Now that summer is in full swing, mosquitoes have come out across the United States. The use of mosquito repellents canprotect both your healthand sanity this summer.
While mosquitoes leave bothersome, itchy bites on your skin, they can also pose aserious and sometimes deadly riskto your health. When a mosquito bites you, it may transmit harmful pathogens that cause dangerous diseases likemalaria,Dengue fever,ZikaandWest Nile.
Avoiding mosquito bites
Mosquito females bite people to get vital nutrients from our blood. They then use these nutrientsto make their eggs. One single blood meal can give rise to about 100 mosquito eggs that hatch into wiggling larvae.
There are several ways toavoid getting bitten by mosquitoes, from wearing long, loose clothing and limiting time outside to placing screens over your windows and getting rid of standing water that mosquitoes might use to breed.
Mosquito repellents that don't work
Bracelets don't work. Department stores and pharmacy chains sell hundreds of different varieties of bracelets. They are marketed as "mosquito repellent" bands, wristbands and watches, and their materials can vary from plastic to leather. Even if they are loaded with repellents, they can't protect your whole body from mosquito bites.
Ultrasonic repellent devices don't work. These come as electrical plug-ins, free-standing varieties or watchlike accessories that claim to emit a high-frequency sound that deters mosquitoes by mimicking bats. However, in scientific studies, ultrasonic repellent devices fail to repel mosquitoes. In fact, when our lab tested one of these devices, we found a slight increase in mosquito attraction to the wearer.
Dietary supplements – vitamin B, garlic and so on – don't work. No scientific evidence shows these supplements protect people from mosquito bites.
Light-based repellents don't work. These devices come ascolored light bulbs, and they don't attract insects that fly toward white light. This approach works well on moths, beetles and stinkbugs, but not on mosquitoes.
Mosquito repellents that work
Oil of lemon eucalyptus, or OLE, works.OLE, with the active ingredient PMD, is a plant-based alternative to DEET and picaridin. Its repellent properties can last forup to six hours.
Other essential oils – some work, some not so much. We applied20 different essential oilsin a 10% essential oil lotion mixture to volunteers' skin. Here's what we found:
Clove oil works. This oil, with the active ingredient eugenol, can protect from mosquito bites for over 90 minutes at a 10% concentration in lotion. Cinnamon oil works. This oil, with the active ingredients cinnamaldehyde and eugenol, can protect from mosquitoes for over 60 minutes at a 10% concentration in lotion. Geraniol and 2-PEP, or 2-phenylethyl propionate, work for about 60 minutes at a 10% concentration in lotion. Citronella oil works, We found citronella oil at a 10% concentration only protected from mosquito bites for about 30 minutes.
Post time: 2024-05-16 14:05:06
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