How Strong is a Cockroach Bite?

The first time you get bitten by a cockroach, you may wonder how strong a cockroach bite is. It is not like the pain that you would feel from a human bite. In most cases, you will feel a small pinch or twinge that doesn’t last for more than a few seconds. The good news is that cockroach bites don’t carry any disease, nor are they venomous. But it is important to note that a cockroach bite is much stronger than you think because it generates a force fifty times stronger than your body weight.

The force behind a roach bite varies depending on the type of material it’s biting. For example, the American roach bites with a force 50 times its own weight. The force is generated by the combination of fast and slow twitch muscle fibers in the mandible. When the cockroach is chewing wood, it activates slow twitch muscle fibers, which give the mandibles an extra boost of force.

Because cockroaches are nocturnal, they are not likely to bite you unless they are provoked by food. Cockroaches are omnivores, meaning that they can feed on almost anything, including human skin. When cockroaches are pushed too far, they will bite you.