Originally Posted by OakAshandThorn
To be honest, as a retired nurse I like medication/remedies that are proven and tend to ignore 'natural' lotions and potions unless they are researched and peer reviewed et al. Why be uncomfortable when a bit of DEET or Avon makes life nicer.
Richard
South Wales UK
As a non-retired (sigh) medical scientist I can think of a number of reasons why DEET is a bad idea (actually I'm going to cut this short and just focus on one reason as I can feel an essay coming on). Firstly, I'm not advocating 'potions' over science but we need to be careful about pigeon-holing here - science can 'prove' nothing - we work on likelihoods not certainties and the fact that a compound has been through a lab does not make it a good idea (e.g. thalidomide). But we can use science to guide our use of naturally occurring substances like reindeer milk, eucalyptus oil, tea tree oil, clove oil, aspirin etc...... Similarly we can use science to guide our use of DEET. What we have learned from science is that if we keep spraying with DEET then resistance will be built up very quickly indeed (see, e.g. http://www.nature.com/news/2010/1005....2010.216.html ). Until we find a biological vector that can effectively stop malaria, DEET and similarly treated Mosquito nets are the only effective line of defence for millions (they are around 7x more effective than a net alone). If we continue to use DEET for comfort the resistant strains will grow exponentially and thus reduce the effectiveness of DEET use in places where it saves lives. Moreover, there is little economic imperative for pharmaceutical companies to develop DEET markets in places where it saves lives when it can be retailed far more lucratively in places where it has no such role. More generally, the wider the range of practices used to deter midges the better - they have less chance of evolving to overcome anti-midge strategies if there are a broad range of them - a nice by-product of cultural diversity...... I'll stop there but, needless to say, there are many other reasons not to use DEET unnecessarily......
Well, obviously natural remedies had work to at least some degree else our ancestors would've had a tough time adapting to the tropical and sub-tropical climates.
Not everyone can handle DEET, either - I'm one of them...too many bad experiences with rashes in my younger days.
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases...0703091932.htm
My blog, New England Bushcraft
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I use stupidly simple too, it's great.
Border Bushcrafters
Isn't it nice when someone says "that's a great piece of kit, where did you buy that", then you can modestly reply "you can't buy it, I made it myself". The moral is, it's amazing what you can achieve if you put your mind to it.
"No better burden can a man carry on the road, than a store of common sense." - Hávamál: 10
http://midgefodderbushcraft.blogspot.co.uk
Bog myrtle. I was introduced to it by a Sami woman and although it isn't as effective as DEET it does seem to help.
Eating garlic or taking garlic capsules helps as does marmite as previously stated.
Also as stated, elder leaves and to a lesser extent, mint. Also eating ramsons, or jack by the hedge can help.
Forgot to mention. Two tablespoons of vinegar in a pint of water defo works.
Has no-one tried Nordic summer ?
Not all those who wander are lost .... J. R. R. Tolkien.
Took the Missus (pregnant) and 5 kids, our 3 and her younger Brother and Sister to Loch Lomond for the Highland Games. All 6 of them laughing as they watched me pitch two tents next to the Loch. The midges were unbelievable, I had the Avon stuff but no respite. I swear these were baby midges, small enough to get anywhere. I was praying for wind, rain, sleet anything to bring some relief. Horrible things.
He who says "he can" and he who says "he can't", are both usually right.
I'm off to Loch Lomond next week and I'm dreading Midges, I've got various creams and smokey things to try , fingers crossed.
If nothing works I'll just ride my bike fast in circles
Campfires are best shared with friends.
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