第3023期:The tiny creatures that clean your face

What animal do we have the closest relationship with? Many people would say dogs or cats, but it's actually the tiny arachnids that live all over your face. Yes, your face. Don't worry it's probably fine. Demodex mites live in the hair follicles around the peach fuzz hair that grows on your face. They are just one of the parasites that make our bodies a habitat. Some are harmless, while there are some that can cause problems.我们与什么动物关系最密切？ 很多人会说是狗或猫，但实际上是生活在你脸上的微小蜘蛛。 是的，你的脸。 别担心，可能没问题。 蠕形螨生活在脸上生长的桃绒毛周围的毛囊中。 它们只是使我们的身体成为栖息地的寄生虫之一。 有些是无害的，而有些则可能会引起问题。Demodex mites are usually harmless. They live in our pores and feed on sebum, the oil produced by our skin. This means that you find the most in the greasiest areas of your face, particularly around your eyes, nose and mouth. According to associate professor of invertebrate biology Alejandra Perotti, we should be grateful because demodex clean our pores and keep them flat. She even describes them as 'cute'. However, you can have too many of them. It is possible to find your face covered with a white frost of demodex mites. This usually only affects people if their immune system is compromised. But some people may also have an allergic reaction to these creatures.蠕形螨通常是无害的。 它们生活在我们的毛孔中，以皮脂为食，皮脂是我们皮肤产生的油脂。 这意味着您会在脸部最油腻的区域发现最多的油脂，尤其是眼睛、鼻子和嘴巴周围。 无脊椎动物生物学副教授亚历杭德拉·佩罗蒂 (Alejandra Perotti) 表示，我们应该心存感激，因为蠕形螨可以清洁我们的毛孔并使其保持平整。 她甚至形容它们“可爱”。 但是，您可能拥有太多。 您可能会发现您的脸上覆盖着蠕形螨的白色霜。 这通常只会影响免疫系统受损的人。 但有些人也可能对这些生物产生过敏反应。Not all mites are as cute and useful as demodex. Scabies is a condition that is caused by mites that burrow into our skin and lay eggs. This is very itchy and usually spreads to most of a person's body. It can also be quite uncomfortable to think about and is often stigmatised. Now, this is a problem because it can delay people getting treatment. Some of this stigma can come because we often associate scabies with people being unclean. This, however, is a complete myth.并非所有螨虫都像蠕形螨一样可爱且有用。 疥疮是一种由钻入我们皮肤并产卵的螨虫引起的疾病。 这种情况非常痒，通常会扩散到身体的大部分部位。 想到它也会让人感到非常不舒服，并且常常受到侮辱。 现在，这是一个问题，因为它可能会延迟人们接受治疗。 这种耻辱可能会出现，因为我们经常将疥疮与不洁的人联系起来。 然而，这完全是一个神话。This stigma may also be linked to how we feel. Mites and other parasites often cause us to feel disgust. This is something that we may have evolved to help us avoid illnesses, but here it could be stopping people getting the help they need or causing us to worry about something that can even be beneficial.这种耻辱也可能与我们的感受有关。 螨虫和其他寄生虫常常让我们感到厌恶。 这是我们进化来帮助我们避免疾病的东西，但在这里它可能会阻止人们获得他们需要的帮助，或者导致我们担心一些甚至可能有益的事情。