嗨 大家好
Hi, guys!
我刚从一个非常有趣的丛林徒步中回来
I just got back from a really fun hike in the woods.
我发现了许多很酷的东西 像桂竹香 各种鸟以及漂亮的岩石
I saw a lot of cool things, like wallflowers, and lots of birds, and pretty rocks.
但是我只带了一件东西回来：许多蚊子的咬痕
But I only brought one thing back with me: lots of mosquito bites.
如果你在外面 这取决于你住在哪里以及现在是什么季节
Depending on where you live and what time of year it is, if you’ve spent time outside,
你也可能被蚊子咬过
you’ve probably been bitten by mosquitoes too.
蚊子离开很久之后 你被留下了又红又痒的包
Long after the mosquito is gone, you’re left with red, itchy bumps,
确实是很痒
and I mean itchy.
所以发生了什么？为什么蚊子块会这么痒？
So what’s going on? Why are mosquito bites so itchy?
为了回答这个问题 我们需要近距离观察这些包怎么来的
To answer that question, we need to take a closer look at where these bumps come from.
首先 让我们粗略了解一下蚊子
First, let’s learn a little bit about the mosquito.
首先 只有雌蚊子会咬人
For one thing, only female mosquitoes bite.
其次 我们称为咬伤的并不是真正的咬伤
And for another thing, what we call a bite isn’t really a bite at all;
它更像是来自于喙的戳刺
it’s more like a jab from a thing called a proboscis.
喙！这说来是多么有趣的词汇！
Proboscis. Proboscis! It’s such a fun word to say!
喙是昆虫的一种特别的口器
A proboscis is a special mouthpart that some insects have.
它有一点像一根长管子或一根麦秆
It looks kind of like a long tube or a straw.
如果你曾有机会近距离看蝴蝶
If you’ve ever had the chance to get a close look at a butterfly,
你可能会看见他们长而卷曲的喙
maybe you’ve seen their long, curly proboscis,
这被他们用作一根啜饮花蜜的长管子
which they use as a long tube to sip nectar from flowers.
但是雌蚊子呢？
But the female mosquito?
她用喙从血管中吸取微量的血液
She uses her proboscis to take a tiny sip of blood from the blood vessels
正好在你的皮肤下面
right beneath your skin.
她的身体分泌特殊化学物质帮助她完成这项工作
Her body makes special chemicals to help her do the job.
有些物质使你的血液更容易被她吸取
Some of them make your blood easier for her to drink.
其他的甚至可以让你在被她的喙刺到时 感到像被掐了一下
Others even help you from feeling the little pinch when her proboscis pokes you.
在她吸食完并嗡嗡离开后 她留下少量这些化学物质在你皮肤里
After she’s had her sip and she buzzes off, she leaves a little bit of those chemicals behind in your skin.
并且他们给你体内的免疫系统发出信号
And they set off signals in your body’s immune system.
你的免疫系统的工作是保护你的身体免受入侵 而不是免受外界的影响
Your immune system’s job is to protect your body from invaders, not ones from outer space
但是像细菌病毒类的入侵者 任何小微粒都会使你生病
but invaders like bacteria and viruses, any particles that can make you sick.
有点像士兵守卫堡垒 你的免疫系统攻击任何
Kind of like soldiers protecting a fort, your immune system attacks just about anything
它不认识的东西
that it doesn’t recognize.
这包括了蚊子留下的化学物质
And that includes the chemicals left behind by the mosquito.
一旦你的身体发现它被蚊子咬了
Once your body discovers it’s been bitten by a mosquito,
它会输送一些额外血液已经其他液体去咬伤的地方
it sends some extra blood and other fluids to the bite.
这很好的保护了这些地方所以它能治愈
This does a nice job of protecting the area so it can heal
并且帮助你的身体摆脱蚊子留下的化学物质
and helps your body get rid of the chemicals that the mosquito left behind.
但是它也会使咬伤区域周围肿胀 形成一个包
But it also makes the area around the bite swell up, causing a bump.
并且肿胀引起肿包周围皮肤的
And that swelling sets off nerves in your skin around the bump.
神经在你身体的各部分传递信息
Nerves carry messages between parts of your body.
所以 当你感受到蚊子块的刺痛感时 这是你的神经系统在告诉你的大脑：“
So when you feel the tingly itch of a mosquito bite, that’s the work of your nerves telling
以防你还没注意到 这下面有些情况发生。”
your brain, “in case you haven’t noticed, there’s something going on down here.”
尽管这很难 但你真的应该停止挠这些肿包 毕竟这对你的皮肤没什么好处
And even though it’s really hard, you shouldn’t scratch those bumps; it’s not good for you skin,
而且它还会让情况更糟
and it actually makes everything worse.
抓挠只会更加刺激你的皮肤
Scratching irritates your skin even more.
当这些发生时 你身体的免疫系统
And when that happens, your body’s immune system
更努力地试着制止令它不安的东西
tries even harder to stop whatever is bothering it.
于是这使肿包更痒
So that makes the bump even itchier.
专家表明在蚊子块上使用冰块或是由小苏打和水制成的膏
Experts say that using ice or a paste made from baking soda and water on a mosquito bite
可以在一定程度上缓解这种肿胀和刺痛
can actually help with the swelling and the itch.
所以请牢记：无论如何不要再挠了
So remember: Stop scratching. Whatever it takes.
感谢在SciShows Kids上关注我们
Thanks for joining us on SciShow Kids.
你是否还有关于小虫 鸟类 恐龙或是任何其他东西的问题呢？
Do you have a question about bugs, birds, dinosaurs, or anything else?
让大人帮你在下方留下评论或是在kids@thescishow.com给我们发邮件
Ask an adult to help you leave a comment below or e-mail us at kids@thescishow.com
下期再见
And we’ll see you next time.