Dr Dana Cohen joins the Late Night Health show to talk about the signs and symptoms of chikungunya, West Nile and Zika virus and practical prevention steps to keep you calm; as well as five things that can make you a mosquito magnet and what steps to take to minimize your exposure to bites.

In a recent survey of more than 2,700 respondents, WebMD found that people were more concerned about mosquitoes this year than in past years and are planning to take additional steps to prevent mosquito bites. When asked which diseases spread by mosquitoes were of the most concern, 67 percent said Zika and 60 percent said West Nile; followed by 17 percent being concerned about yellow fever and another 17 percent worried about dengue fever.

With officials in the state of Florida confirming mosquitoes are now transmitting Zika there, and nearly all U.S. states reporting the first confirmed West Nile mosquitoes of the season have arrived, Cohen says it’s a good time to do an assessment of your surroundings and self to make sure you are taking proper prevention measures to calm fears.

“It’s important to know the facts when it comes to mosquito bites and the diseases they spread,” said Cohen. “There are steps can take to reduce your exposure; it’s not something that’s just going to happen to you and you do have some control with prevention strategies.”

“What’s driving a lot of fear about mosquito bites this year is the intensive coverage on Zika, but Zika is not the only virus they spread and there are even more dangerous ones we need to make ourselves aware of,” said Dana Cohen, M.D., a nationally renowned internal and integrative medicine specialist. “West Nile virus is a real problem this time of year in almost every state and the lesser talked about chikungunya virus is another one we need to be aware of right now.”

air date: 8/19/16