An environmental health expert, Mr Patrick Ozigagu, has told Nigerian households to embrace fumigation to promote healthy living.
Ozigagu told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos on Friday that it was necessary to fumigate homes at least once in three months to kill off pests, rodents and other insects, causing health hazards.
He said that unhygienic lifestyles in many Nigerian households had exposed people to various ailments, caused by roaches and other undesirable insects in homes.
“In spite of the cost implication and the current poor state of the economy, regular fumigation will keep the home fresh and pest-free.
The health benefits of fumigation outweigh the cost. This is why most Nigerians who know the value of fumigation invest in it.
“Regular fumigation eradicates a wide spectrum of household insects like bedbugs, cockroaches, geckos, mosquitoes, rats and even scorpions.
“I advise Nigerians to fumigate their homes regularly at least between three to four months intervals.”
Ozigagu also advised Nigerians to patronise only government-registered fumigators, having requisite training, to forestall the hazards of the chemical used in fumigation.
“To ensure best practices, we advise Nigerians to engage fumigation companies that are registered with health services agencies and government’s regulatory bodies.
“Fumigation involves professionalism because of its impact on health and the environment. We should not cut cost but must engage the services of professionals and not quacks.”
He warned on the inherent danger of bedbugs in many homes and the need to kill them off to avoid their spread.
“One bedbug is capable of producing over a million eggs anywhere it infests. Once observed, it is advisable to act on time to prevent its spread.
“Just like termites can bring down a building to rubbles, the presence of bedbugs in a home can make one to sell all his property off,” he said.