Mosquito Repellents?

l4rk

Camping season is upon us! Does anyone have the 411 on mosquito repellents? 

I haven't even gone camping yet and I already have several skitter bites and they are driving me bonkers! I'm a mosquito's deluxe buffet so I've always relied heavily on chemicals to make my outdoor adventures tolerable...

somewhereinafrica

I live in a Malaria zone so I am mosquito repellent obsessed and have been researching and trying out different ones. Pre pregnancy I used DEET. because I tried natural ones and they weren't working !

But I have found one that works a dream and is completely chemical free it's called ON GUARD but I brought it in South Africa not sure if you get it in the states! But this stuff works a good 7 hrs and I don't get bitten!! If I put it on properly I won't have a single bite. I am so happy to have found it and I'm lucky enough to have lots of friends going back and forth to South Africa to stock up for me!

I have an American friend who is a malaria specialist here and uses the brand Cutter but their natural range and she says it's great. She can get diplomatic mail so can order from the U.S but I can't find it locally or in South Africa so haven't personally tried it but I trust the source that recommended it to me!!

If you don't need something fool proof there are more natural ones like neem oil sprays and some essential oils that you can use but honestly as much as I would love it to work 100% they rarely last more than an hour or so and you tend to still get a few bites.

There is another brand called Incognito that also works fairly well but it's pricey but if it's not for every day use might work. I brought it in UK so not sure what is available in U.S.

As I said I'm obsessed with it and now I probably research bug spray more than nursery decor or any other baby related topic ......! I actually am excited to read other responses..

l4rk

@somewhereinafrica, wow, thank you for all the detailed information! I'm in Canada but I will see if either of those brands are available here.

Good luck fending off the malaria! I was in Ghana for 3 months so I know all about that fear... Nasty, nasty stuff. A former boyfriend got sick over a year after returning home and the doctors thought he had AIDS at first because he was in such rough shape and the symptoms were similar. Took them a couple (very stressful) days to properly diagnose because nobody thought of the Africa trip...

heawilliams

Strange as this may sound, I used Avons skin so soft dry oil and it worked like a dream. Husband got all sorts of bites, but DD and I bite free. They don't like the scent.

nanamp

I really like Burts bees bug repellent. It smells like lemongrass and there is no deet.

indibidule

I'm a mosquito buffet as well as being more allergic than the average person (huge welts!!) and I have tried evening at one point or another, even 100% deet and nothing has worked for me like Avon skin so soft. I just use the bath oil and rub it on line lotion after I get out of the shower. It keeps my skin super moisturized and soft and bite free!

ashs88

I highly recommend the bug spray called Bug Soother. A little local shop started making it here in Iowa and it works so well that practically the entire state went nuts for it. It is completely all natural and smells amazing. I think the main ingredients are vanilla and lemongrass. So it is totally safe to use while pregnant and I even use it on my 2 yr old and my dog. And it really works amazingly! It's available in just about every grocery store and gas station in Iowa, but I don't know how available it is outside of the state. I did see you can get it on Amazon though so pretty much anyone should be able to get it that way