How to Reduce Mosquitoes Around Your Home (Low-Cost Methods)

WHY THIS MATTERS

KEY WORDS

• Insecticide-treated net (ITN): a bed net treated with insecticide that kills or drives away mosquitoes that land on it. Long-lasting nets keep working for about three years.
• Indoor residual spraying (IRS): spraying insecticide on inside walls, usually done by health teams.
• Repellent: a cream or spray that stops mosquitoes from biting your skin.
• Eaves: the gap between the top of a wall and the roof, a common way for mosquitoes to get in.

METHOD 1 SLEEP UNDER A TREATED NET, EVERY NIGHT

• Everyone should sleep under a net, especially children under five and pregnant women.
• Hang the net over the sleeping place and tuck the edges under the mattress or mat.
• Air a new net outside in the shade for a day before first use.
• Get into bed and close the net before it gets dark, and keep it closed during the day.
• Mend holes as soon as you see them, by sewing them closed or adding a patch. Even small holes let mosquitoes in.
• Wash it only when it's dirty, with mild soap and cool water, and dry it flat in the shade. Washing too often and drying in strong sun weakens the insecticide.
• Replace your net every three to five years, or sooner if it's badly damaged.
• Never use treated nets for fishing or to protect crops. The insecticide harms fish and the net no longer protects your family.

METHOD 2 REMOVE BREEDING SITES EVERY WEEK

• Empty, scrub and turn over buckets, basins, pots and old containers.
• Cover water storage drums and jerrycans tightly with a lid or cloth.
• Fill puddles, ruts and hoof prints near the house with soil or sand.
• Clear blocked drains so water flows away.
• Store old tyres under cover or fill them with soil, and collect plastic rubbish, bottles and tins.
• Change water in animal drinking troughs and flower vases at least once a week.
• For ponds or water you can't drain, local fish such as tilapia eat mosquito larvae.

METHOD 3 KEEP MOSQUITOES OUT OF THE HOUSE

• Close the eaves gap between the wall and roof with mud, wood or mesh.
• Fit wire or plastic mesh screens on windows and vents.
• Close doors and windows from dusk, when mosquitoes start looking for people.
• Let health teams spray inside walls during indoor spraying campaigns, and don't repaint or plaster over the walls afterwards, or the insecticide stops working.

METHOD 4 PROTECT YOURSELF IN THE EVENING

• Wear long sleeves and long trousers when sitting outside after dark.
• Use an insect repellent containing DEET, picaridin or oil of lemon eucalyptus on exposed skin, following the label.
• Light-coloured clothes make it easier to see and brush off mosquitoes.

WHAT DOESN'T WORK (OR WORKS POORLY)

• Ultrasonic "mosquito repeller" devices and phone apps: studies show they don't stop bites.
• Eating garlic or taking vitamin B: no good evidence that they repel mosquitoes.
• Burning leaves, cow dung or mosquito coils indoors: smoke may chase some mosquitoes away for a while, but the smoke damages lungs, especially children's. If you use coils, use them outdoors or in well-ventilated places, never instead of a net.
• Cutting all the grass and bushes: tidiness helps a little, but mosquitoes breed in water, not grass. Removing water matters much more.

REAL-LIFE CASE STUDY A COMPOUND IN BOR

• They collected free nets from the next distribution, so every sleeping place had one, and sewed up the torn net.
• They turned the broken drum over and filled the hoof prints with soil every few days during the rains.
• They packed mud into the eaves gap of the main hut.
• The children now go under their nets before dark.

PRACTICE

✓ Check Your Understanding

Pick one answer for each question. You'll see the explanation straight away.

1. Why is sleeping under a treated net so effective against malaria?

Malaria mosquitoes mostly bite late at night while people sleep, and the net blocks and kills them It keeps the room cooler so mosquitoes stay away The smell of the net attracts mosquitoes away from the house Malaria mosquitoes only bite in the daytime

Anopheles mosquitoes, which carry malaria, mostly bite in the late evening and at night. A treated net forms a barrier and the insecticide kills or drives away mosquitoes that land on it.

2. Your net has a small hole. What should you do?

Nothing, small holes don't matter Throw it away and sleep without one Sew it closed or patch it straight away Wash it in hot water to tighten the threads

Mosquitoes can get through even small holes. Mend holes quickly with a needle and thread or a patch, and keep using the net.

3. Which of these is a breeding site for malaria mosquitoes?

Dry, dusty ground Rainwater collected in cattle hoof prints near the house A tightly covered water drum A bag of dry maize

Anopheles mosquitoes breed in shallow, sunlit water such as puddles and hoof prints. Filling them with soil removes the breeding site. A tightly covered drum keeps mosquitoes out.

4. A neighbour wants to buy an ultrasonic mosquito repeller instead of using nets. What would you tell them?

It works better than a net It works only for children It's fine if used with mosquito coils indoors Studies show these devices don't stop bites, so keep using a net

Research has found that ultrasonic repellers don't prevent mosquito bites. Treated nets, removing standing water and screening the house are proven to work.

5. Health workers have just sprayed the inside walls of your house. What should you avoid doing?

Sleeping under a net Closing the eaves gap Emptying containers of water Repainting or plastering the walls soon afterwards

Indoor spraying leaves insecticide on the walls that kills mosquitoes when they rest there. Repainting or plastering covers it up so it stops working. Keep using your net too.

You got out of 5. Excellent work! Read the explanations above, then try again.

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