As summer officially begins today, District residents who want to learn about preventing the mosquito-borne Zika virus can check out the D.C. Department of Health’s website for tips… or get educated by a rapping mosquito biologist from Virginia.
After watching Andy Lima’s incredibly entertaining and surprisingly informative YouTube video, I choose the latter.
Lima, also known as MC Bugg-Z, works for the Fairfax County Health Department (which has a cool illustration about Zika-prevention on its website.)
His song “Zika 101” dropped last summer after fears of the virus swept the country. It talks about Zika causes, symptoms, and prevention tips, among other things.
Lima recently told WAMU that he’s been interested in hip-hop and bugs since his youth, so when he discovered he could rhyme “Zika” with “Mosquita,” the rest of the song pretty much wrote itself with some prevention messaging added in.
“Empty water from containers and dress to protect, when ya’ feed ‘em you breed ‘em so wear approved repellents,” is one of the constant reminders throughout the song. Lima even stays on beat giving details about active ingredients like DEET and Picaridin in bug sprays recommended by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
D.C.’s health department has identified 35 people who have contracted Zika overseas (including some pregnant women who were originally given false negative results). There have been no reports of residents being infected by a mosquito in the city.
Fever, rash, joint pain, and conjunctivitis are some common symptoms of Zika, as Lima points out in the video. Microcephaly, a birth defect that’s often (but not always) found at birth, is also affiliated with the virus.
The D.C. Department of Health hosted three “Fight the Bite” events last summer where officials handed out preventative items to District residents. DOH public affairs specialist Jasmine Gossett told DCist last month that they plan to announce similar events this year.
According to a report by Climate Central, D.C.’s mosquito season is 29 days longer than it was in 1980 due to increased humidity over time.
