Found on http://skin.getridofthings.com/get-rid-of-mosquito-bites.htm on 8-2-11, by Jonathan Hatch
Found on http://tipnut.com/over-40-mosquito-bite-itch-relief-tips/ Published: June 14, 2007
Found on http://tipnut.com/how-to-prevent-mosquito-bites/on Published: June 15, 2007
This page is not about getting rid of mosquitoes. This article is dedicated to avoiding mosquito bites and what to do to treat mosquito bites. If you’re looking for more substantive mosquito control techniques, you may find our article “How to Get Rid of Mosquitoes”a bit more informative. If, however, you’re looking for some quality information about mosquito bites, then you’ve come to the right place. To the left we try to explain the science behind the mosquito bite, mosquito bite allergies, and why some people seem to be more tolerant of mosquito bites than others, while the main text will focus on preventing mosquito bites and mosquito bite treatment. In the sidebar to your right you will find more mosquito bite prevention products. We hope this article will help clear up some of the urban myths that surround the mosquito and its ubiquitous bite.
According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), mosquitoes are known vectors for several dangerous blood borne pathogens, including (but not limited to) Malaria, Eastern Equine Encephalitis, Japanese Encephalitis, LaCross Encephalitis, Malaria, Dengue Fever, Yellow Fever, Rift Valley Fever, and perhaps the most sensationalized illness here in the states, West Nile Virus. For these reasons, and many more, it is important to learn what you can do to prevent mosquitoes from biting you in the first place.
How to Avoid Mosquito Bites
Perhaps the most obvious way to avoid mosquito bites is to avoid times and places where mosquitoes are thickest. Avoiding swamps or marshy areas, thick woods, hot and humid regions, and places where water is abundant will help you avoid being bitten by mosquitoes because these are the places where they breed. If you cannot avoid being in some of these places, you may want to at least avoid being in those places during the peak times of mosquito activity: dusk and dawn.
If avoiding mosquitoes is impossible, protective clothing is the most direct way to avoid mosquito bites. This means dressing in light, but earthy clothing that cover most of your body. Thick, but breathable fabrics are your best choice because plain cotton shirts aren't thick enough to prevent mosquitoes from biting. A head net, like the Cabella's Mosquito Head Net shown here, is the best way to cover those parts of your body that can't be clothed; they're cheap ($9.99), go over your favorite hats, and weigh close to nothing.
If hats and clothing aren't your thing, then my first choice for mosquito repellent would be DEET based. The best mosquito repellent I've had experience with are Off!'s Deep Woods Sportsmen line of bug repellents. The reason these work so well is because they contain a higher percentage of DEET (30%-98%). DEET is relatively harmless to adult humans and controls a host of other outdoor pests (like wood ticks, gnats, black flies, and chiggers) but caution should be used when applying such high concentrations to the skin of children and pregnant women.
Picaridin based products are an effective and relatively new mosquito repellent. Cutter® Advanced products use Picaridin. Studies done by the EPA have proven Picaridin products to be just as effective at keeping mosquitoes away from humans as DEET based products. Many people complain that DEET based products are too heavy, greasy, or that they taste bad. A lot of people agree that Picaridin based mosquito repellents feel cleaner and are less intrusive or repulsive to people than their traditional bug repellent counterparts.
Lemon Eucalyptus is a natural oil that has recently been registered with the EPA for use as a mosquito repellent. Repel®: Lemon Eucalyptus is a good example of such a product. This is good news for those of us who remember the days when DDT was still considered safe or aren't too keen on putting synthetic chemicals on our skin. Studies done by the EPA show that mosquito repellent products with lemon eucalyptus oil are just as effective as any low percentage of DEET. Lemon eucalyptus, however, is not recommended for use on children younger than 4 years old.How to Prevent Mosquito Bites
list of recommendations and home remedies for mosquito repellent suggestions. A few things to note first:- You pretty much have to stop breathing to not attract the attention of a mosquito, a big attractor for them is the carbon dioxide from your breathing.
- It also seems mosquitoes are attracted by scents like perfumes, sweat, body odor as well as body heat. Unless you stop using shampoos, soaps, deodorants and detergents–it’s hard to be scent free.
- From what I understand, DEET has proven to be the most effective mosquito repellent. DEET is pretty crazy stuff though, so if you’d like to try less harsh solutions, there are plenty of tips below for you to give a shot.
Something to keep in mind: Since some people seem to be a mosquito magnet while others around them don’t get a single bite, I have the suspicion that there could be a personal body chemistry factor involved. And that could explain why a remedy that works for one person, may not work for another.
I suspect that’s why some people swear by the Bounce sheet method, or the Avon Skin So Soft solution, while others have a different experience. Bounce nor the Avon SSS did a thing for me btw, but I did include them in the list below. I know a few people who SWEAR by them.
Basics for Mosquito Bite Prevention
- Wear light colored clothing, mosquitoes are attracted to dark clothes
- Keep your body covered as much as possible (including wearing a hat), although mosquitoes can find their way through the fabric–it does cut down on bites
Mosquito Bite Prevention Home Remedies & Tips
- Vanilla Extract: A few different recommendations for this one, each contradicting the other. Some say to dab Vanilla Extract on your pulse points, others say to rub it all over your skin & dab your clothes. Some say the cheap stuff is what you have to use, others say the real, pure Vanilla is the only thing that will work. Some say to apply it full strength, others say you can dilute it with water and spray it on. Play around with Vanilla to see what gives you best results–there are plenty of believers for this one as a mosquito deterrent so I think there’s something to it.
- Garlic: This isn’t a favorite thing to do day-to-day, but if you’re going camping or hiking through heavily mosquito infested areas, try a garlic powder and water paste. Apply to pulse points, behind knees, on shoes and ankles and a dab or two on your cheeks or somewhere on your face and neck. Remember–keep out of eyes. And maybe stay out of public places too
. - Essential Oils: Mix choice of essential oils with rubbing alcohol, or witch hazel, or distilled water and spritz on body or directly on cloth to rub on body (shake before each use). Or add a few drops in baby oil or olive oil then rub on skin. You can also apply drops along a strip of fabric (cotton) and tie around wrist. *Make sure to avoid mouth and eye areas when using essential oils.
- Citronella oil
- Lavender oil
- Catnip oil
- Eucalyptus oil
- Pennyroyal oil *Seems to be strongly recommended
- Tansy oil *Seems to be strongly recommended
- Basil oil
- Thyme oil
- Cedar oil
- Tea Tree oil
- Peppermint oil
- Lemongrass oil
Plants That Repel Mosquitoes
Break off leaves and crush them roughly, rub them all over your clothes and skin. Toss the bruised leaves around the perimeter of your deck or patio. Also plant these in pots and arrange them around the patio. You could also infuse these in water and then use that as a spray.
- Citronella
- Lavender
- Basil
- Catnip
- Pennyroyal
- Tansy
- Marigolds
Commercial Products That Repel Mosquitoes
*(other than DEET items)
- Avon’s Skin So Soft (straight or mix 50/50 with rubbing alcohol)
- Bounce Sheets (hanging out of a pocket or waistband)
- Listerine (mixed 50/50 with household vinegar then sprayed all over body)
- Vicks VapoRub
- You can purchase citronella torches to stand in the ground or set on table tops
Household Hack
- Spray garlic powder and water all over the yard and bushes. Use a fertilizer hose attachment. Will need to be done bi-weekly (approx) or after a heavy rain.
Items to Eat
*Daily
Apparently the smell that comes out of your pores from a steady diet of the below deters mosquitoes. The items aren’t meant to be combined, they’re just different suggestions.
- Garlic
- B1 Vitamins
- Brewers Yeast
- Lemons
Proven False
- Lemon Fresh Joy & Dish of Water
How to Treat Mosquito Bites
The first step, obviously, is to remove yourself or the moquitoes from the area to prevent further mosquito bites. If you have an immediate reaction to the bite that includes difficult breathing, sweating, heart palpitations and swelling in places other than the location of the bite, you should seek emergency medical treatment immediately--and ask if someone nearby has an Epi-Pen available.
The second step depends on how many bites you've received and how allergic you've become to mosquito bites. If you've received many bites and you tend to get welts, you may want to take an H1 non-sedating (or sedating if you prefer) antihistamine like Zyrtec, Benadryl, or apply an antihistamine cream, like Antisan. If you do apply an antihistamine cream, be sure to apply it only to those areas affected by mosquito bites. Studies like "Treatment of mosquito bites with ebastine: a field trial" headed by Dr. A. Karppinen, et al. and "Treatment of mosquito bites with cetirizine" lead by Dr. T. Reunala, et al. conclude the antihistamines greatly reduce the amount of itching and welts that accompany mosquito bites.
The third step is to either take a cold shower or take an NSAID like Ibuprofen to help reduce the swelling of the welts caused by mosquito bites. A cold shower helps to reduce the swelling by constricting capillaries near the skin's surface, allowing fewer antigens and antibodies to cause an allergic reaction. This is particularly helpful if you've sustained multiple mosquito bites on various parts of your body. NSAIDs, or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, in this instance they show some promise in reducing swelling caused by allergic reactions, as well as swelling caused by physical trauma, which is what they're usually used for (pain medications).
Continued treatment for particulalry bad mosquito bites is usually done with a topical antihistamine cream like Benadryl Itch Stopping Cream. It should not be used for more than a week, and should be applied no more than 4 times a day without first consulting a physician.
Over 40 Mosquito Bite Itch Relief Tips
Here are more than 40 mosquito bite itch relief tips organized in one neat file, each bullet tip is a single method:
Household Items To Relieve Itching
- Rub a bar of soap over the itch. I just tried this (Ivory soap) and the relief was near instant. I used a dry bar of soap directly on the skin, but I also have notes that you can spritz bite with water and then run bar of soap over area–or use a wet bar of soap.
- Place a piece of scotch tape on the bite; or dab rubbing alcohol or ammonia on the bite first then stick on a piece of tape.
- Hot water: Take a hot shower, or a hot bath, or apply a hot compress. As hot as you can stand it without burning you.
- Ice cube, ice pack or very cold water
Dabbers For Itch Relief
The quicker you can apply one of the remedies below, the faster the relief. These are topical suggestions, apply directly to the bite area.
- Nail Polish
- Strong tea mixed with rubbing alcohol
- Toothpaste (works for me)
- Mouthwash
- Vinegar (apply directly to bite or take a hot bath with 2 cups of vinegar in the water)
- Honey
- Underarm deodorant (solid or roll-on) – apply directly to bite area
- Rubbing Alcohol
- Ammonia
- Bleach
- Tea: Use a hot tea bag or a cotton ball soaked in hot tea to dab on bite area
Paste Applications
Mix these fresh then apply to bite as soon as possible. The consistency should be nice and thick so it won’t run, yet will still stay in place on the affected area. You could also spritz bite with water then apply grains/powders directly (generously) and rub them in.
- Baking Soda & Water (works for me)
- Meat Tenderizer & Water
- Salt & Water (works for me)
- Epsom Salt & Water (could also do this as a foot soak if it’s the ankle/foot area affected)
- Tums Tablets: crush and add a few drops of water
- Aspirin: crush then add a few drops of water
- Aspirin – crush then apply a few drops of rubbing alcohol
Commercial Product Lotions, Creams & Applications
*Apply directly to mosquito bite area.
- Calamine Lotion
- Benadryl Cream
- Orajel
- Anbesol
- Caladryl
- Vicks VapoRub (works for me)
- Preparation H (works for me)
- Lucas Papaw Ointment
- Tiger Balm
- Bag Balm
- Gold Bond Medicated Cream (or the Gold Bond Medicated Powder)
- Mylanta (heartburn relief product)
- After Bite
Essential Oils For Itch Relief
Apply full strength directly to bite area. Edit: There are concerns about using essential oils on children and pre-teens, especially repeated use.
- Tea Tree Oil
- Lavender Oil
- Witch Hazel (astringent)
- Cedar Oil
Leaf Applications
*Crush the fresh leaves roughly then apply to bite area
- Basil
- Plantains (Plantago)
Fruity Applications
*Use fresh fruit & apply directly to bite
- Lemon Juice
- Lemon Slice
- Lime Juice
- Lime Slice
- Banana Peel (rub inside of peel on bite)
Whew! Big List! If I’ve missed your favorite remedy for mosquito bites, please add them below.
Notes
- If a remedy doesn’t provide fast relief, don’t despair. Give it another try, sometimes it will take 2 or 3 applications before it kicks in.
- The itch from mosquito bites comes from the saliva of the mosquito that it injects into you as it feasts on your blood. There are several dozen different species of mosquitoes and you may react to some species bites more than others.
- If large swelling occurs (like welts), contact a doctor or pharmacist for suggestions (especially if it’s a child with a strong reaction). It could be an allergy to the bite. It’s important to watch the throat for swelling and get treatment asap.