Have you ever heard of chikungunya? Probably you've heard of dengue. Both are mosquito-borne illnesses. We have become familiar with both down here! Here is an article we recently saw on a US news website.
And there's this rather dramatic article about dengue in Guatemala. However, dengue is now found in the southern US, and in many more tropical places all over the world. It's pretty common. And there are four types, only one of which is serious; the other types are uncomfortable and inconvenient.
It used to be more common to hear about such mosquito-borne illnesses primarily on the coasts of Guatemala, in the more moist hot regions. But things have spread to here in the mountains (we're at 5200 feet, and we're quite moderate in temperatures year-round).
I hesitated for a while to even post this, since people may be scared off from a visit! And several of the brothers here have had either dengue or chikungunya - some with mild to moderate symptoms, some more extended in time and symptoms.
Or, plan your visits for dry season, usually November - May, when we can expect fewer mosquitos.
We haven't suffered either, I'm happy to report!
The prevention? Mosquito repellant. But I'm not even super-careful to use repellant 'religiously', and I've been OK. And we've heard vitamin B makes one less tasty to mosquitos.
Just adds to the 'charm' of such a place. Maybe it's Jehovah's way to say... go to bed and read for a few days. Put on Netflix or JW TV and relax.
No comments:
Post a Comment