Insects have inhabited the earth for over 600 million years. Due to their countless species they represent the most widely varying class of animals, and have adapted to almost all possible living conditions. While insects in their natural environment are useful and contribute to preserving the ecological balance, some species in domestic surroundings can create substantial harm to humans, animals, foodstuffs and other materials. Even highly industrialised societies are not immune to plagues of insects and swarms of pests. On the contrary, well insulated living accommodation, buildings with uniform central heating and heating cellars, storage rooms and waste chutes offer harmful insects and pests optimum living conditions. Here they find warmth, humidity and food in abundance. It is therefore not surprising that the cockroach, the clothes moth and houseflies have specialised exclusively on the human environment. But even insect species which originated in sub-tropical and tropical regions will thrive in domestic surroundings.

An effective defence is needed when particular insect species turn into a threat. Insect stings and bites can cause painful and itching damage to the skin, and transmit fungus spores, viruses, bacteria and other carriers of disease to humans and animals. The harm to the health ranges from allergies and eczema up to meningitis, worm parasites and salmonella infections. Plagues and epidemics caused by cholera, anthrax, typhus or bubonic plague have been almost completely eliminated from our latitudes, nevertheless the transmitters of these diseases (the vectors) are insects. An impressive example of this is bubonic plague. In three worldwide epidemics from the Middle Ages up to the present day, over 200 million humans have fallen victim to this disease. This horrifying scourge can be transferred by rodent flea species to humans, and from human to human. The annual cases of plague in the south of the USA and the massive plague epidemic in India in 1994 are clear evidence that this disease is by no means a thing of the past. The infectious diseases in the Middle Ages, in which insects played a great role as the carriers, therefore represent a constant threat, even in modern civilisation with its high standard of hygiene.

Conscientious home management and hygiene are good preventive measures against the presence of pests. But once they have entered the home, the danger is imminent. While all public institutions such as hospitals, schools or old persons homes must report direct pest infestation and combat it with insecticides, in private households it is up to the individuals concerned how they deal with the problem. When a few insects appear, experts recommend passive remedies such as bait stations and glue traps, for example the classical fly trap (fly paper). Once the pests have spread, flying and crawling insect sprays or electric vaporisers will provide fast and thorough protection. In cases of serious infestation the pest control authorities should be consulted. The specific and correct use of these household insecticides protects humans and animals from all types of pest reliably and efficiently, and eliminates the nuisance permanently.

The formulation - that is the mixture of constituents - also has to satisfy the worldwide standardised requirements for toxicology, stability, effectivenessand safety. Fundamentally all the Baygon products do not represent a hazard for consumers under proper conditions. Baygon products represent the state of the art, and permit individual pest control to suit the type and scale of infestation. Baygon keeps these products under worldwide observation as part of its responsibility for the product. For all its products Baygon provides detailed instructions, which state the insects concerned, the directions for use, and the measures to be taken before, during and after use. Harmful effects can only occur after incorrect use or following severe misuse of the product. However to rule out absolutely any hazard, household insecticides should not be sprayed directly on persons, and they should not be inhaled or eaten. If there is direct skin contact, it is advisable to rinse your hands first with water, and then to wash them with soap. All the available toxicological findings indicate that these is only a risk of harm to health after severe misuse. Depending on individual sensitivity, direct contact with the agent may cause burning or prickling sensations or a skin rash. These symptoms disappear after a few hours. Even if pyrethroids are eaten due to misuse or an accident, they do not accumulate in the body, either in the nervous system or in the fatty tissue. The agents can be broken down by the body's own enzymes, and are as a rule completely excreted in the urine or stool after a few hours or days. If insecticides containing pyrethroids are accidentally drunk, a doctor or poison centre should be consulted immediately, although these chemicals are only absorbed to a minor degree by the gastro-intestinal tract.