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Mosquito control - WNV- Zika

Mosquito Coils: Ingredients of, Lung Damage, and references

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Mosquito Coils: Ingredients of, Lung Damage, and references   (by Allan-Shelly Holland, March 19, 2018 , on Facebook) ·

"Not many people know about it, but the damage done to your lungs by one mosquito coil is equivalent to the damage done by 100 cigarettes." Sandeep Salvi, Chest Research Foundation Director
Burning of one mosquito coil would release the same amount of particulate matter (PM) 2.5 mass as burning 75-137 cigarettes; the emission of formaldehyde from burning one coil can be as high as that released from burning 51 cigarettes.
An unhealthy sleep - how safe are mosquito coils?
Category : General Chemicals
Published by : Data Research Analyst, Worldofchemicals.com
Dangerous Chemicals in Mosquito Coils
The annual worldwide consumption of the four major types of residential insecticide products are -- aerosols, mosquito coils, liquid vaporizers, and vaporizing mats.
Mosquito coils are burned indoors and outdoors in regions like Asia, Africa, and South America. Mosquito coils consist of an insecticide/repellant, organic fillers capable of burning with smoldering, binder, and additives such as synergists, dyes, and fungicide.
Mosquito coil ingredients
Pyrethrum
Pyrethrins
Allethrin
Dibutyl hydroxyl toluene (BHT)
Piperonyl butoxide (PBO)
N-(2-ethylhexyl)-bicyclo-(2,2,1)hept-5-ene-2,3-dicarboximide (MGK 264)
N,N-Diethyl-Meta-Toluamide (DEET)
N,N-Diethyl-Meta-Toluamide (DEET)

DEET is a registered pesticide. It is the most effective, and best studied, insect repellent currently on the market. This substance has a remarkable safety profile after 40 years of worldwide use. It has been approved by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Repellents with DEET are used by an estimated 200 million people worldwide each year.
The most common active ingredients in coils are various pyrethroids, such as allethrin, d-allethrin, pynamin forte and ETOCOctachlorodipropylether (S-2) is sometimes used as a synergist or active ingredient and use of such coils exposes humans to some level of bis-chloromethyl ether (BCME) which is an extremely potent lung carcinogen. Although the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) does not register S-2 for any use, some imported mosquito coils contain this chemical, but their use is illegal in the United States, moreover in places like India S-2 is not banned.
Other compounds, released during the burning of mosquito coils (aldehydes, formaldehydes, fine and ultrafine particles,benzene, benzoapyrene, benzobfluoranthene, benzokfluoranthene are also classified by the U.S. EPA as probable human carcinogens.
Mosquito coils burn for about 8hr without flame and kill or repel mosquitoes. Although they are recommended for outdoor use, or for use in semi-enclosed patios and porches, coils are often used overnight in sleeping quarters.
As a result peoples are exposed to a chemically complex mosquito-coil smoke containing small particles (< 1 µm), metal fumes, and vapors that may reach the alveolar region of the lung.
Burning of one mosquito coil would release the same amount of particulate matter (PM) 2.5 mass as burning 75-137 cigarettes; the emission of formaldehyde from burning one coil can be as high as that released from burning 51 cigarettes.
To avoid exposure from harmful chemically complex mosquito-coil smoke, usage of natural mosquito repellents is one of the best alternative methods.
Studies have shown that the best natural mosquito repellents usually contain more than just one type of oil.
Essential oils used in natural mosquito repellents
Lemon eucalyptus oil
Geranium oil
Soybean oil
Citronella
Fennel
Thyme
Clove oil
Celery extract
Neem oil
Picaridin

Bite Blocker, a repellent that contains geranium, soybean and coconut oil, can repel mosquitoes for up to 3 1/2 hours, longer than any repellent that contains only geranium oil.
Fennel - A small study by researchers at Seoul National University in Korea found that spray mosquito repellent containing 5 per cent fennel oil was 84 per cent effective after 90 minutes and a repellent cream with 8 per cent fennel oil was 70 per cent effective after 90 minutes.
Thyme - In one study, carvacrol and alpha-terpinene, two compounds derived from the essential oil of thyme, were found to have significantly greater repellency than a commercial N,N-Diethyl-Meta-Toluamide (DEET) repellent. The researchers suggest that a spray made with 2 per cent alpha terpinene is a promising natural mosquito repellent.
Picaridin - Picaridin is an insect and acarid repellent in the piperidine chemical family. Piperidines are structural components of piperine, the plant extract from the genus Piper that is also known as pepper. The chemical name is 1-piperidinecarboxylic acid 2-(2-hydroxyethyl)-1-ethylpropylester. Picaridin is an odorless synthetic safe mosquito repellent ingredient that has been proven as effective as DEET in studies against mosquitoes, fleas, ticks, and chiggers. It is also known as KBR 3023 or Bayrepel.
Reference
1 Robert I. Krieger, Travis M. Dinoff, Xiaofei Zhang, Octachlorodipropyl Ether (S-2) Mosquito Coils Are Inadequately Studied for Residential Use in Asia and Illegal in the United States , Available from - http://ehp03.niehs.nih.gov/.../info:doi/10.1289/ehp.6177...This link didn't work but here is a NIESH link to studies on mosquito coils
FURTHER ARTICLES:

Is a potential health danger smouldering away without us realising?
Environmental health risks and benefits of the use of mosquito coils as malaria prevention and control strategy.

Mosquito coil exposure associated with small cell lung cancer: A report of three cases

Do mosquito coils really work? And are they bad for your health? 

Are mosquito coils making us sick?  

SNAP Comment: Mosquito coils, vaporizers, etc. make me sick. One Australian  article above mentions a less toxic pyrethroid called Metofluthrin. I looked it up, and the PANNA pesticide data base indicates it is cancer-causing. Metofluthrin is registered with the US EPA and the Canadian PMRA.There are currently 13 Metofluthrin  products registered for use against mosquitoes in Canada. (March 28, 2022)

see also gmo/malaria

It's Time to Show Mosquitoes a Little Love - Here's Why  (EcoWest News, 12 April 2022)   Interestng article on the ecological role of mosquitoes and the effects , interesting factss and the effects of the mosquito control Bti (natural) and methoprene on wildlife. 'Other approaches are worth investigating in order to maintain mosquitoes as pollinators and important elements in the food chain. Fernand suggests a campaign to get rid of stagnant water as this is where mosquitoes thrive. Dan Peach suggests “targeting specific mosquito species or making the mosquitoes themselves immune to pathogens and thus unable to spread them would protect humans while keeping the ecosystem function of mosquitoes intact”. SNAP Ccomment: During the West NIle virus period, there were education programs for getting rid of stagnant water. It is still a cornersstone of mosquito control even if we are forgetting to talk about it. 

Certain Essential Oils Found To Be Highly Effective at Killing Mosquito Larvae and Adults   (Beyond Pesticides, March 24, 2022) A range of essential oils can provide high levels of larvicidal and adulticidal activity against Culex pipiens a widespread N.A.mosquito (also commen in SK) that is known to vector West Nile virus and Saint Louis encephalitis, among other diseases.    In sum, the researchers note, “Camellia sinensis tea plant and F. vulgare fennel were the most potent larvicides whereas V. odorata sweet violet, T. vulgaris garden thyme, An. Graveolens dill and N. sativa fennel flower were the best adulticides and they could be used for integrated mosquito control… EOs could serve as suitable alternatives to synthetic insecticides because they are relatively safe, available, and biodegradable.”

Disease Carrying Mosquitoes More Prevalent in Neighborhoods of Low Socioeconomic Status    (Beyond Pesticides, November 16, 2021) 'Populations of disease-carrying mosquitoes are higher in urban areas of lower socioeconomic status, according to research published this year in the Journal of Urban Ecology.    , it is the resulting physical and structural differences between the neighborhoods that are the biggest contributors. The human built environment in lower income areas are more likely to have infrastructure that is poorly maintained, with more litter and stagnant water in the streets due to lack of sanitation services and a functioning drainage system. It was noted that two of the lowest socioeconomic status neighborhoods flooded multiple times during the course of research. All of these factors increase larval mosquito habitat and subsequently the risk of mosquito borne disease. SNAP comment: study done in Puerto Rico.

Non-GMO approach reduces cases of mosquito-borne dengue by 77%   (GM Watch, 31 August 2020)     'While uncertain and risky GMO approaches to mosquito-borne diseases continue to raise concerns in the countries targeted for experimentation, like Brazil, Burkina Faso, and most recently the United States, two remarkable breakthroughs have recently been made involving highly effective natural means of preventing the transmission of such diseases. In the most recent instance, a randomized field trial found that mosquitoes infected with a natural bacterium called Wolbachia reduced cases of dengue by an "extraordinary" 77%. Wolbachia stops the insects from transmitting some viruses when they bite people'.

The Way Humans Alter the Environment Increases the Prevalence of Disease Carrying Mosquitoes   (Beyond Pesticides, September 16, 2020) Disease carrying mosquitoes are more likely to flourish in areas being altered by human activities, according to new research published by scientists at Oregon State University.   Human disturbance was measured by five factors, including (i) pesticide use, (ii) nutrient loading, (iii) human population density, (iv) biomass of grazing animals, and (v) loss of vegetation.   While these factors are all well known hazards for wildlife, researchers determined that disease vector mosquitoes are one important exception. Unsurprisingly, each of these impacts are significantly higher, by orders of magnitude, outside the park than inside. It followed that mosquito abundance outside the part is determined to be an average 2.9 times (ranging between 1.5 and 10 times) greater than paired sites of similar layout inside the national park.   Sheer numbers are merely half the story. Scientists also observed changes in the relative abundance of certain species of mosquitoes. Disease carrying mosquitoe populations are much higher outside of the park than inside, consistently accounting for roughly 80% of the difference in community composition between paired sites.   A sound approach to mosquito management is science-based and prioritizes preventive measures.

Blackberry Leaves Decompose to Thwart Mosquito Breeding  (Beyond Pesticides, December 21, 2019)  Adding blackberry leaf litter in stormwater catch basins creates an “ecological trap,” enticing mosquito females to lay eggs in sites unsuitable for larvae survival. 

WATCH – A Question of consent: Exterminator Mosquitoes in Burkina Faso. (Global Justice Ecology Project, December 20, 2018)   'The (15 minutes - a lot in French with English subtitles) film, “A Question of Consent: Exterminator Mosquitoes in Burkina Faso” documents conversations with residents of the areas where Target Malaria is conducting tests, as well as opposition from civil society groups in the region. This is not the first time Burkina Faso is experimenting with GMOs: Monsanto introduced genetically modified BT cotton into the country in 2008, which led to a drop in the quality of cotton.'   SNAP Comment: Large scale fogging with insecticides has been a failure over and over again for mosquito control and the gmo mosquito experiment on Grand Cayman Island was suspended. Detail: Several decades ago the Regina Public Library had a few scientific compendiums of research on the successes and faillures of pesticides in controlling pests. On a world scale study of malaria and other diseases control and with thousands of papers referenced), the efforts had been a failure. After plastering the world with DDT and other long lasting organochlorines and then moving on to other classes of insecticides like carbamates and organophosphates, the only place in the world where these efforts led to a disappearance of mosquitoes was on a tiny island in the Mediterranean. This only occurred for a few years until new mosquitoes found their way in and they were back to square one. What they found instead is that resistance appeared in only a few years and the quantity of insecticide used had to be increased constantly to keep ahead, until they tried a new product and the same thing quickly happened. There is a term for that: the pesticide treadmill. Of course there were no concurrent efforts to identify and manage the mosquito habitat or educate people on mosquito management. These gmo mosquitoes have also been released on Grand Cayman Island and the program is now being suspended with questions on its efficacy. However, now we think we can have better success on a huge continent??? Imagine how many species of mosquitoes there are, and that many species can often be carriers of the same disease and that you would need to bioengineer every species in an attempt to control it. If you only control one another species will likely become dominant and so on. As far as I am concerned, this type of intervention is madness and the money should be redirected. Supposed to be released in California in 2022.

Edmonton's Mosquito Control 2016  This map is based on City of Edmonton logs of the chemicals applied specifically to control mosquitoes in 2016. Click on each data point for details. Each point represents the center of a 1-mile square corresponding to a grid point from city data. The actual application(s) could be anywhere within the surrounding one mile square - this could be up to 1.2 kilometers on a diagonal line. The City does not track applications more precisely than to identify the grid ID. The comments indicate whether the application was Ground or Air. Additional comments are verbatim from City data. The data is presented in layers based on the product used. You can select or de-select layers as you wish to tailor your view. SNAPComment: I believe Edmonton is the last Canadian city to still use the organophosphate chlorpyrifos for mosquito control.Chlorpyrifos has been banned for consumer use because of its toxicity.  more on chlorpyrifos 

Zika virus-facts and management Facts about the biology of Zika virus and its carrier, the aedes mosquito.Best mosquito repellent is picaridine. Widespread spraying does not work for control but there seems to be good potential in the release of sterile GMO male mosquitoes.Interesting fact: don't use mosquito repellent and sunscreen at the same time.they interfere with each other. 

Mosquito Management and Insect-Borne Diseases (Beyond Pesticides) (added 26 August 2016)

West Nile Virus prevention in Saskatchewan The SK government program for financial help to municipalities to control West NIle virus was cancelled in 2011.

Comparing SK Municipalities Larviciding with those who don't 2003 download pdf

Comparing US Cities who spray for West Nile Virus Control with those who don't

West Nile Virus Awareness and Prevention - Saskatchewan Health site While SNAP does not recommend DEET, there is a lot of good advice on this site.

West Nile Virus and Camping  This summer protect yourself and loved ones by following these helpful hints.

West Nile Virus and Outdoor Event Planning  promotes prevention and states that you are not allowed to for or spray your event site, but must hire a licensed applicator. Notice that areas of public events may be sprayed prior to events.

West Nile Virus and Your Property

West Nile Virus and Tires The role of tires in providing mosquito larval development sites.

Ecologically Sound Mosquito Management in Wetlands, Xerces Society. 2013. An overview of mosquito control practices, the risks, benefits, and nontarget impacts, and recommendations on effective practices that control mosquitoes, reduce pesticide use, and conserve wetlands. 

Alternatives for mosquito control (backyard control under NCAP fact sheet, and additional info)