Marvellous paper, it highlights the importance of a very interesting, common, serious global health problem, related to the increase in the number of pets and cases of disease transmission from animals to humans.
Although in many countries several communicable diseases were eradicated, many of them continue to be an important cause of illness and death in Colombia, mainly in poor communities. Those diseases have a relevant pathogenecity and can cause illnesses irrespective of a person's immunity.
Although there are limited data about the influence of pets in transmitting bugs to humans and several features are crucially important to understand well why we meet bugs on beds, for us, the very high increase of animal pets at contemporary society, their introduction in homes, and children's permanent close contact with them, are perhaps the most important factors associated with human bugs’ infestation. They are passively transported by animal pets. By direct contact with human beings or indirectly, for instance, through beds, these last ones are the causative organisms responsible for the transmission of arthropods, worms, fungi…which, by biting the host’s skin allow the body invasion by pathological agents such as bacteria, viruses, ricketsia, etc.
Nowadays we are living in the animal pets’ empire. They are in all parts of the cities. They are a fact of modern life. Small and big animals, domestic or wild ones, tykes, bulldogs, poodles, collies, terriers, dingos, cats, bats, lizards, snakes, rabbits, chickens, pigs, horses… Every day there are more of them. There is a peak of pet owning: the new generation likes them very much. They keep pets for pleasure rather than utility. As lovely creatures they early attract the attention of all people, who always see them as passive animals, even as very important family members. Pets are treated with unusual consideration. In Colombia many animal pets of rich families have better life conditions than many poor children. Those animals easily impact upon the lives of ordinary people, mainly on children and youth. It´s not very difficult to see on Colombian cities, in all society levels, children snatching up little pets into their arms, kissing, or embracing them, dancing or playing with them, or doing several kinds of activities in direct contact with those animals. Every day children share their bed with pets.
In areas where the standard of living is very low people don’t have the necessary money for correctly maintaining the health of their pets. Others don’t have the proper time to care well for their animals. As a logical consequence of that, pets can bring bugs in on their bodies. Several kinds of dangerous parasites such as fleas, ticks, louses, mites easily can pass to the children's clothes or to the bed and so increase their risk to acquire severe infectious transmissible diseases.
As a good strategy in order to avoid further dissemination of arthropods and other dangerous parasites and so to prevent outbreaks of infectious diseases, it’s urgent and indispensable to improve the general status and living conditions of the population. For that, one very important step that must be taken is to eradicate from society the use of animal pets as a form of living culture. We must address the problem of pets’ growth in families. We consider it as a serious dilemma today. It´s necessary to study the real influence of pets on people lives and to end the promotion of having pets at homes, even at the most important places of the cities.
Nowadays affairs are not going well with the great increase in the number of pets in our cities. There is not a good social control in pets’ activity on cities. Every day in the most important Colombian papers you can meet bad news related with several problems caused by pets’ activities on the streets, at parks, at homes…
As the bugs spreading is a very common problem in underdeveloped countries and among population with very low socio-economic status, living in congested localities with poor sanitation, we think that to reduce the incidence and prevalence of arthropods and other dangerous parasites, improvements in people's general nutrition and in housing conditionsare urgently needed. It´s also necessary to raise the people's standard of living, to increase their daily salary wage, to give them good education, and to promote habits for good health.
Competing interests:
No competing interests
04 February 2013
Emilio Polo Ledezma
Teacher of Clinical Biochemistry. Ph.D. Proteolytic Enzymes – Nutrition.
Zamora Héctor. H. M.D. – Nuclear Medicine Doctor. Dean of the Health’s Faculty of Surcolombiana University.
Rapid Response:
Re: Bed bug infestation
Marvellous paper, it highlights the importance of a very interesting, common, serious global health problem, related to the increase in the number of pets and cases of disease transmission from animals to humans.
Although in many countries several communicable diseases were eradicated, many of them continue to be an important cause of illness and death in Colombia, mainly in poor communities. Those diseases have a relevant pathogenecity and can cause illnesses irrespective of a person's immunity.
Although there are limited data about the influence of pets in transmitting bugs to humans and several features are crucially important to understand well why we meet bugs on beds, for us, the very high increase of animal pets at contemporary society, their introduction in homes, and children's permanent close contact with them, are perhaps the most important factors associated with human bugs’ infestation. They are passively transported by animal pets. By direct contact with human beings or indirectly, for instance, through beds, these last ones are the causative organisms responsible for the transmission of arthropods, worms, fungi…which, by biting the host’s skin allow the body invasion by pathological agents such as bacteria, viruses, ricketsia, etc.
Nowadays we are living in the animal pets’ empire. They are in all parts of the cities. They are a fact of modern life. Small and big animals, domestic or wild ones, tykes, bulldogs, poodles, collies, terriers, dingos, cats, bats, lizards, snakes, rabbits, chickens, pigs, horses… Every day there are more of them. There is a peak of pet owning: the new generation likes them very much. They keep pets for pleasure rather than utility. As lovely creatures they early attract the attention of all people, who always see them as passive animals, even as very important family members. Pets are treated with unusual consideration. In Colombia many animal pets of rich families have better life conditions than many poor children. Those animals easily impact upon the lives of ordinary people, mainly on children and youth. It´s not very difficult to see on Colombian cities, in all society levels, children snatching up little pets into their arms, kissing, or embracing them, dancing or playing with them, or doing several kinds of activities in direct contact with those animals. Every day children share their bed with pets.
In areas where the standard of living is very low people don’t have the necessary money for correctly maintaining the health of their pets. Others don’t have the proper time to care well for their animals. As a logical consequence of that, pets can bring bugs in on their bodies. Several kinds of dangerous parasites such as fleas, ticks, louses, mites easily can pass to the children's clothes or to the bed and so increase their risk to acquire severe infectious transmissible diseases.
As a good strategy in order to avoid further dissemination of arthropods and other dangerous parasites and so to prevent outbreaks of infectious diseases, it’s urgent and indispensable to improve the general status and living conditions of the population. For that, one very important step that must be taken is to eradicate from society the use of animal pets as a form of living culture. We must address the problem of pets’ growth in families. We consider it as a serious dilemma today. It´s necessary to study the real influence of pets on people lives and to end the promotion of having pets at homes, even at the most important places of the cities.
Nowadays affairs are not going well with the great increase in the number of pets in our cities. There is not a good social control in pets’ activity on cities. Every day in the most important Colombian papers you can meet bad news related with several problems caused by pets’ activities on the streets, at parks, at homes…
As the bugs spreading is a very common problem in underdeveloped countries and among population with very low socio-economic status, living in congested localities with poor sanitation, we think that to reduce the incidence and prevalence of arthropods and other dangerous parasites, improvements in people's general nutrition and in housing conditionsare urgently needed. It´s also necessary to raise the people's standard of living, to increase their daily salary wage, to give them good education, and to promote habits for good health.
Competing interests: No competing interests