Ingredients Of Mosquito Repellent

Repellents are substances that help people avoid mosquito bites. Anyone working or playing in mosquito-infested areas will find repellents very helpful. Repellents are formulated for use on bare skin.  They are sold as aerosols, creams, solids (sticks),pump sprays and liquids. Use repellents containing ingredients such as diethyl phthalate, diethyl carbate; N, N-Diethyl-3-Methylbenzamide (DEET), metofluthrin, oil of lemon-eucalyptus, picaridin and ethyl hexanediol. For more than 50 years, DEET has been the gold standard in mosquito repellents. Check the label for these active ingredients.  Repellents do not kill mosquitoes and other insects, but they will help deter them from biting people.

Ingredients Of Mosquito Repellent

Permethrin-containing products (Permanone) are recommended for use only on clothing, shoes, bednets and camping gear—never on skin. Permethrin-treated clothing repels and kills ticks, mosquitoes and other arthropods. It can remain effective even after repeated laundering. Always follow the label directions when treating clothes or outer wear with EPA registered permethrin products approved for that specific use.  Permethrin products sprayed on clothing will generally be effective at repelling arthropods up to 6 hours following the application.

Oil of citronella is the active ingredient in many of the candles, torches, or coils that can be burned to produce a vapor or smoke that repels mosquitoes. These are only useful outdoors when the wind isn’t blowing. These products are less effective than repellents applied to the body or permethrin applied to clothing.
Here are some commonsense rules to follow when using repellents

Which repellent works best?  N,N-diethyl-3-methylbenzamide (DEET) remains the standard by which all other repellents are judged. DEET was developed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and was registered for use by the general public in 1957.  It is effective against mosquitoes, biting flies, chiggers, fleas, and ticks. Decades of empirical testing of more than 20,000 other compounds has not resulted in other repellent products with the duration of protection and broad-spectrum effectiveness of DEET, although the recent additions of picaridin and oil of lemon eucalyptus are remarkably close in effectiveness to DEET.  The American Academy of Pediatrics says that all family members over the age of two months can use DEET-based repellents with up to 30% concentration with confidence.

DEET-based repellents have been around for more than 50 years but that hasn’t kept the folks who make these products from innovating with new fragrances, new formulations, new product types, and, best of all, products that feel nice when applied.  The DEET-based repellent fragrances are pleasant to use and range from fruity to woodsy neutral scents.  Unscented products have a slight alcohol odor (there’s alcohol in the formulation) until they dry on the skin.  Folks who tend to be allergic to fragrances should try the unscented products.  Today’s products start out at a concentration of 5% (lasts 90 minutes or so) and range up to 100% (for approximately 10 hours of protection from bites).  Pick one that matches your activity.  For an outdoor family barbecue in the evenings, a 10% product is fine.  It will help protect from bites for approximately 90 minutes to two hours.  Products are available in aerosols, pump sprays, lotions, creams and even towelettes.  These are individually packaged and are also sold in a handy plastic container that allows the towelettes to pop up one at a time.  There are water resistant and water repellent products.  One brand uses a microencapsulation process that helps the DEET release over time after you have applied it. Another goes on dry from an aerosol can, just as powder antiperspirants do.

For those who are in tick country, it’s important to use a product with at least a 20% concentration. Lower concentrations of all EPA-registered repellents are not effective at warding off ticks.

Most apparent repellency failures with DEET are due to misapplications, so care should be taken to apply it thoroughly (avoiding the eyes and mouth) and to reapply when necessary. This is crucial to maintain the DEET vapor barrier above the skin. New polymerized 30% DEET cream formulations provide excellent protection that nearly matches that of higher DEET concentrations in regular formulations.

The American Academy of Pediatrics says products containing up to and including 30 percent DEET can be used on children.  The AAP says  DEET-based repellents can be used on children two months of age  and older.

In April of 2005, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) began recommending two new active ingredients as safe, effective repellents.

The first of these is picaridin, a synthetic developed by Bayer Corporation in the 1980s. This repellent has been used widely outside of the United States and is marketed by the same companies that produce DEET-based repellents. Picaridin is odorless, has a pleasant feel and doesn’t damage certain fabrics and finishes  affected by other repellents.  Studies have shown it to be as fully repellent to mosquitoes and ticks as DEET and can also be applied on infants as young as 2 months. 

Another EPA-registered repellent is oil of lemon-eucalyptus.  It is marketed by companies that make both DEET and picaridin repellents.  The formulation is based on the molecule found in eucalyptus.  It cannot be used on children younger than three years of age.  Like other essential oil products, it can cause skin irritation in higher concentrations.  It has a pleasant scent and feel without any plasticizing properties. At higher concentrations, it is also effective at repelling ticks.

Ingredients Of Mosquito Repellent

1. DEET (N,N-diethyl-meta-toluamide), a chemical that has been used for decades to repel insects.

2. Picaridin, a synthetic compound that works similarly to DEET.

3. IR3535 (ethyl butylacetylaminopropionate), another synthetic chemical that has been used in Europe and Australia for more than 15 years.

4. Lavender oil and lemongrass oil are natural products derived from plants that have been shown to be effective repellents against mosquitoes and biting flies in testing, according to the American Mosquito Control Association.

List Of Ingredients Of Mosquito Repellent