Measures against snakebites adopted by rural communities largely not evidence-based or practical: study

A recent study finds that rural communities in Tiruvarur district are taking ineffective measures to prevent snakebites.

A substantial portion of rural communities in Tiruvarur district at risk of negative interactions with snakes is taking measures to prevent snakebites, but the methods are largely not evidence-based or practical, finds a recent study by researchers at the Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, and Madras Crocodile Bank Trust (MCBT).

While India and rural Tamil Nadu continue to have a huge burden of snakebite deaths every year, prevention measures have not been spotlighted as much as mitigation. The study, published in the Conservation Science and Practice, assessed 535 respondents in Tiruvarur district, which has a high community reliance on agriculture as a livelihood and the presence of ‘medically significant’ (a venomous or poisonous species whose venom or toxin can cause death or serious illness or injury in humans that may require emergency room care or the immediate care of a physician) snakes, and found that 69% of them already take preventive measures. However, a considerable number of these people used measures that are not based on evidence.

As per the study, a range of “recognised prevention measures” recommended by scholars, non-governmental organisations, and governments include the use of protective boots or gloves for fieldwork, mosquito nets and raised platforms for sleeping at home, and torches to limit surprise encounters with snakes, particularly at night. Other recommendations include maintaining wide field paths, removing of waste around residences, controlling rodents in and around households, and filling holes in house walls where snakes can easily enter.

Many people, however, reported spreading salt, turmeric, garlic, and cow dung around the house, wearing chappals around the home or field, fencing the property, and spraying potentially dangerous chemicals, such as kerosene, bleach, and animal poison at the entrance to homes.

“Considering current behaviour, I was surprised by how many people took measures they believed to prevent snakebites, and how many [measures] they used each day. This says that communities in bite-risk areas are very keen to take action to prevent interactions, which is amazing, but as many measures taken are not evidence-based (41%), people may not be experiencing effective results. For me, this is a little heartbreaking, as the intention is there,” said Harrison Carter, Faculty of Environment, Science, and Economy, University of Exeter, and the author of the study, in an email interview with The Hindu.

Some key barriers to adopting preventive measures reported by people are difficulties in wearing rubber boots and gloves while working in agricultural fields, financial constraints in buying preventive clothing, reluctance to sleep on cots, and forgetting to carry a torch. “We consider the farming lands to be godly, we don’t wear shoes and slippers…out of respect we don’t do it,” a study respondent reportedly said.

Gnaneswar Ch, project lead, Snake Conservation and Snakebite Mitigation, MCBT, another author of the study, said detailed surveys on adoptive measures and initial response to snakebites will help in charting out region-specific outreach activities.