What is Scabies Mite?
The scabies mite is a wingless insect and often called the Human Itch mite or Scabies itch mite. The tiny insect is just visible to the eye (about 0.4mm) and is tiny, eight-legged creature with a round body.
I liked the scabies mite video below because it actually shows what the scabies mite looks like and also demonstrates how it moves. Imagine how scabies mite buried into your skin while scratching and biting.
Closer Look with Scabies Mite
Additional Resources on Scabies:
- Scabies Overview
- Scabies: Signs and Symptoms
- What is crusted scabies?
- How does one gets scabies?
- Scabies Facts
- Best Scabies Mite Treatment
Scabies mite attack when the female mite is drawn to heat and odor from humans. The scabies mite makes a burrow, laying eggs and secrets saliva and feces that cause an allergic reaction. Larvae (babies) hatch from the eggs and travel to the skin surface, lying in shallow pockets where they will produce secretions.
The female mite burrows into the skin and she lays 1-3 eggs daily. If the female mite is not killed, she will hatch new eggs for 5 weeks.
The scabies rash is caused by the mite, its eggs and feces; the skin becomes irritated and inflammation usually occurs. The scabbee rash is extremely itchy, which often causes sleeping problems especially in infants and young children.
There are non toxic and toxic (prescriptions) scabies mite treatments available on the market. A non pesticidal treatment you might consider uses a surfactant called Mitactin for scabies mite. Scabies is contagious, and is usually transmitted by skin-to-skin contact or through sexual contact with someone else who is infected with it.
