There are over 16,000 species of ants in the world, and this number is growing by the day as more and more species are being discovered. They are common pests in many homes, and many people have difficulties in trying to get rid of them. However, the one question that many people are not sure of is whether they are harmful or not.

The vast majority of ants are intrinsically not harmful to humans. For instance, you could pick one up and all it will do is scamper around on your hand without biting or stinging. However, this does not apply to all species. Red ants are some of the most feared in terms of being harmful. These ants may be small, but they have a very painful bite.

Having a large number of them bite you at the same time could easily leave you incapacitated. In addition to that, the red fire ant also has a reputation all over the world. This ant species bites and injects venom that could cause anaphylaxis in a human being or other animal. In fact, there are cases where a large number of fire ants bite a single human being, causing massive anaphylaxis and eventually death.

The ants that invade your home are unlikely to be this harmful unless you identify them as fire ants or red ants. However, they can be indirectly harmful, such as by spreading germs from other locations to your food. As a result, you may end up feeling unwell if you consume those foods.