Part 1: Reasons Why Some People are Mosquito Victims

Since it's July 4th, and you'll likely be outside at a barbecue, there will be mosquitoes. Why do some people get more mosquito bites than others? Science has discovered a variety of reasons, from blood type to drinking to the heat you give off. Today's blog will tell you which humans are most delicious to mosquitoes after a few facts:

Some things I learned from the Center for Disease Control (CDC):

• Female mosquitoes bite people and animals to get a blood meal.
• Most female mosquitoes cannot produce eggs without a blood meal.
• Male mosquitoes do not bite people and animals
• 3 different types of mosquitoes exist in various parts of the world: Aedes, Culex and Anopheles.

 

(Photo: Multiple Mosquito bites on a man's arm. Credit: CDC)

SCIENCE: Multiple Reasons Why Some People are Mosquito Victims

Huffington Post, Jenna Birch, June 15, 2024

In one controlled study by the Journal of Medical Entomology, the bugs landed on people with blood Type O nearly twice as frequently as those with Type A. The researchers noted this has to do with secretions we produce, which tips mosquitoes off on a person’s blood type. Also,  Perhaps CO2 is the most important. The amount of CO2 you produce, like people with high metabolic rates ― genetic, other factors ― increases the amount of carbon dioxide you give off. The more you give off, the more attractive you are to these arthropods.”

  But what separates us from the nonliving entities that give off carbon dioxide, like cars? Mosquitoes look for primary cues in conjunction with what Day calls “secondary cues.”

  Lactic acid — the stuff that causes our muscles to cramp during exercise — is one of those secondary cues, for example. Lactic acid is released through the skin, signaling to mosquitoes that we are a target, Day said.

    If you have on dark clothes, you are going to attract more because you’ll stand out from the horizon, whereas those wearing light colors won’t as much.”

  A mosquito also takes in “tactile cues” once it has landed on you.

“Body heat is a really important tactile cue,” Day said. “That comes into play with genetic differences or physiological differences. Some people tend to run a little warmer — when they land, they’re looking for a place where blood is close to the skin.” That means those whose temperatures are a little higher are more likely to get the bite.

  “If body temperature is higher, you’re exercising and moving around a lot, or if you’re drinking alcohol, you are more attractive to mosquitoes,” Piliang said. “Being pregnant or being overweight also increases metabolic rate.”

(Photo: Mosquito. Credit: CDC)

   One study showed that people who consumed just one can of beer were more at risk of attracting mosquitoes than those who didn’t. Of course, drinking outside is a popular summer and fall activity.

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SIDE NOTE FROM THE CDC: What happens when a mosquito bites you

When a mosquito bites you, it pierces the skin using a special mouthpart (proboscis) to suck up blood. As the mosquito is feeding, it injects saliva into your skin. Your body reacts to the saliva resulting in a bump and itching.

Some people have only a mild reaction to a bite or bites. Other people react more strongly, and a large area of swelling, soreness, and redness can occur.