Mosquitos and Ticks – Best Repellant Products
It is near the end of Summer but Mosquitos and Ticks are still a significant issue. These pests carry diseases that can turn our lives upside down. Mosquito and Tick season continues with the warmth and wetness of our environment. With the use of some readily available products, we can reduce the number of ticks and mosquitos and reduce our risk of contracting one of these dreaded diseases.
While staying inside is always the best way to prevent mosquitos and ticks from biting us, it’s just not realistic. There are obvious health benefits of outdoor activity and mosquitos and ticks shouldn’t be the end of summer fun.
To keep mosquitos and ticks off of our skin, use either DEET or Picaridin
The most effective products to keep mosquitos and ticks off of our skin are DEET and Picaridin. Both, when used as directed, are shown to be effective and safe. DEET has a better track record of preventing tick bites. Picaridin has been shown to be just as effective in repelling mosquitos as DEET.
Just apply these products to your skin – as directed – noting the percentage strength of the product is an indicator of how long the product will repel mosquitos and ticks.
For Our Clothes – Permethrin
Keeping mosquitos and ticks off of clothing is important in order to also keep them off of our skin. Permethrin is a natural insecticide that comes from the chrysanthemum flower.
To use it, lay out clothing and spray Permethrin onto them and let them dry. When insects come into contact with it – they die. Fantastic.
Here’s the really cool part. Permethrin will stay on your clothing for up to 6 washes! Of course like any chemical, read the directions and follow them.
Here is some information on the diseases that mosquitos and ticks can carry.
Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever are a couple of the diseases tics carry, while mosquitoes can be found to carry West Nile Virus, many forms of Encephalitis in Georgia, and now in Florida, Zika Virus as well as Dengue Fever. These are all bad diseases.
Symptoms of mosquito and tick-borne diseases include the following:
- Lyme disease symptoms include rash, flu-like symptoms, joint pain, and neurological or cardiological problems.
- Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever can be life threatening and brings a high fever, nausea, lack of sleep, aches, chills and of course a high fever.
- West Nile Virus only affects 1-5% of those who contract it, but when it does, it causes high fever, coma, shakes, weakness and even paralysis!
- Dengue Fever has been recently reintroduced to the United States and can be deadly! High fevers, vomiting, severe bleeding are some of the more serious Dengue Fever symptoms.
Try out Picaridin, DEET and Permethrin and let me know what you think of their ability to repel these pests!
Of course to learn the details of other First Aid topics – check out one of our open classes!