Periplaneta americana is thought by many to be the dirtiest of pests that invade and infest homes. This roach can ruin food and also produces a smelly odor. By moving back and forth between garbage and human food, it contaminates the food with diseases that can lead to many illnesses, including food poisoning, dysentery, diarrhea, and others. It is also believed that exposure to roach waste and skin fragments in the air is a cause of some cases of childhood asthma. It is considered to be the 6th worse pest in the world (Cornwell 1976; Lyon 2000).