Avoiding mosquito bites
First the bad news. You might just be unlucky, because some experts claim that mosquitoes are attracted by smell. If you are really unlucky your natural body odour might smell like a Sunday lunch to any passing mosquito.
Now the good news. More often than not it is a combination of the smell of your soap, aftershave, perfume, deodorant or skin cream that is attracting them.
Avoiding mosquitoes – countermeasures
There are three basic strategies.
Safety Tips For Traveling To Europe
Avoidance
Don’t give mosquitoes an opportunity to bite you by avoiding them in the tirst place.
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Places. The mosquito needs standing water to breed. A warm, humid, swampy area with plenty of pools or ditches full of stagnant water will provide an ideal breeding ground. When arranging your journey, avoid any area where conditions make it likely that the mosquito population will be high.
Location. Most mosquito, tick and other insect-borne infections can be identified as being common in a given place. By avoiding travel to those places, a traveller can avoid exposure to the infection. Research and local advice should tell you the places to avoid. Generally, rural locations offer the greatest hazard.
Safety Tips For Traveling To England
Time. The mosquito is particularly active during twilight at dawn and dusk and fairly active all night. If possible, plan your activities to avoid the times when the mosquito is most active.
Season. To some extent some mosquito and other insect-borne infections are seasonal. By researching the destination and diseases, a traveller can avoid the times of year and seasons when infections are being carried by these insects.
Smell. As mentioned above, whatever your combination of smells, if you are plagued by mosquitoes, you might try changing your smell. Use un-perfumed soap, or use a different brand of deodorant, your fabric softener, shampoo, hairspray, hair gel, skin cream, perfume or anything else you can think of that may change your smell. But remember your aim is to put the mosquito off, not the other people in the hotel or on the beach around you!
Speed. Wind speed or your speed will defeat the mosquito. For example, when you are standing (safely and well back) on a cliff top enjoying a bracing wind, you will not suffer mosquito bites, because they couldn’t cope with the wind strength. Similarly, if you have a convertible car with the hood down and are driving to a party through the smelliest swamp, you are safe from a mosquito, because they can’t catch up with a car doing 50 miles per hour. (Is it safe to be doing 50 miles per hour through a swamp?)
