I have wondered many a time, over
time, whether users of mosquito coil are not exposing themselves to some sort
of danger. The source of my wonderment is a question I have been posing to
myself. The question I have been asking myself is, if a mosquito coil, for that
matter a mosquito repellent, could kill a mosquito (if it has not developed
resistance to it yet), why can’t it do damage to the human being it is intended
to protect from the mosquito bite? Let us be clear on this point. The mosquito
the mosquito coil is designed to eliminate is a living organism as is the human
being the mosquito coil is intended to protect from the malaria-causing
mosquito bite.
Mosquito or human being, both living
organisms have a common medium from which to take into their bodies the smoke
that the mosquito coil emits. That common medium is the air or atmosphere. The
next logical step, to my mind is to find out whether the smoke that the
mosquito coil releases into the atmosphere compromises the natural environment.
Of course once it kills mosquito it must of necessity compromise the atmosphere
for that matter the natural environment.
I myself have used mosquito coil
before. Mosquito coil is used mainly in Africa, Asia and South America. I had
believed that once you use the mosquito coil you should not get malaria, that
is, if the mosquito is not resistant to the mosquito coil. When through the
agency of the burning mosquito coil you are not able get malaria there cannot
be any ‘qualms’. But then again the million dollar question. If mosquito coil
can kill mosquito, a living organism, why can’t it kill a human being, another
living organism? When an issue affects the higher species, the human being, it
is then that the issue assumes a sharper focus!
When mosquito coil burns to repel or
kill mosquitoes for supposed safety of humans certain substances are released
into the air- to compromise it. The air, a component of the natural
environment, contains certain naturally occurring substances on which living
organisms depend for the sustenance of their lives- humans, mosquitoes and
other living organisms.
COMPOSITION
To look critically at substances
burning mosquito coil releases into the air we must first know the materials used
in manufacturing mosquito coil. Some of the materials used in the manufacture
of mosquito coil are as follows:
- Pyrethrum- a powdered material derived from a plant of the daisy family (chrysanthemum). Daisy is a flower.
- Pyrethrins- it is a substance of insecticidal properties derived from pyrethrum.
- Allethrin- an artificial form of a chemical found in chrysanthemum plant (family of the daisy flower). It is an artificial pyrethroid. Pyrethroid is a compound similar to pyrethrin.
TOXICITY
Based on the foregoing substances, mosquito
coil targets and attacks and paralyzes the nervous system of mosquitoes before
they die. The mosquito coil when burning emits the substances that paralyze the
mosquito. Apart from mosquitoes, research has shown that mosquito coil kills other living organisms. Pyrethroids are said to be toxic to bees, gadflies,
fish and other living organisms. All these living organisms play important
roles in the natural environment to ensure its sustained balance. A drop in the
required quantity of a species therefore creates an imbalance in the natural
environment.
The smoke the mosquito coil releases
into the air contains the following:
- Particulate matter- may be deposited into lungs of humans to cause pneumonia and asthma
- Organic vapors- phenol (carbolic acid) and o-cresol (a derivative of phenol)
- Heavy metals-e.g. lead
OPTION
The options you have, if you are a
mosquito coil user, are as follows:
- Use a mosquito net
- Use fan to repel mosquito
- Mosquito coil is supposed to be used outdoors
- Use organic materials to repel mosquito- burning orange peel for example
- Clear sources of mosquito breeding- e.g. water kept in open containers
Little as it is, the mosquito is such
a nuisance, yet it has its role (source of food for other living organisms) in
the sustenance of a clean and balance natural environment. So in protecting
ourselves from their bite we should do it in a way that would not compromise
the natural environment, the base of the material sustenance of living
organisms.
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