Page 44 - DreamScapes Magazine | Fall/Winter 2023

SPECIAL FEATURE REPORT
INVASION OF
THE BODY SNACKERS
How to protect against the spread of mosquitoes and their diseases when travelling abroad
BY REBECCA FIELD JAGER
When comedian Bill Maher recently quipped how mosquitoes are the all-time serial killer of people even more than sharks, he’s not kid- ding. Although most bites are harmless, these teeny bloodsuckers are said to be the deadliest animal on earth. In fact, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that vector-borne diseases, including those trans- mitted by mosquitoes, cause over 700,000 deaths worldwide every year. The burden of these diseases is highest in tropical and subtropical areas.
CLIMATE CHANGE:
A MOSQUITO’S NEW BEST FRIEND For years, scientists have been ringing the alarm bells about how global warming will make cooler regions more hos- pitable to mosquitoes and allow them, and the diseases they carry, to spread to new areas. Increased precipitation, higher temperatures and higher humidity, hallmarks of cli- mate change, are a mosquito’s dream.
MOSQUITO MANTRA:
HAVE DISEASE, WILL TRAVEL
While it might be hyperbolical to say mosquitoes are taking over the world, it is safe to say their associated diseases are gaining new ground across many popular travel destina- tions. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that arboviral diseases such as chikungunya and dengue fever have geographically expanded to the Americas. Chikun- gunya and dengue fever are caused by viral infections which get transmitted to humans by mosquitoes, and while symptoms normally range from body pains to fever, in severe cases they can be deadly.
Outbreaks of these diseases are not only increasing in terms of size but also frequency. Whereas dengue outbreaks used to occur every three to five years, now the time between them is significantly less.
44 DREAMSCAPES FALL/WINTER 2023