Written By: Bhavyajyoti Chilukoti | Updated : April 22, 2016 4:55 PM IST
Of all people around you, you are only one who ends up with mosquito bites all over the hands and legs. With all the red spots and bumps on the skin, you wonder why your friends and colleagues sitting next to you do not have a single bite? Well, the answer might be -- you are a mosquito magnet. Yes, you heard it right! Here's scientific proof for why some mosquitoes target a specific person. Here are five reasons why you are a mosquito magnet.
1. Your blood group is O : According to a 2004 study [1] published in the Journal of medical entomology, people with blood group O attracted more mosquitoes as compared to those with other blood groups (A, B and AB). The study further shed light on the fact that the order of preference is blood group O, followed by those with blood group A, blood group B and least in the case of people with blood group AB. So if your blood group is O, you are more likely to get bitten by mosquitoes. You can lower your risk of diseases caused by mosquitoes like malaria, dengue, chikungunya and Zika by following these tips to prevent a mosquito bite.
2. You are pregnant: Yes, as compared to older adults and children, pregnant women are more prone to a mosquito bite. The 2004 study [2] reported in the annals of tropical medicine and parasitology revealed that pregnant women are twice likely to get bitten than those who are not expecting. This is attributed to the fact that mosquitoes are attracted to those with a higher metabolic rate as they produce more carbon dioxide and pregnant women showed an increased metabolism as compared to others [3]. Here s more on why mosquitoes prefer to bite humans.
3. You have the 'mosquito magnet' genes: Another important factor that makes you a mosquito magnet lies in your genes. The 2013 study [4] published in the journal Infections, Genetics and Evolution showed that human leukocyte antigen (HLA) genes are responsible for the preference of mosquitoes to humans. These genes are involved in the regulation of human body odour and hence, based on the attractiveness of mosquitoes to the chemical emitted by people with these particular set of genes. Hence, mosquitoes can smell you and bite you even when you are in a group. Moreover, mosquitoes prefer biting at a particular site like the head, trunk, hands and legs than others. As mentioned in the book titled Olfaction in Mosquito-Host Interactions by CIBA Foundation Symposium [5], mosquito species Aedes aegypti, female mosquitoes that can cause dengue, prefer biting on the head and upper part of the trunk.
Click on the image to knowtop 10 favorite spots of mosquitoes (YES! They do prefer certian body party)
References
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