Archive · 28 Sep 2026
ASHA Workers Share Six Ways to Prevent Dengue and Malaria
Dengue and malaria are illnesses spread by mosquitoes.
Mosquitoes can grow in water that looks clean, such as water in tanks, coolers and flowerpot trays.
Other mosquitoes can also grow in dirty water, drains and puddles.
Fogging can kill flying adult mosquitoes, but it does not remove eggs and larvae hiding in containers.
Dengue and malaria are different diseases, so doctors need tests to choose the right treatment.
A person with dengue may become more seriously ill after the fever goes away.
Papaya leaf juice and similar remedies have not been proven to cure dengue.
Families should seek medical help and keep watching for warning signs.
Everyone can help by emptying standing water and covering stored water.
Dengue-carrying Aedes mosquitoes can breed in small amounts of clear, stagnant water, while malaria-carrying Anopheles mosquitoes breed in both clean and dirty stagnant water.
Fogging kills adult mosquitoes but does not eliminate eggs and larvae in household containers, tyres, coolers or drains.
Dengue and malaria require different diagnoses and treatments, so households should rely on testing rather than symptoms or home remedies.
Dengue complications can appear 24 to 48 hours after the fever settles, making continued monitoring essential.
ASHA workers urge residents to drain stagnant water weekly, cover containers and clear rainwater-collecting waste instead of relying only on government action.
- Who
- ASHA workers, residents, health officials and doctors involved in preventing and treating dengue and malaria.
- What
- ASHA workers are educating households about mosquito breeding, disease treatment, dengue warning signs and prevention.
- When
- During the monsoon season, with dengue complications requiring particular attention 24 to 48 hours after fever settles.
- Where
- Across India, including households and neighbourhoods in Tamil Nadu, Delhi and Karnataka.
- Why
- To reduce mosquito breeding, prevent outbreaks and help families seek appropriate treatment promptly.
- Dengue mosquito
- Aedes aegypti can breed in small amounts of clear, stagnant water, including cooler trays, tanks and flowerpot trays.
- Malaria mosquito
- Anopheles mosquitoes can breed in clean or dirty stagnant water, including drains and construction-site puddles.
- Fogging limitation
- Fogging kills adult mosquitoes on contact but does not eliminate eggs or larvae.
- Dengue danger period
- Warning signs and complications may appear within 24 to 48 hours after fever recedes.
- Home remedies
- The article says there is no evidence that papaya leaf extract improves survival in dengue cases.
- Household prevention
- Residents should drain stored water weekly, cover containers and remove waste that collects rainwater.
- Diagnostic testing
- ASHA workers are trained under India's National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme to conduct rapid diagnostic tests.