Health Watch - Visitors With Dirty Feet

Ahaa! Have you had to welcome them? I mean visitors with dirty feet? Yep! You don't like seeing them around. And if you are lucky, you have figured out how to ward them off. No, I'm not talking about the little wanderers who left their mother's laps for a sightseeing of the neighbourhood. No, not those toddlers. Not the pets either, even though they are just as adventurous. You know what I'm talking about. Or would you rather guess, just for the kicks?

Oh ho! I'm talking about those houseflies! Yes, those ones that travel many miles to your home uninvited. You want to see their nose?

Sometimes, you don't see them coming, but they are so eager to make an appearance. It's usually easy to find them in your trash can or where there is a mess on the floor. Ah! If you've got a leftover from last night's dinner sitting on the kitchen table or in the sink, don't worry. They will take care of it.

Houseflies are known to be disease agents, that is, they are vectors. They are very happy messengers of ill health. Don't worry, the neighbourhood doctor didn't ask them to increase your medical bill. It just happened that the flies won't pass up an opportunity to be popular and make you sick.

OK, let me get a little detached. Where can one find houseflies? Look around your house right now. Is there food on the floor or even ...cough *human excreta* from a child or the one from a pet? Do you see that? OK, take it out. Dispose of it. Em...what about your trash can, does it have a lid? If not, cover it up. Oh, is it time to take out the trash? Whose turn is it to empty the trash can? Never mind. Take it out right now, before the visitors come calling.

What are some of the diseases the housefly transmits? They include, typhoid and paratyphoid fever, dysentery, cholera, conjuctivitis, diarrhea etc. These unwelcome visitors spread diseases through many means, which include: vomiting, perching on food and skin, and defecation.

To keep your food and family safe from these porters of infection, keep your house clean. Use insecticides and ensure that animal droppings are cleaned immediately. Keep your trash can or bin clean. Use trash bags for easy disposal of refuse.

Be clean and happy. Put up a NO FLIES ZONE sticker on your kitchen cabinet. Cheers!