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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

People’s Pharmacy: The best ways to keep mosquitoes from biting

By Joe Graedon, M.S., and Teresa Graedon, Ph.D. King Features Syndicate

There was a time when Americans really worried about mosquito bites. That’s because during the 18th and 19th centuries, malaria was endemic in large parts of the country. It was a leading cause of death, especially in young children.

By 1951, malaria was pretty much eliminated from the United States, thanks in large measure to aggressive use of the pesticide DDT. From the 1950s till the early 21st century, mosquitoes were more of an annoyance than a hazard.

Then along came West Nile virus in 1999. This mosquito-borne disease can affect the brain. Cases have been reported in virtually every state except for Alaska and Hawaii.

Several other viruses that attack the brain also are transmitted by mosquito bites. They include La Crosse encephalitis in the upper Midwest, mid-Atlantic and Southeastern states, as well as St. Louis encephalitis in Eastern and Central states.

Despite the spread of these viral infections, most Americans have not worried about mosquito-borne illness. The game changer is the Zika virus. Dramatic videos of babies born with microcephaly have a lot of people worried, even though the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has not reported any cases of Zika that have been transmitted by mosquito bites in the continental U.S.

Experts have been arguing about whether the mosquito that transmits Zika can gain a widespread foothold in the U.S. Until that’s determined, the best protection will be air conditioning, window screens and an effective mosquito repellent when you are spending time outside.

The gold standard of modern mosquito repellents is DEET. It was developed by the U.S. military for use by forces fighting in tropical areas. DEET has been available commercially since 1957. It is effective, but it melts plastic, and some people experience skin irritation and even neurological symptoms when high concentrations are used.

Fortunately for those who prefer to avoid DEET, there are now other compounds that work well to repel mosquitoes. Consumer Reports tested 16 bug repellents and found that two products with 20 percent picaridin (Sawyer Picaridin and Natrapel 8 Hour) performed just as well as Off! Deepwoods VIII, which contains 25 percent DEET. In fact, Sawyer Picaridin also did a very good job of repelling ticks, which carry their own collection of nasty diseases.

According to Consumer Reports, Repel Lemon Eucalyptus, with 30 percent lemon eucalyptus oil, was nearly as good. Products based on other natural plant oils hardly worked at all, so they wouldn’t be reliable in protecting people from Zika or West Nile viral infections.

Whichever effective insect repellent you choose, use it properly. The best ones protect for about eight hours; after that, they need to be reapplied. They should be applied only to clothing or exposed skin.

A repellent never should be sprayed on the face. Instead, spray it onto the hands and use them to spread it on face, hair and ears. Once the repellent has been applied, wash the hands, especially before eating or drinking anything.

Once you come inside where mosquitoes can’t find you, shower or wash off the repellent. Clothing that has been sprayed should be laundered separately from other clothes.

Joe Graedon is a pharmacologist. Teresa Graedon holds a doctorate in medical anthropology and is a nutrition expert. Their syndicated radio show can be heard on public radio. In their column, Joe and Teresa Graedon answer letters from readers. Write to them in care of this newspaper or email them via their Web site: www.PeoplesPharmacy.com.