When it comes to vulnerable populations, senior citizens top the list. Whether seniors live alone, in an assisted living facility, or in an adult community, health risks abound. Many people think about illnesses and physical injuries, but one thing that is often missed is infestations. Seniors living with bed bugs is a growing problem.
Seniors are more likely to have medical problems that make them more susceptible to the effects of insecticides. Pest control service around seniors needs to be adjusted to reduce their potential exposure to insecticides. Special problems and risks include:
BREATHING
PROBLEMS
Seniors have more respiratory problems such as bronchitis and emphysema. People with breathing problems are more affected by airborne irritants such as certain pesticides and the additives used in pesticide products.
DEMENTIA
Those suffering from senility, Alzheimer’s, stroke, or other disorders affecting memory or reasoning may not be able to follow instructions intended to minimize their insecticide exposure.
LACK OF
MOBILITY
Seniors may be bedridden or confined at home or limit themselves to a particular room. Special provisions may need to be made to treat that room(s) without the person present.
DEPRESSED
IMMUNE
SYSTEMS
Many seniors have chronic medical problems or take medications that reduce the effectiveness of their immune system, making it harder for their bodies to detoxify and eliminate insecticide residues that would not affect normal individuals.
APATHY
May not be the reason for all cases of ignoring the presence of these parasites. When some enter old age, they become less caring about their appearance and tend to ignore cuts, scrapes and skin lesions. They simply stop caring.
MEDICATIONS
& PESTICIDES
Seniors take more medicines. Some medications can make people more susceptible to the health effects of insecticides, often by interfering with the ability of the liver to detoxify and eliminate chemicals in the body.
Pesticides and insecticides contain toxic chemicals as a way of eradicating pests. The chemicals may include a carcinogen, which is any substance that is directly involved in causing cancer. Pesticides include two types of chemicals, active and inert. The active ingredients kill or repel the pest, and inert chemicals are used for other purposes, including attracting the pest or increasing shelf life.
When a pest control company fails to treat an infestation properly, the person whose residence they negligently treat can be severely injured. There have been many reported cases where pest control companies dumped gallons of poison into senior citizen's apartments over several years, never ridding the apartment of bed bugs, but causing tenants to become severely ill from the poison, and prolonging the time they are bitten.
Unfortunately, some pest control companies do not follow industry guidelines, and actually worsen the problem they are called to fix.
562-266-7410
PUBLIC HEALTH VIOLATIONS
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