Mosquitoes are not only a nuisance but can also pose a serious health threat. Our daughter used to get lots of large itchy red bumps from the bites of these nasty mosquitoes. It was so heart breaking to see her suffer from these itchy bites and scratch herself until the skin breaks. We started applying mosquito repellents but were worried about effects from prolonged use of mosquito repellents based on synthetic chemicals like the commonly available OFF Lotion.
The most common chemical used by conventional mosquito repellents is DEET (N,N-Diethyl-meta-toluamide). Although DEET is still considered safe by most government safety bodies if used as directed, these directions include:
- Do not apply over cuts, wounds, or irritated skin.
- Do not apply to hands or near eyes and mouth of young children.
- After returning indoors, wash treated skin with soap and water.
Although rare, there are reports of DEET-associated seizures. A study from France found DEET to be toxic to the central nervous system of insects and also mammals. This should not come as a surprise since DEET was originally tested as a pesticide.
After learning the potential dangers of DEET based mosquito repellents, we started buying and testing alternative products made from natural ingredients. Most natural based mosquito repellents are much more expensive. The product that we liked most and have been using on our 2 year old child for about 8 months now is MOZ AWAY NATURAL from HOE Pharmaceuticals Sdn. Bhd. Its active ingredients are Citronella and Neem oil. It is also non-greasy, non-staining, alcohol free, contains no artificial fragrances and formulated to pH 5.5. It comes in 75ml PE spray bottle. NTUC Fairprice and Unity NTUC Healthcare are selling it at less than $7.
We're very happy to see our child's body clear of those nasty red bumps from mosquito bites.
