Waco, Texas (KWKT) — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently released a health advisory over cases of malaria.
This is the first time in 20 years that the CDC has had to make an advisory over a local spread of malaria in the United States. The advisory was made after four cases were detected in Florida and another was detected in Texas.
Malaria, caused by a parasite that spreads through bites from Anopheles mosquitoes, causes fever, chills, sweats, nausea and vomiting, and headaches. It is not spread person to person.
Jeff Wooten, the owner of Cen-Tex Pest Control in Waco, Texas, said bugs nest in wet areas in the springtime to then move and populate in the summer.
He said it’s best to take care of your surroundings.
“Mosquitos kill more people than anything else on planet Earth,” said Wooten. “Nearly every year, mosquitoes kill the entire population of the city of Austin. That’s every man, woman and child killed yearly by mosquitoes.”
Wooten says bugs are attracted to any clutter that provides moisture and coverage, so cleaning your home and repairing any leaks can help deter them.
Standing water is another problem, Wooten said.
“Standing water in any pots or anything. Go ahead and dump that out and make sure those are cleaned out. That’ll prevent mosquitoes and every other type of bug from having a water source and multiplying,” he said.
Maintaining bushes in your yard and monitoring the outside perimeter of your home is another way to prevent bugs.
West Nile virus, similar to malaria, is also mosquito-borne, though Baylor Scott and White Hillcrest medical director Dr. Joshua Houser says it is a rare thing to see.
“You always see separate episodes of viral syndromes in the summer. West Nile is a very uncommon condition that we see here. It gets the media, but it doesn’t actually get seen very often,” said Houser.
When outside, Houser says, be sure to protect yourself.
“As much as possible, wear plenty of insect repellent as possible, long-sleeved shirts and long pants as much as possible to keep them from getting on you. Staying away from locations that have a lot of those insect types,” said Houser.
Wooten suggests that if you have a serious insect problem, you should consider professional services.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.