Description
This article is from the Outdoor
Activities for Young Children FAQ, by Gloria Logan
glogan@atk.com with numerous contributions by others.
67 INSECT REPELLANT:
With the summer season upon us and camping with our infant son just
around the corner, I would like to collect the net.wisdom on insect
repellents for infants/small children.
What would/wouldn't you recommend?
Have you used Formula 339 (all natural) sold in The Right Start
Catalog? Was it effective?
-----
Here's the summary Laura gathered in 1992 and has tried to keep
current:
Non-chemical methods:
clothes - long sleeves and pants keep bugs from biting
- dress in neutral colors (bright colors attract bugs)
netting - buy it by the yard for cribs, strollers and hats
- some baby supply stores make specially fitted covers
DEET: (active ingredient in most bug sprays)
- too toxic for children (MAY cause seizures in high concentrations)
- smells bad (causing headaches in some people)
- dilute with rubbing alcohol before using on children
- apply to child's clothes and let dry before dressing the child (this
tends to keep bugs away from the skin as well as the clothed areas)
(this also reduces/eliminates absorption into the skin
- pediatricians recommend not using on children
- journal article recommends not using 35% or higher concentrations on
children
- newly developed product (Skedaddle) using DEET in a non-absorbable
base recommended by a pediatrician
Citronella: (natural ingredient in most "all natural" repellents)
- not as effective as DEET, requires frequent re-application for some
- not as harmful as DEET
- smells better than DEET
- may be what's in Avon's Skin-So-Soft (speculation)
- can get it at health stores and make your own solution
- OK'd by pediatricians
- if you're staying in one place (as opposed to hiking) you can burn
citronella candles that keep the bugs away
Avon's Skin-So-Soft: (bath oil, face cream & skin lotion not specified)
- not as effective as DEET, requires frequent re-application for some
- not as harmful as DEET
- smells better than DEET
- works great for some, not for others
- not recommended by some pediatricians (unknown ingredients & effects)
-----
We found a citronella lotion at the drug store that worked fine for us
under average buggy conditions.
-----
everybody's going to say Skin SO Soft, from Avon, so i wanted to be the
first to get in and say it... B) although, personally, i don't use
anything. i don't wear anything scented, and bugs ignore me.
-----
Really? I don't wear anything scented, and bugs LOVE me! When my
husband and I hike I get all the bug bites! Some people have all the
luck!
-----
The only thing that works for us is commercial repellents with DEET.
However, we try not to apply it to Ben's skin - we dress him in long
sleeves, long pants, and apply the repellent to the clothes. This
still seems to work OK for keeping them off the face and hands.
-----
There was a good discussion of Skin-So-Soft on the net a few years
back. One article that was posted was a reprint from a medical
journal. (Sorry, I don't have the original article, nor even a
reference to the journal. Maybe someone else on the net can help out
here.) It stated that that when SSS is applied directly to the skin
(as opposed to being used as a bath or shower gell) in quantities
necessary to act as an insect repellant, it can cause health problems.
The article listed all the possible effects, but the only one I can
remember now is that there was the potential for liver damage. I have
no idea (nor did the article state) the health problems caused by SSS
relative to the health problems caused by DEET, but it certainly made
me wonder if I was doing my kids any favour by using it.
Other articles I've read on SSS as an insect repellant have stated
that it does have some effectiveness (but nowhere near the
effectiveness of DEET) but that the effect is short lived and it must
be repeatedly applied.
Personally, I generally apply small amounts of DEET to their clothing
and hats, and dress them in long sleeves and pants if the insects are
bad.
-----
Yesterday I asked my nearly-19-months-old daughter's pediatrician
about insect repellent. Last year we discovered one called Green
Ban (extra strength) sold in health food stores. It is mostly
citronella with a couple of other "oil ofs" that I can't remember.
I asked him about using it as opposed to Skin So Soft which gives
me an instant headache. Her pediatrician said it was safe to use.
It works very well, having been field-tested in the northern-most,
bug-infested reaches of Quebec. I have personally have found myself
confused and feeling sick to my stomach after using DEET products, so
have been looking for an effective natural product. This one
appears to be sanctioned by our pediatrician. By the way, he
also recommended 50 mg of vitamin B1 a day which is sweated out and
apparently stinks the bugs away! (Or something).
-----
>Please tell me the name of the manufacturer of Skeedaddle insect
>repellant and the phone number if one is printed on the package.
>I'd like to find out who sells it in our neighborhood. Thanks.
I finally went home and checked my bottle of Skeedaddle. The
number is 1-800-243-2929.
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