World Mosquito Day (20 August) History, Significance, Theme and Observation

World Mosquito Day Quick Facts

World Mosquito Day Brief

World Mosquito Day is celebrated every year on 20 August all over the world. The day is observed in the memory of professional physician Sir Ronald Raas, who discovered in the year 1897 that the female mosquito is responsible for the transmission of a deadly disease like malaria to humans.

World Mosquito Day History

World Mosquito Day began on 20 August 1897. British Dr. Ronald Ross of the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine discovered on this day that the carriers of malaria are female Anopheles mosquitoes. His efforts later led to worldwide campaigns for the prevention and treatment of mosquito-borne diseases, and thousands of lives were saved from malaria. He was also awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1902 for this contribution.

Small mosquito sting - can pose a big danger. Mosquito bites can be fatal. Diseases such as Malaria, Dengue, Chikungunya, Japanese encephalitis, Filariasis, Zika virus and yellow fever can also cause serious life threatening diseases.

More info about World Mosquito Day

Diseases caused by mosquitoes:

• Dengue: Dengue mosquito is a mosquito that breeds during the rainy season. Its virus is DENV-1, DENV-2, DENV-3, DENV-4 virus. High fever comes when it is bitten. It is also called break bone fever. Dengue is spread by the day biting female mosquito Aedes aegypti. In this, the person gets high fever, headache, pain behind the eyes, muscle and joint pain and pimples all over the body.
• Malaria: Malaria disease is caused by the bite of female Anopheles mosquito. This mosquito also thrives in the rainy season, malaria disease is a disease spread by the parasite Plasmodium.
• Chikungunya: Its name sounds like a delicious street food item. But it is a painful disease characterized by high fever and joint pain. Chikungunya was first detected in Tanzania in 1952. Its name is derived from the Kimakonde language, which means "to be deformed".
• Yellow fever: Yellow fever is caused by a virus that affects about two million people each year, most of them in sub-Saharan Africa.
• La Crosse encephalitis: This mosquito-borne virus is named after the city of La Crosse in the US state of Wisconsin, where it was first detected in 1963.

Preventing Mosquitoes (Precautions):

During the rainy season, favorable conditions are created for the breeding of mosquitoes and transmission of many diseases. There are thousands of species of mosquitoes around the world, some of which are extremely harmful.

Male mosquitoes suck pollen (plant sap) while female mosquitoes suck human blood for their nutrition. When female mosquitoes suck human blood, it acts as a factor in transmitting life-threatening infections to humans, which can cause life-threatening diseases that are responsible for human life.

How to avoid mosquito bites:-

1. Do not allow water to fill the place or place a few drops of kerosene oil or petrol on the place where the water is filled.
2. Eat things high in vitamins, such as - amla, orange.
3. Do not allow water to collect in water tanks, coolers, tubes and tyres.
4. Change the cooler water daily.
5. Close the water tanks properly.
6. Use more and more in food, take two to three pinches of turmeric with water.
7. Take half a teaspoon of turmeric with water in the morning or with milk at night.
8. Boil basil leaves with honey and drink it.
9. Do not drink milk at night if you have severe fever, cold.
10. Apply mustard oil inside the nose. Due to the lubricity of the oil, it prevents the bacteria coming from outside from entering the nose.
11. If vomiting is occurring again and again, then take lemon juice mixed with apple juice.
12. If the condition is bad, extract the juice of wheat germ and take it 2-3 times a day.
13. Make a decoction of the stem of Giloy's vine.
14. A person with bad Rahu and Saturn has the problem of being bitten by a mosquito.

Some important facts about Mosquitoes:

• An infected mosquito can transmit malaria to a human just by biting. If a malaria-carrying mosquito bites you, the parasite will be released into your bloodstream infecting your body.
• Not all mosquitoes transmit malaria, only an infected female Anopheles can transmit malaria to humans.
• Mosquitoes usually do not bite during the day. They are most active at night and at night. However, it is important to stay protected during the whole day!
• In 2018, there were an estimated 405 000 deaths from malaria globally, compared to an estimated 416 000 deaths in 2017 and 585 000 in 2010.
• Malaria is found in more than 100 countries, mainly in tropical regions of the world. However, about 70% of the world's malaria burden is concentrated in 11 countries: 10 on the African continent and India. While malaria is not found in the UK, it can be diagnosed in travelers who return to the UK from endemic countries.
• Most malaria cases in 2018 were in the World Health Organization (WHO) African region (213 million or 93%), followed by the WHO South-East Asia region with 3.4% of cases and the WHO Eastern Mediterranean region with 2.1%.
• Starting in 2019, 3 sub-Saharan African countries – Ghana, Kenya and Malawi – introduced the vaccine to selected areas of moderate to high malaria transmission as part of a large-scale pilot program coordinated by the WHO. It aims to vaccinate approximately 360 000 children per year in selected areas in 3 countries. Vaccination is being provided through the routine immunization program of each country.
• GSK led the development of RTS over a period of 30 years. In 2001, GSK began collaborating with PATH's Malaria Vaccine Initiative (MVI) to continue RTS. A 5-year Phase 3 efficacy and safety trial was conducted between 2009 and 2014 through GSK, MVI (with support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation) and a network of African research centers at 11 sites in 7 countries. GSK is currently a vaccine manufacturer.

Important Days of August Month - (National Days and International Days):