Luckily for people like me, the inflammation and itchiness does wane over time. They also prompt nerves in our skin to send a signal to our brain which makes the bite feel itchy. Histamines attract more immune cells to the area. Its redness and inflammation is a sign of an immune system chain reaction involving a kind of antibody called IgE, which triggers the release of chemicals such as histamines. Then there's the flare: the ruddy patch circling the wheal. "So that's why you get swelling - there's more liquid and cells getting to the area." "Your blood vessels also get a little bit more leaky, meaning that immune cells can now come out of the blood into the area. "The wheal results from vasodilation, which means your blood vessels open up," Dr Nguyen-Robertson says. The first is the wheal - that's the raised lump. "Of those, more than dozen, maybe around 16, have been identified to cause an immune reaction," she says.Ī typical mosquito bite reaction has two parts. "Mosquito saliva is very complex, with 100 or more different proteins in it. Not everyone reacts the same way, and how we react changes with age and other factors (more on that later).īut essentially, it starts with mosquito saliva - specifically, a handful of compounds in it, says Catriona Nguyen-Robertson, an immunologist at the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity. Over the years, I've received mountains of advice on how to relieve itchy mozzie bites: tips and tricks that people absolutely swear by.īut what does science say? What works? And what doesn't?įirst, we need to know why mosquito bites look and feel the way they do. Within minutes, welts spring up, each around the size of a 5 cent coin, surrounded by a spreading ring of reddening skin.Īlmost as quickly as they swell, my bite sites start feeling a bit prickly, then tickly, before blooming into a full blown itch - the kind that seems to intensify right as I'm trying to sleep. And there are plenty around at the moment, thanks to all this rain we've had.ĭespite making every effort to avoid being bitten in the first place, especially as some mosquitoes carry potentially nasty diseases, the wily little things occasionally slip past my defences.Īnd I have the unfortunate combination of being a mozzie magnet and reacting pretty severely to their bites. My attackers are, of course, those swarming suckers of summertime: mosquitoes. I rarely see my assailants as they disappear into the dusk, leaving no trace aside from the beginnings of a bump. Summer and painful insect bite itching often go hand in hand.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |