Natural Mosquito Repellents

We all know that mosquitoes are a nuisance. None of us likes being bitten by the
m. Most people say 'bitten' although this not true. 'Stung' is also not factual.
What the mosquito is actually doing is taking some of your protein in the form
of blood though her proboscis, so that her eggs will have something to feed upon
while they are developing.
In effect, your blood is supplying the albumen (the 'white') of the mosquitoes'
eggs. It therefore follows that it is only the female mosquito that 'bites'. In
the course of sucking your blood, the mosquito squirts some liquids into you. It
is not fully understood what these liquids contain, but one is an anti-coagulan
t to keep your blood flowing and another might be a pain-killer so you do not fe
el the proboscis entering your pore. Some think that there might also be an anti
septic, but it is not agreed by all.
Some mosquitoes also inject other parasites into you, which can result in diseas
es like malaria, dengue, yellow fever and Japanese jungle encephalopathy. Mosqui
toes are to blame for killing millions of people every year. Luckily the liquid
that they inject comes from another source other than where they store the blood
they have already taken, otherwise they could distribute AIDS as well.
Having said all that, another indirect cause for alarm is in the prevention of m
osquito bites. The single most effective method of stopping mosquitoes landing o
n you is spreading mosquito repellent on your skin, and the most successful mosq
uito repellents contain DEET. However, it is now thought that the regular use of
DEET can cause neurological issues. Consequently, it worth looking for natural
mosquito repellents.
Unfortunately, there is no mosquito repellent as good as DEET, but some combinat
ions of treatments are nearly as effective. For instance, some people say that m
osquitoes are drawn to people who have eaten bananas, so you could avoid bananas
if you are near mosquitoes. Others say that mosquitoes are less likely to go fo
r people who have eaten garlic or Yeastvite or Bovril.
Mosquitoes hate the smell of lemons, so a local application of lemon juice is ve
ry effective although the effect only lasts about thirty or forty minutes. Howe
ver, there is a plant called the citronella and this deters mosquitoes equally a
s well. The citronella does not smell of lemons unless it is disturbed, but then
it is very aromatic.
Grow them in pots on your window cills, on your deck or on your patio. The breez
e blowing through them is enough to release the smell. You can also collect the
dead leaves and put them in your pillow. You can also rub green leaves straight
onto your skin.
There are quite a few natural mosquito repellents, but they do not all work for
everyone and nobody understands why. One theory is that diet and alcohol affect
your appeal to mosquitoes. It is also possible that mosquitoes in different regi
ons like different types of people, so it is always worth asking for local guida
nce.
Owen Jones writes pieces on several topics, but is currently promoting <a href="
http://electronicinsectkiller.org/hand-held-bug-zapper.html">Hand Held Insect Ki
ller</a> devices and static systems at <a href="http://electronicinsectkiller.or
g">Electronic Insect Killer</a>s.