Cockroaches are omnivorous scavengers and will consume any organic food source available to them. They are not picky eaters and will feast on almost anything that is derived from something that was once a living organism, such as plants and animals. Some of their favorite foods include starches, sweets, greasy foods, and meats. Cockroaches can also eat cardboard boxes, book bindings, wallpaper glue, stamps, leather, feces, fingernails, hair, toothpaste, soap, their own cast-off skins, and even other cockroaches. They can survive for months without food but can only live about a month without water. Cockroaches can transfer pathogenic microbes to our food and cooking surfaces simply by walking across them, causing food poisoning, diarrhea, dysentery, and other illnesses. Therefore, it is important to keep your home clean and free of food debris to prevent cockroach infestations.