How to treat while limiting toxicity for humans?
However, it is necessary to kill cockroaches, bedbugs and other clothes or food moths?
Pyrethrin and pyrethroids are deadly killers of cold-blooded animals and have virtually no effect on warm-blooded animals.
We immediately understand the interest of be able to treat your living space with the least toxic products possible for humans and pets. At the same time, and in the same place, it is necessary to eliminate cockroaches, bedbugs, flies and mosquitoes, clothes moths and food moths, ants, dust mites, silverfish.
Please note, these products are very effective, so:
- If you use them wisely, you will succeed in getting rid of all the harmful insects in your home while limiting as much as possible the toxicity for its occupants.
- If you use them improperly, you can cause real ecological damage.
First, know the product and its mode of action well.
Pyrethrin is a natural substance extracted from the flowers of the Dalmatian pyrethrum. It is a beautiful perennial flower that looks like a large daisy. In order for it to be rich in pyrethrin, it must grow between 1500 and 3000 meters above sea level. The dried flowers are ground into a very fine powder from which the pyrethrin is extracted.
Pyrethroids are synthetic molecules reproduced in the laboratory on the model of pyrethrin. At a lower cost, they have the same qualities while offering more stability and resistance to contact with air and light.
Pyrethrin and Pyrethroids disrupt neurotransmitters and paralyze the lymphatic system of cold-blooded animals. Luckily, we are warm-blooded animals.
However, these are very effective active substances that must be used wisely. They are pesticides and neurotoxins. On each package containing pyrethrums or pyrethroids, you will find the symbol " dangerous for the environment and aquatic environments ".
This indication should be taken very seriously and reminds us of the destructive power of pyrethrums and pyrethroids for all cold-blooded animals, whether it is a flea, a cockroach, a bedbug, but also a fish, a turtle, aquatic environments in general, bees, ladybugs, butterflies and all "auxiliaries" in general!
I therefore recommend never using products containing pyrethrins or pyrethroids outside the home and only using these products inside the home . A priori, we do not want to have cold-blooded animals at home, unless we raise stick insects, turtles or snakes.
Although there is unanimity in recognizing the extreme effectiveness of pyrethrums and pyrethrins, there is controversy over the possible toxicity of pyrethrums and pyrethroids.
It is very difficult to form an opinion on the internet as the opinions are so clear-cut, militant and imprecise. Some articles mention a possible allergenic and even carcinogenic suspicion. For the allergenic aspect, it appears that some people exposed to a high concentration of pyrethrin or pyrethroid and having a favorable terrain for allergies could experience irritation of the nasal passages or skin irritation on the face. In any case, it is obvious that Pyrethrins and pyrethroids are infinitely less allergenic than pollens. Let's not forget that these products are used in direct treatment on the scalp to fight lice or in skin treatment ointment to fight against invasions of tiger mosquitoes carrying chikungunya. Thus, infants have been treated for several months, and this for many years, without any after-effects. In more than twenty years of marketing these products in my drugstore, I have not had to deplore any complaints or incidents. As an additional precaution, it is recommended that people with allergies or asthma leave the room at the time of treatment and only return after an hour and after airing. If you treat your entire apartment at once, I recommend that you wear an FFP3 paper mask to avoid possible nasal stinging.
For information, the LD50 tested on rats orally for caffeine is: 192 mg/kg while that of pyrethroids is 584 to 900 mg/kg. I remind you that the lower the LD50 figure, the more toxic the product tested is.
The cat is an exception to the rule. : it does not tolerate pyrethrin or pyrethroids, especially permethrin which is the most toxic for it (it is also intolerant to paracetamol and aspirin). Unlike other mammals, the cat does not have glucuronyltransferase. This is an enzyme that allows the elimination of pyrethrins and pyrethroids in the body. To be precise, the cat would be poisoned if he ingested pyrethrins or pyrethroids. If you treat your apartment with pyrethrins or pyrethroids, you must do it outside the presence of cats and wait until the surfaces have dried before allowing them to re-enter the premises. As soon as the treated surfaces have dried, including the basket where the cat sleeps, there is no longer any risk of toxicity. If you were to treat a cat with a powder or by direct spraying with a product containing pyrethrins or pyrethroids, since it licks itself to groom itself, it would ingest the product. It could suffer convulsions and hypersalivation. In the event of heavy ingestion, it could die. To treat your pets, I recommend diatomaceous earth.
Be careful, a pyrethroid, Permethrin is very toxic to cats through simple skin contact . I recommend that you never use any product containing Permethrin. In the products that I recommend to effectively get rid of all insects in the house, like BSI STOP Insects, there are pyrethroids, but no permethrin.
Once again, I would like to draw your attention to the fact that these products are not harmless to the environment. They should be used wisely.
In the current state of our knowledge, we can consider that Pyrethrins and pyrethroids at these concentrations are infinitely less allergenic than pollens and infinitely less toxic to humans than caffeine or salt . Indeed
It is also known that pyrethrin and pyrethroids are very quickly broken down and eliminated from our body by the kidneys and liver.
In conclusion , and in the current state of scientific knowledge, Here's what I think about pyrethrins and pyrethroids :
For a reasoned use, wisely, inside homes and at the recommended doses, I think they are a lesser evil for the environment and for our health. Of course, they are neurotoxic (they act on the neurotransmitters of cold-blooded animals) and biocides (they kill cold-blooded organisms).
In an ideal world, we would all prefer to do without them, just as we would all prefer not to have moths in our cupboards, cockroaches under the sink or bedbugs in our beds. So, we have to choose:
- either we accept the unhealthy cohabitation of cockroaches and restless nights in the company of bedbugs
- either we decide that our house needs to be rid of harmful insects
Pyrethrins and pyrethroids have been used for many years for the treatment of our habitats, they are also integrated into certain preparations applicable directly to the skin. To my knowledge, and unlike many everyday consumer products, No reports of suspected carcinogenic or mutagenic effects have been found for these products at this dilution rate.
We are surrounded daily by agents whose toxicity is certain: the sun's rays can cause skin cancer, the fine particles produced by diesel, but even more by the wear of brake pads, cause chronic asthma and lung cancer. What should we think of the excess salt and sugar that produce obesity and heart attacks. But what about excessive alcohol consumption and even more, tobacco addiction, the all-category champion, which kills one in two consumers?
As in everything, you have to know how to put things into perspective .
In case of infestation by harmful insects, I recommend the use of pyrethrins and pyrethroids as an essential complement to mechanical control. (spring cleaning, frequent laundry, steam cleaner, freezing, frequent vacuuming, diatomaceous earth). These treatments must be done punctually, appropriately and effectively.
As a precautionary principle , these treatments will not be carried out in the presence of pregnant or breastfeeding women, young children or people suffering from allergies or asthma. Wearing an FFP3 mask is recommended during treatment.
