Is It Possible To Find Cockroaches Inside The Human Body?

One popular story is about that of a lady who worked in a post office  One day, instead of using a sponge, this lady licked the envelopes to seal them, A week later, this lady discovered an abnormal swelling in her tongue which put her in severe pain. She went to the hospital to have it checked. There, the doctor prepared her for surgery. When the doctor cut her tongue open, a cockroach came out! When she licked the envelopes, one of those envelopes had a cockroach egg. This egg was embedded inside her tongue and stayed there until it hatched. 

Many people fell for this story. The thing was, there were no such documented cases. After all, cockroach eggs cannot survive inside a human’s mouth. It has been an urban legend all along. 

 If the eggs cannot survive inside a human, would it be the same for the adult cockroaches?  If they can, then how do we get rid of roaches inside the body?

Just Recently, A “Family Of Cockroach” Was Found Inside A Man’s Ear In China

As per a report from The Mirror on November 6, 2019, a Chinese man complained that he awoke from a sharp pain in his ear.  When close family members looked using a flashlight, they saw a large cockroach moving inside his ear.  The man soon after went to the Sanhe Hospital in Huiyan, China to seek medical care. While he was there, the Ear, Nose, Throat specialist found 10 more cockroaches, all babies, inside his ear and were all running around.  Using a pair of tweezers, the specialist removed the baby cockroaches, plus their mother. These cockroaches were identified as the German cockroach, a small group of cockroaches that are most commonly found in restaurants and hotels.   

After the procedure, the patient suffered from minor injuries to his right ear canal but was prescribed with ointment later on. He was discharged soon after.  

It has been said that the man was fond of eating on his bed, but has this habit of leaving the unfinished food packs near his bed and sleeping on it.  This attracted the cockroaches, and somehow they found their way inside the man’s ear.  

The human ear, in case you do not know, is an ideal place for cockroaches to live in during the cold months.  The ears provide them a warm shelter, that is why there are other reported cases of them living inside a human’s ear.  Another such story is that of a 60-year-old man from Chengdu, China. According to news reports, a cockroach found its way to his ears and stayed there for 3 days. Unable to successfully remove the cockroach in his ear, the man finally decided to spray pesticides inside his ear, which finally killed the cockroach.

In April 2018, The Tallahassee Democrat reported that a man from Florida checked himself in a hospital after he found out that a cockroach was living inside his ear. The man said he was fighting a war against German cockroaches in his house, but he never thought that these cockroaches would be taking the fight inside his ears. The doctor injected Lidocaine in his ear to kill the cockroach. It was also discovered that the cockroach managed to lay an egg case inside his ear. Fortunately, the doctor was able to remove it before it hatched.  Otherwise, the man would be hearing and feeling around 50 little cockroaches running in his ear.  

How to get rid of roaches when they are inside the ears?  Once the cockroach gets inside the ear, it is more likely to get stuck in there. This is because once inside the ear, people would scratch the ear, pushing them deeper inside. The worst thing to do would be to use a Q-Tip. Using this as a tool would only force the cockroaches deeper inside the ears, making it more difficult to remove them. Besides, it is always dangerous to use a Q-Tip to clean the ears as there will be a risk of tearing apart the eardrums. The ear is a delicate organ. Pour some mineral oil, olive oil, or baby oil inside the ear to make it float out.  Or better yet, go to a hospital and let your healthcare provider take care of it.  

Why Do Cockroaches Always Go For The Ear?

Cockroach attacks happen at night. This is because cockroaches are nocturnal insects. They are able to get inside the ears while we are defenseless and sleeping. They always look for a small, warm, humid place to hide. They also are always on the lookout for food.  Believe it or not, all of these can be found in the human ear. Cockroaches might wander around our ears looking for some food.  

Roaches are attracted by the smell coming out from our ears. Its smell is like fermented bread, or beer, or cheese. Our own earwax release a similar kind of scent that woos the roaches. 

The most common ear-invading type of cockroach is the German cockroach, a small type of cockroach.  Other types of cockroaches, like the American cockroach, is too big to fit in the human ear unless they are baby American cockroaches. 

German Cockroach

There are around 4,600 species of cockroaches.  Fortunately for all of us, not all of them are common household pests so you can now breathe a sigh of relief. Most of these cockroach species are not pests and are actually beneficial insects. They are found living in forests and are helpful to the ecosystem. Cockroaches only become pests once they get near human dwellings.  

Here in the United States, there are four common types of cockroaches: the American cockroach, the German cockroach, the Oriental cockroach, and the brown-banded cockroach.  

Most cases of cockroaches getting inside people’s ears involve the German cockroach. This type of cockroach is a small species of cockroach, about 1.1 to 1.5 inches long. Its color can be tan or black. They have wings but do not fly. They crawl, even in the face of danger. As it has now become obvious to us, this type of cockroach is said to be the most troublesome. They not only contaminate our food and sweet drinks, we now learn that they also crawl inside our heads. A German cockroach’s diet consists of meat, sugars, starch, fatty foods, glue, and even their own kind. They are commonly found in restaurants, hotels, food processing facilities, warehouses, hospitals, and nursing homes. They are highly sensitive to cold weather, and might not be able to survive outdoors without warmth. This is the reason they are usually found indoors. They are nocturnal creatures.   

German cockroaches reproduce fast, with one egg case producing 50 offspring. This is why getting rid of German cockroaches at once is very crucial.  

Signs That You May Have German Cockroaches In Your Home

When should we start moving to eliminate the cockroaches? Before you can act on a roach infestation problem in your house, you may look for these signs:

1. You may see the presence of cockroach droppings. A German cockroach’s droppings look like ground pepper or coffee grounds. You may usually find these on countertops and in drawers. Their feces may also cause dark stains around the house.  

2. You may detect an oily, musty smell. German cockroaches secrete odorous chemicals, so with the presence of these scents, you are most probably facing a German cockroach infestation.  

3. Physically seeing cockroaches during the day means you have a heavy cockroach infestation. Roaches are nocturnal insects, so it is unusual to see them during the day. If a roach or two manage to stray around the house in the daytime, then there is probably no more room left for them in their nest.  

Getting Rid Of Cockroaches

You do not have to wear uncomfortable earplugs to prevent German cockroaches from getting inside your ear.  Here are some tips to help you get rid of these cockroaches:

1. Practice good housekeeping. Properly dispose of your garbage every day. Cover your trash cans to reduce their food source.

2. Do not leave unwashed dishes in the kitchen sink overnight. Make sure to wash them immediately after eating.

3. Wipe off food particles and drink spills on the tables, countertops, stovetops, and on the floors.

4. Store food inside sealed containers to avoid being contaminated by roaches. 

5. Seal cracks and crevices by caulking. These are possible entry points that cockroaches can use to gain access to your home.  

6. Do not eat on your bed.  Food crumbs will attract not only cockroaches but ants and other insects as well.  

If you are tired of dealing with these roaches by yourself, call the local company that exterminates roaches, Go-Forth Pest Control.