (38.3°C) or higher

It is suggested to visit a doctor immediately in case you feel any of these symptoms showing up as a precaution so that you can cure your upcoming illness at an earlier time before it turns severe.

• • Ensure sanitization by the government authorities in your locality (pest control/ cleaning)

  Municipal corporations spray mosquito repellents in all localities so that mosquitoes and relating diseases can be significantly reduced. As an aware individual, you should keep a check if your locality has been sanitized or not. If not, you must report it to the concerned authorities to get it done as soon as possible. Since mosquitoes breed widely in parks and gardens, there are high chances that homes near the parks and gardens will face more mosquito-related problems. In that case, the sanitization of such localities becomes significant. Proper maintenance, cleaning, trimming, and pruning of the plants in the garden and parks are essential to have a check on these vicious miscreants that carry deadly diseases like dengue, malaria, chikungunya etc.

• • Home hygiene 

  It becomes important to keep your house free from mosquitoes so that you can stay protected against mosquito-borne diseases. While mosquito repellent machines are used in almost every household these days to prevent mosquitoes, there are plenty of in-house options available to keep mosquitoes at bay.

  # You can use a mix of lemon and detergent to clean the house as the scent of lemon acts as a mosquito repellent.

  # As an effective remedy, you can also light a few pieces of camphor in a diffuser, shut the door and windows for some time. Since camphor is an effective mosquito repellent, it will help keep mosquitoes away.

  # Neem oil can be burnt in candles and lamps to keep the mosquitoes at bay. Neem oil can also be mixed with coconut oil and used as a mosquito repellent.

  # Tulsi plant has medicinal properties and it doesn’t allow mosquitoes to enter your house.

  Apart from all the points, we have mentioned just now, we have a bonus tip for you. Here is a super quick and easy life-hack for fixing mosquito bites.

• Life-hack:

If you are bitten by mosquitoes don’t rub or itch the spot as it will aggravate the situation and might cause infection. Apply Vicks VapoRub on the affected area and leave for a while. It will soothe the burning or itching sensation and bring relief.

Keeping children safe from mosquitoes becomes a major challenge during the monsoons as they are so eager to play in the rain, get wet and attract more diseases. Children play in parks (the mosquito prone areas) and are hence vulnerable to mosquito-related diseases. Children cannot be stopped from playing altogether, but precautions such as applying a mosquito repellent before sending them outdoors need to be taken care of. Various options of mosquito repellents are available these days in the form of cream, roll-on, sprays and patches.
Not only children, but adults also should avoid going outdoors when the chances of getting bit by mosquitoes are highest, i.e. in the evening. If you cannot avoid going outdoors then you must take the precautions, we have mentioned staying disease-free this mosquito season!! Let’s adapt these safety precautions against mosquitoes and turn the mosquito season into the most blissful and fun-filled season!