Overview
- Fresh guidance highlights silverfish as a warning sign of elevated indoor humidity and possible mold, prompting checks of room moisture and walls.
- Reports note the insects eat skin flakes, dust mites and fungal spores, which can lower allergen levels even as they remain largely harmless to people.
- Because they are nocturnal, the AOK advises switching on lights suddenly at night to gauge activity, a simple way to spot a true infestation.
- Authorities recommend prevention over pesticides by ventilating, drying wet surfaces, heating, sealing cracks, and flushing drains with boiling water before covering them overnight.
- Coverage distinguishes common silverfish from paperfish, which prefer drier rooms, feed on paper and cardboard, are spreading in Germany, and call for different measures such as airtight document storage.