What harm can a centipede do if it crawls onto your body?

The centipede is a predatory terrestrial arthropod with venom glands. It fears sunlight and hides by day, coming out at night. It likes to live in dark, warm, rain-sheltered places with good air circulation. During the day it mostly lurks in cracks between bricks and stones, along wall bases, and in dark corners among piles of leaves, weeds and rotting wood, emerging at night to move about. Let's take a look below at what happens if a centipede crawls onto your body!

What happens if a centipede crawls onto your body?

Although the centipede is venomous, the venom only enters the human body after a bite; simply crawling onto your body will not cause any harm. The centipede's legs are hook-shaped and sharp, with a venom gland opening at the tip of each hook, commonly called the maxilliped, fang claw or venom limb, which can discharge venom. After a centipede bite, its venom glands secrete a large amount of venom, which passes through the venom gland openings of the maxillipeds and is injected under the skin of the bitten person, causing poisoning. The toxin is not strong, and a sting causes pain but is not fatal.

How should a centipede bite be treated?

If bitten by a centipede, immediately wash the wound with soapy water and apply a cold compress to the wound. If houttuynia or dandelion is available, gather some, mash it and apply it to the wound, then tie a band tightly around the area 3 cm above the wound, loosening it once every quarter of an hour for 2 minutes each time, and ice can be applied around the wound. If the case is more serious, the bite site should be incised and the venom extracted with a suction device or by cupping, and the wound washed with limewater or potassium permanganate, then go to the hospital immediately for treatment.

How can centipedes be prevented and controlled from entering the house?

1. Keep the rooms dry and open windows often for ventilation. If moisture cannot be reduced through doors and windows, use desiccants such as quicklime to dehumidify, or use an air dryer to dehumidify.

2. Centipedes like to live close to the ground and often hide in burrows or cracks. Once centipedes are found to have entered the home, tidy up the clutter indoors; do not leave objects all over the floor, and try not to let small gaps form between clutter and the ground, so as not to give centipedes a hiding place.

3. Centipedes usually enter homes because the surrounding environment is damp and suitable for them to live in, and in some cases they intrude into human dwellings intentionally or unintentionally. Therefore, flower beds should be planned and arranged as far as possible from doors, windows and wall bases, and clutter should not be piled up right against wall bases.

4. Centipedes are creatures active at night and often enter rooms through gaps such as door cracks, window cracks and wall cracks. Therefore, doors and windows should be closed tightly at night, especially in the hot summer, and any cracks in the walls must be sealed.