Blood type and beer consumption are decisive Mosquitoes particularly like to fly on this blood group
Mosquitoes are picky in their search for food. People with a certain blood type are bitten more often than others. Lifestyle and health factors can also play a role.
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- Mosquitoes are pests for almost everyone.
- However, the insects perceive certain signals that make them more likely to bite.
- A certain blood type is particularly popular. But beer drinkers are also at risk.
The conditions for the pesky insects have been ideal over the past few weeks: Switzerland must prepare itself for a mosquito plague, say experts. But not all people are bitten equally often: The pesky insects particularly like to target one blood group.
As a study published in the "Journal of Medical Entomology" suggests, mosquitoes land twice as often on people with blood group 0 than on people with the other blood groups. According to the researchers, certain secretions that draw attention to the blood group play a role in this.
However, the possible preference of mosquitoes for certain blood groups still needs to be researched further, entomology professor Jonathan F. Day from the University of Florida admitted to the "Huffpost". However, he agreed that mosquitoes do pick up on some signals that make them more likely to land on and bite certain people.
We'll tell you who mosquitoes particularly target.
Athletes
Mosquitoes have a preference for sweat and carbon dioxide, which is exhaled or excreted through the skin. Anyone who is doing sport is a preferred target.
Pregnant women
Pregnant women also like to be flown at by mosquitoes. The reason: a higher proportion of CO₂ in the exhaled air. In addition, their body temperature is slightly higher, which makes them desirable to mosquitoes.
People with dark clothing
Mosquitoes like dark outfits, literally. They have excellent eyesight and are able to recognize contrasts. People wearing dark clothing stand out better against the background and are therefore more likely to be targeted than people wearing light-colored clothing, who are less noticeable to mosquitoes, as Jonathan Day explains.
Beer drinkers
A study shows that a small beer is enough to make you more attractive to mosquitoes. Dermatologist Melissa Piliang explains to "Huffpost" that "the reason lies in an altered or increased metabolism".