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Medical Forum / General / General / July 2005DEET Products Questions
Hello: Have a question re DEET. Have a friend who is lactose intolerant, and as a result apparently emits a higher level of CO2 than most folks while exhaling. Mosquitos just love him in the summer. If you go out with him, they all go to him. Really amazing. Anyway, want him to try some of the stronger DEET products than he has been using presently. A bit worried about the 100% deet, as I read in several places over the years that at this strength it is a carcinogen and should be avoided. True ? Dropping down in strengths, I see iall the products seem to go from the 100% to 30% for several 3M offerings. Doesn't seem to be anything between 100% and 30%, surprisingly. Is the 30 % "fairly" effective ? How dangerous is this stuff per any recent research ? Any other repellents "worth" trying ? Thanks, Bob >Hello: > [quoted text clipped - 23 lines] > >Any other repellents "worth" trying ? According to the August 2005 Consumer Reports, yes -- picaridin and eucalyptus are both worth trying. There aren't very many products around that use either one, but the CDC has approved both ingredients. For more info about DEET, check the July 2005 Consumer Reports. -- David Wright :: alphabeta at prodigy.net These are my opinions only, but they're almost always correct. "I believe The Battle of the Network Stars should be fought with guns." -- Steve Martin It's really not CO2 that the female mosquito susses but the smell of the lactic acid in the CO2. Why not do what native people do; rub your skin with wild mint (aka catnip). You'll need to repeat the application with fresh leaves about once an hour. Small price to pay: none. Zee > Hello: > [quoted text clipped - 27 lines] > Thanks, > Bob "outrider" <outrider@despammed.com> wrote in part: >It's really not CO2 that the female mosquito susses but the smell of >the lactic acid in the CO2. Why not do what native people do; rub your >skin with wild mint (aka catnip). You'll need to repeat the application >with fresh leaves about once an hour. Small price to pay: none. CO2 seems to be a factor, too, as well as lots of other things: http://www.ars.usda.gov/is/AR/archive/feb00/mosq0200.htm -- Jim Chinnis Warrenton, Virginia, USA LOL...from your cite: "Entomologist Daniel L. Kline tested the attractiveness of socks worn by humans. The results: Mosquitoes love them. "I wore the socks for 12 hours on 3 consecutive days. When I wasn't wearing the socks, I put them in a sealed plastic bag," says Kline. "I also found mosquitoes love Limburger cheese. Interestingly enough, the main ingredient in the cheese is a bacterium that can be found on the human foot," he says. Incidentally, Limburger cheese was first made in The Netherlands by monks. They trampled the cheese with their feet to get the finished product." I don't know why but I am never bothered by mosquitoes. Don't need DEET or catnip. I was once told, but I believe this has been disproven, that I don't have the right blood type. They seldom light on me, and even more rarely bite. Zee >>Have a friend who is lactose intolerant, and as a result apparently emits a higher level of CO2 than most folks while exhaling. << COMMENT: LOL. Unless you see mosquitos congregate in the region of his anus, I don't think you blame lactose intolerance. Mosquitos sense CO2 and a wide variety of other chemicals. But the amount of CO2 you make from normal energy metabolism is gigantic and unchangable, except by things which slow your metabolic rate (like holding still and keeping warm so you don't shiver). It's easy to keep warm, but holding still just makes you a better mosquito target. Forget about CO2. DEET acts by blocking a variety of receptors on mosquito antennae. Picaridin products work probably the same way, and is another repellent recently recommended by the CDC. Lemon eucalyptus oil also works, and David Wright indicates, but we don't know how. DEET is still the best of the scientifically tested repellents. DEET safety issues remain, but mostly in pediatric use. J Med Entomol. 2004 May;41(3):414-7. Field evaluation of repellent formulations containing deet and picaridin against mosquitoes in Northern Territory, Australia. Frances SP, Waterson DG, Beebe NW, Cooper RD. Australian Army Malaria Institute, Gallipoli Barracks, Enoggera, Queensland. Steve.Frances@defence.gov.au Field efficacy of repellent formulations containing picaridin (1-methyl-propyl 2-(2-hydroxyethyl)-1-piperidinecarboxylate) or deet (N,N,-diethyl-3-methylbenzamide) against mosquitoes in Northern Territory, Australia, was evaluated. The following repellent treatments were evaluated: 19.2% picaridin (Autan Repel Army 20), a solution of 20% deet in ethanol, and 35% deet in a gel (Australian Defense Force [ADF]). The predominant mosquito species were Culex annulirostris Skuse (57.8%), Anopheles merankensis Venhuis (15.4%), and Anopheles bancroftii Giles (13.2%). The protection provided by repellents against Anopheles spp. was relatively poor, with 19.2% picaridin and ADF deet providing >95% protection for only 1 h, whereas 20% deet provided <95% protection at 1 h after repellent application. In contrast, the repellents provided good protection against Cx. annulirostris, with 19.2% picaridin providing >95% protection for 5 h and both deet formulations providing >95% protection for 7 h when collections ceased. This study provides additional field data showing tolerance of Anopheles spp. for repellents. The response of field populations of Cx. annulirostris, an important vector of arboviruses in Australia, to repellents containing deet and picaridin is reported for the first time. PMID: 15185943 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] |
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