Bugged by Pesticides?

After Stephen Williams of West Covina treated an ant trail in his house with insecticide, he turned around and was shocked to see his dog and cat licking the spray off the floor. Frantically, he rushed them to his veterinarian, who treated them for poisoning. The ants came back the next day.

The box of fruitcake Sharon Jackson of West Hollywood received from her aunt came with a family of cockroaches. So she covered all her furniture, closed the windows and set a bug fogger. Less than 48 hours later, her two children, Marla, 8, and Dave, 4, started vomiting and coughing. According to the family doctor, the cause was an insecticide in the fogger. Meanwhile, the cockroaches were multiplying.

“The bugs always come back. Sure, the spray might knock out some worker ants or roaches. But you’d never get to the queens, which are back in the nest popping out eggs,” says Sheila Daar, an expert in least-toxic pest control. “And you’re spreading toxic chemicals in your home and the environment.”

In addition to the health risks and lack of lasting results, bug sprays are also expensive. Last year, Americans spent more than $1.5 billion on roach spray alone, with minimal success. More than 500 species of insects are resistant to one or more common insecticides.

Calling a professional exterminator doesn’t always guarantee safety either. Lillian Arnesti, 78, of Malibu, was rushed to the hospital with extreme stomach pains and breathing problems after her house was fumigated.

“Supposedly, they used a natural and safer chemical, but it still got me seriously sick. There’s only one way to ensure your safety, and that’s to do it yourself,” Arnesti said.

As an alternative to pesticides, some people are using integrated pest management--an ecosystem-based strategy that combines biological controls, habitat manipulation and cultural practices for long-term pest control. A low-dose chemical bait, such as boric acid, is one method.

“The idea is to give the ants or other pests food, accessible only to them, dosed with low concentrations of a toxic chemical they will carry back to the nest, so you’ll get the whole lot instead of just a few scouts,” Daar said.

Another method is the use of biopesticides, which are derived from such natural materials as animals, plants and bacteria. For example, mint, garlic and baking soda all have pesticidal effects.

Michael Sands, president of Camden, N.J.-based Natural Pest Control Co., pointed out that homeowners have natural weapons that don’t pose the health and environmental threats of insecticides.

“For crawling insects such as ants and cockroaches, one option is sprinkling boric acid or silica gel in the corners and along the baseboards of your house. The substances basically suffocate the insects,” Sands said. (Note that boric acid is poisonous if ingested, so this would not be a viable option in homes with small children and pets.)

According to Gene Helmick-Richardson, a specialist in nontoxic pest control, there are simple ways people can save energy and money while keeping the bugs out.

“When you weatherstrip doors to keep the insect intruders out, you’re also insulating your house, which saves energy. So caulk around the windows, pipes, conduits and vents,” he said. “For a quick fix, apply petroleum jelly, duct tape or caulk over a crack until you can take more permanent measures.”

Here are some general guidlines for dealing with common household pests naturally:

* Eliminate or minimize attractions.

Prevention is the key. Insects like comfortable surroundings, tasty morsels and water.

Keep kitchen trash cans covered and the counters clean. Don’t leave dirty dishes in the sink. Place your pet’s food bowl inside a larger water-filled dish for a “moat effect” that renders the food inaccessible to bugs. Do not leave pet food out overnight, and seal all food containers tightly. Thoroughly rinse any food residue from cans and bottles before recycling them.

* Keep pests out.

Put screens on all windows. Empty cupboards and clean them thoroughly, sealing any cracks. Fix all water leaks and keep bathrooms free of excess moisture.

Here are some tips for dealing with specific pests:

Ants

Ants usually invade in great numbers, but most of them are harmless. The ones in your home are all female worker ants whose job is to carry food back to the colony and to its queen.

Ants follow trails excreted by their scouts, so they can easily trace the line of entry. Find the entrance and block it with a patch of petroleum jelly, tape, a dab of toothpaste or white glue. Then squirt soapy water on the ants or use a sponge dipped in soapy water and wipe away the ants’ trails. Immediately clear away the food that attracted them.

The least toxic ant poison is boric acid, a white crystalline compound with the properties of a weak acid, which is sometimes used as a mild antiseptic. Workers will carry it back to the nest. As they share food, members of the colony will also share the boric acid, killing most of them. You can get boric acid in 5% concentration that works quickly, but baits with lower concentration are ultimately more effective. You want to make sure that the workers live long enough to carry the boric acid back to the queen. Again, boric acid is poisonous when eaten, so keep it away from children and pets.

To deter ant infestation, wash counter tops, cabinets and floors with equal parts of vinegar and water.

According to Annie Berthod-Bond in “Better Basics for the Home,” you can also create a spray by diluting two tablespoons of liquid peppermint Castile soap in a gallon of water. Spray around windows, frames and baseboards and along the back wall of counter tops.

Debra Lynn Dadd, a healthy-home expert, also suggests planting mint around the outside of your home and sprinkling cayenne, paprika or dried peppermint inside doorways and windowsills to keep ants out. Flies will stay away too.

Cockroaches

Although cockroaches look repulsive, there’s no evidence that they transmit human disease. But their secretions can trigger severe allergies.

Cockroaches have been around for more than 200 million years and they’ve also grown resistant to many common insecticides.

German cockroaches, the most common in American households, leave trails of waste as they travel. Other roaches follow that trail.

Place bait where you have observed cockroaches. You can also use nontoxic sticky traps, available at hardware stores, or you can create your own trap by spreading petroleum jelly on the inside of the mouth of a glass jar and putting bread inside as bait. Put the jar upright in a corner or near sources of water, warmth and food, such as behind refrigerators or under kitchen sinks.

Make sure you remove all sources of food, including waste and pet food. Starving roaches is virtually impossible because they eat everything from mold to grease to other roaches, and they can fast for weeks. But they can’t last long without water.

One of the least toxic pest controls that roaches have not developed resistance to is boric acid. Put it in crevices and cracks they can squeeze through. They’ll brush against the acid and carry it back to the nests. Use it only in areas inaccessible to children and pets.

Fleas

First, flea-comb your animals. Drop fleas in a container full of soapy water to kill them. You can also try a citrus-based dip, available at some natural product and pet stores. Some of the flea applications have insecticides and others don’t, so make sure you read the labels carefully.

Vacuum floors, carpets, furniture and beds regularly, and immediately dispose of the vacuum bag outside. You can also make the peppermint soap spray recommended for ants and apply it to carpets. Repeat the application because fleas have a 30-day breeding cycle, and it will take some time to eliminate them.

Keep your animal as clean as possible. Spread a mix of fennel, rosemary, red cedar shavings, sassafras, eucalyptus or pennyroyal around and under your pet’s bed.

A pot of basil will also repel fleas. Keep the pot well-watered so it produces a strong scent.

Moths

The ones that you can see are not the ones to worry about. The larvae of these moths are the ones that eat your clothes. They like fabrics soiled with food stains, so keep your clothes clean.

Brush and clean your clothes regularly to ward off moths, which feed on human secretions. Hang moth-prone attire outside at least once a month. (Moths don’t like the sunlight, but prefer dark, dry places.)

To kill moth larvae, throw infested clothes in the dryer or freezer. Put lavender sachets among your clean wool and silk clothes to keep moths away or, if you can, store clothes in a cedar closet or chest. Cedar is less odorous than mothballs.

Alfred Zamm and Robert Gannon, authors of “Why Your House May Endanger Your Health,” recommend a recipe of dried herbs: half a pound each of rosemary and mint, a quarter pound each of thyme and ginseng (optional) and two tablespoons of cloves. Mix ingredients, put in cheesecloth bags and place among the most at-risk clothing. It will make your clothes smell nice too.

You can also mix a handful each of rosemary, sage, mint, dried lemon peel and cinnamon. Place in muslin bags and put them in closets.

To kill moth eggs, spin your garment in a warm dryer for at least 10 minutes.

Weevils (Grain Moths)

You usually find these in cereal, grain, flour, rice packages or pasta. Try taping bay leaves outside food they target the most. Also consider putting target items in the refrigerator.

“The most common mistake people make is over-spraying their house with insecticide, which is only harmful to people and pets,” says Williams.

“And they think keeping only the inside of their house clean will keep the bugs out. There’s a reason why the bugs are coming indoors. Keep your gardens well maintained and the bugs will stay out. Remember, bugs may be annoying and look disgusting, but most of them are harmless.”

*

Clara Young is a freelance writer based in Los Angeles.