Feeling itchy? Five things to do to make things better during mosquito season
We need the rain in what is shaping up to be a drought-filled summer, but with each drop, out come the mosquitoes.
The very productive female mosquito can lay 100 to 200 eggs in about an inch of water. It takes about a day in water for those eggs to hatch, creating new mosquitoes to bite you.
Here are five things you can do to make this summer a better mosquito season for you.
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1. Don't make your yard a place mosquitoes love.
Dump out any source of standing water: flower pots, tires, buckets, toys, garbage cans, kiddie pools.
Regularly clean out anything that needs to have water, such as a bird bath. Use mosquito dunks or mosquito fish in ponds to eat the mosquito larvae. Make sure rain barrels are covered.
Move potted plants indoors. Create drains in planter boxes to avoid standing water lurking there.
Look for drainage problems in your yard and fix them with a French drain.
Plant lemon balm, mint, chrysanthemums, marigolds, basil, garlic, eucalyptus, lavender, rosemary and lemongrass around your yard. Or use oils and candles with those scents to discourage mosquitoes.
Scatter coffee grounds in the soil wherever there have been drainage problems. They deprive the eggs in the soil of oxygen.
Install lights around the yard that mosquitoes don't like, such as LED lights, yellow bug lights or sodium lamps.
Use a fan or fans on the patio to discourage mosquitoes from flocking there.
Hire a professional service to treat your yard. Make sure they know whether you have pets or kids crawling around in the yard.
Gardening tips: How to rid your yard of mosquitoes
2. Avoid mosquito party time.
Mosquitoes' prime dining times are dawn and dusk. That doesn't mean you won't see them in the heat of the day, they just aren't as prevalent.
During peak times, though, you'll want to make sure to put on your armor — repellant and long sleeves and long pants. Lighter colored clothing also is better for not attracting mosquitoes. Make that clothing lighter weight to deal with summer heat, but know that mosquitoes can get their proboscis into holes in the clothing.
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3. Accept that it might just be who you are.
Why do some mosquitoes like some people and not others?
Mosquitoes love people who exhale more carbon dioxide, are sweatier, have certain pheromones, have a warmer body temperature and have type 0-positive blood.
Some people have reported some luck with taking a daily vitamin B complex pill. It might change the way a person's blood smells.
It's chemical: Why do some people seem to attract mosquitoes?
4. Pick the right bug spray
When we tested 16 insect repellants, some with DEET, some with all-natural ingredient, we confirmed that the more DEET, the better they generally worked. Wristbands and wearable fans didn't work as well.
DEET products can be used on anyone 2 months and older.
Products with lemon eucalyptus oil should not be used on kids younger than 3 years old unless it has less than 30% lemon eucalyptus oil.
Kids younger than 10 should not apply repellant themselves. Instead of spraying it directly on young kids, spray it into your hands and then rub it into their skin. The same technique is true for faces of all ages.
Avoid spraying in eyes, noses, mouths and ears.
You can spray exposed skin and clothing, but do not spray underneath clothing.
Avoid open wounds and cuts, and avoid over spraying.
You need only light coverage.
Spray repellant outside rather than inside and not near food.
Avoid inhaling these sprays. Wash your hands after applying repellants.
After using an insect repellant, it's recommended that you wash it off when you're done for the day and change out of the clothes you sprayed with repellant.
The Environmental Protection Agency regulates products that have these ingredients:
DEET
Picaridin (known as KBR 3023 and icaridin outside the U.S.)
IR3535
Oil of lemon eucalyptus (OLE)
Para-menthane-diol (PMD)
2-undecanone
On epa.gov/insect-repellents/find-repellent-right-you, you can find insect repellants that have been regulated by the EPA and are considered safe for use by humans.
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5. I've been bitten, now what?
Mosquitoes carry all kinds of nasty diseases such as malaria, Zika, dengue fever, West Nile virus, Chikungunya virus, yellow fever and encephalitis.
In Central Texas, West Nile virus is the most common. It hasn't hit Central Texas yet this year, but it is in the Dallas area. Last year, West Nile was found in mosquitoes in south Austin and Williamson County.
Most people with West Nile virus will not feel sick. About 20% will have symptoms such as a headache, fever, body aches, joint pains, a rash, vomiting and diarrhea. Some people need to be hospitalized, and it can cause death, but it is extremely rare.
Most people when they get bitten by a mosquito don't get a disease. They just get those itchy red bumps that sometimes can swell up.
Be concerned if a bump is crusty with a weeping wound that has white puss flowing from it. (Clear liquid is not worrisome and is actually a sterile substance.) If a bump becomes hard or tender rather than just itchy, that's concerning. Also worry if it seems to be spreading from the initial site consdierably. If you develop a fever, hives or swollen lymph nodes, see a doctor.
Infection such as staph sets in when people scratch their bites. Dirt from hands can be transferred into the open wound in the skin. Try to keep kids' nails short and clean, wash their hands often, and encourage them to rub a bite through their clothing rather than scratching the skin directly if it's impossible not to touch it. You also can cover it with a bandage to avoid direct contact with the bite.
To try to control the itching, use an over-the-counter anti-itch cream, typically with 1% hydrocortisone in it. Spot treat the area. You also can create a paste using baking soda and water and apply it. Wash off the paste about 10 minutes later. Also try applying ice packs to take down the redness and the itchiness. A lotion with oatmeal in it or calamine also can be soothing to the skin.
If there are a lot of bites and that cream is not helping, try taking an antihistamine like Zyrtec, Claritin or Benadryl.
Sources: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Environmental Protection Agency; Dr. Lisa Gaw, pediatrician and director at Texas Children’s Urgent Care Westgate; Dr. Albert Gros, the former chief medical officer at St. David’s South Austin Medical Center; Ryan Larsen, a civil engineer at storm water management company NDS Inc.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Mosquito season in Austin: Five things to do to make it better
