Dealing With Mosquitoes And Other Biting Insects Naturally and Safely by Dr J Dunn

Insects can be a problem in some areas. Dengue, filariasis, Leishmaniasis, Onchocerciasis, West Nile Virus, Malaria and American Trypanosomiasis (Chagas disease) are diseases carried by insects in some areas. Myiasis (botfly) is endemic in Central America. Protecting yourself against insect bites will help to prevent these diseases. Besides carrying and transmitting diseases they can just be rather annoying in general.

Most of the common bug sprays or repellents used to repel mosquitoes and other biting insects contain DEET. DEET is a registered pesticide and is short for N,N-diethyl-m-toluamide (also known as N,N-diethyl-3-methylbenzamide). It is a member of the toluene chemical family. Toluene is an organic solvent used in rubber and plastic cements and paint removers. DEET is absorbed through the skin and passes into the blood. The Medical Sciences Bulletin, published by Pharmaceutical Information Associates Ltd. reports,

"Up to 56% of DEET applied topically penetrates intact human skin and 17% is absorbed into the bloodstream."

Blood concentrations of about 3 mg per liter have been reported several hours after DEET repellent was applied to skin as prescribed. DEET is also absorbed by the gut.

Prime Time Live ran an expose on the dangers of DEET on May 31, 1995. In their report they found that “Insect repellents containing the chemical DEET are dangerous for human use, but political pressure from major chemical companies confounds attempts to regulate the dangerous ingredient.” Side effects include rashes, muscle twitching, confusion, slurred speech, seizures and even death. Most poison reactions to DEET probably go undetected but can cause long term toxicity problems. Nearly 5,000 DEET-related cases are reported each year to the National Centers for Poison Control.”

Immediate Health Effects

Whether it is swallowed, absorbed through the skin or inhaled, N,N-diethyl-meta-toluamide is Very Highly Toxic.

Longterm or Delayed Health Effects of DEET:

· It is considered an “Unclassifiable Carcinogen” by the World Health Organization and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

Other health effects noted by researchers

• Slight skin irritation. Eye irritation. In sensitive individuals, may cause allergic dermatitis.
• If ingested, may affect the central nervous system.
• In some, but not all, studies, test animals fed high doses of DEET experienced kidney and liver damage, and decreased body weight and food consumption.
• In a recent study of prolonged exposure to rats, damage to brain cells was noted.
• Applying DEET to skin has occasionally produced blisters, sometimes followed by severe scarring.
• There have been 18 reported cases where DEET exposure caused seizures and encephalopathy in children since 1960. Three died as a result.

According to Update magazine Spring 2003 “The most serious concerns about DEET are its effects on the central nervous system. Dr. Mohammed Abou-Donia of Duke University studied lab animals' performance of neuro-behavioural tasks requiring muscle co-ordination. He found that lab animals exposed to the equivalent of average human doses of DEET performed far worse than untreated animals. Abou-Donia also found that combined exposure to DEET and permethrin, a mosquito spray ingredient, can lead to motor deficits and learning and memory dysfunction."

"Damage to these areas could result in problems with muscle coordination, muscle weakness, walking or even memory and cognition."

Abou-Donia says short-term exposure to DEET does not appear to be harmful, but warns against using any product with more than a 30 percent concentration. He states that to minimize exposure and harm, “Use as little of the product as you can, and don't use a product containing DEET if you're taking any medication.”

DEET has far greater toxicity when combined with ethyl and isopropyl alcohols and Freon which are components of some DEET repellents. In 1998, the US EPA made it illegal for any product containing DEET to make any child safety claims. Products with DEET are required to carry instructions that they should not be used at all for children under 6 months. Additional required warnings state that for children 6 months to 2 years, only concentrations of less than 10% DEET should be used, and only once a day. For children from 2 -12 years old, only concentrations under 10% should be used, and repellents should not be applied more than 3 times a day.

For adults, Health Canada has now banned products with DEET concentrations over 30%, citing health risks and evidence that increasing the percentage does not do much more to repel insects. Health Canada has also banned two in one products which combine sunscreen and DEET, saying they create the potential for people to be exposed to too much DEET. The ban took effect in December 2004.

Products containing DEET are now required to carry labels which specify:

• ·Do not apply over cuts, wounds, or irritated skin.
• Do not apply to hands or near eyes and mouth of young children.
• Do not allow young children to apply this product.
• After returning indoors, wash treated skin with soap and water.
• Do not use under clothing.
• Do not spray in enclosed areas.

Experts recommend that if using DEET, its best to wear long sleeves and long pants, when possible, and apply repellent to clothing rather than skin to reduce exposure. They state DEET based products should only be applied sparingly; saturation does not increase efficiency. DEET repellents should not be inhaled. Repellent-treated clothes should be washed, or kept outside living areas to reduce exposure. This reduces the risk, but does not eliminate it.

Natural Alternatives

There are a number of effective, less toxic insect repellents available. They need to be applied more frequently than DEET based repellents, but they don’t carry the same health risks. Two botanical repellents which performed particularly well in a Florida study were Repel Lemon Eucalyptus Lotion Insect Repellent ( also marketed as FiteBite Plant Based Insect Repellent) which protected for 120 minutes, and Bite Blocker for Kids, a 2% soybean oil formula, which was effective for 95 minutes. Citronella products in the study provided about 30-40 minutes of protection.

Since being here in Costa Rica I have been trying various products to determine their effectiveness. The Citronella Wipes BuzzAway tested well kinesiologically but were relatively useless, or worse-the bugs seemed to like it! The Repel Lemon Eucalyptus did not test well for me, but may be OK for others. I am trying Neem oil from PRL now and so far am pleased with the results. It seems to work pretty well. It is less stinky (smells sort of like sesame oil) and makes my skin soft as well. There is some research that suggests using vitamin B1 internally to ward off mosquitos and other biting insects, so we have been using Bio-3B-G from Biotics Research at 4/day. It seems to be working on Dr. Wilcox. (It could be that he tastes bad or else these mosquitoes just don’t like Canadians, not sure which...)

Pharmacist Peter Ford in Moncton compounds two pesticide-free insect repellents: GUB lotion, which is vanilla based and well tolerated by chemically sensitive people, and The Citronella Spray. Great Ocean Natural Foods in Halifax stocks a selection of repellents based on essential oils including citronella, tea tree and eucalyptus. Citronella, tea tree and eucalyptus are volatile oils and may trigger reactions in some people, particularly the chemically sensitive. Bug shirts or hats are an excellent, non-toxic method of protection.

Back yard mosquito control tips:

Mosquito coil smoke contains about 70 different volatile organic compounds including allethrin, phenol, benzene, toluene and xylene, all quite toxic especially when burned and inhaled. Using yellow outdoor light bulbs which do not attract insects can help reduce mosquito populations at night. Another option is to use a fan when there is little wind since mosquitoes are not strong flyers. Planting mosquito repelling plants like lemon balm, catnip, basil and lemon geraniums around outdoor sitting areas and encouraging mosquito predators like bats and dragonflies can help reduce mosquito populations.

According to one study, Cited in EurekAlert July 14, 2004, cinnamon oil was found to be an effective environmentally safe pesticide that also smells good, it may be an effective mosquito repellant, and especially for the ones carrying Yellow Fever.

Copyright 2007 Dr J Dunn. Visit our website at www.wholistickinesiology.com