What it really means when a fly lands on your food - and why you should throw it away

This fly is probably spewing on this food right now. Photo / 123RF

Spring and summer may herald warm weather and sunshine, but it also harks the arrival of irritating flies that try to land on your food.

And it turns out there are some very good reasons why most people try to shoo them away before they can land on a dish.

Though many people just think they are a minor annoyance, it turns out the insects are actually loaded with germs that could pose a serious threat to your health, the Daily Mail reports.

Not only that, a fly will almost always vomit on your food when it lands on it.

Flies on average carry more than 200 forms of harmful bacteria thanks to the disgusting things they tend to land on, such as rotting food and fecal matter, a pest control expert has revealed.

It's the thousands of tiny hairs on the arms and legs of a fly that mean those dangerous germs can transfer to your food if a fly lands on it.

No thank you. Photo / 123RF

"They only need to touch your food for a second for their legs or the tiny hairs all over their bodies to transfer germs from all those nasty things they eat onto what you are eating," said Ron Harrison, an entomologist and technical services director at Orkin pest control.

"And since flies can transfer serious, contagious diseases like cholera, dysentery, and typhoid, it is probably best if you avoid eating things that a fly lands on."

That's not to mention what a fly actually does when it lands on your food.

You may have heard that the creatures relieve their bowels when they land on their food.

But what they actually do is just as disgusting.

Flies will almost always vomit on your food if they land on it.

The insects can't chew, so they eject digestives enzymes onto the food before eating it up again.

So next time a fly lands on your food, it's best to cut off the part it has touched and just throw it away to avoid consuming the insect's germs.

- Daily Mail