What are the best, safest insect repellents?
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Remember the good ol’ days of your childhood summers? Bare feet, tube tops, Dr. Scholls and no mosquito bites? (So maybe I totally dated myself, but I do have a point…). Back then, our parents sprayed us with that awful smelling insect spray that was chock a block full of DEET.
So, what’s wrong with DEET?
“Healthy Child, Healthy World: Creating a Cleaner, Greener, Safer Home” is a great book put out by the CEO of the nonprofit environment group of the same name. Their website is a fount of information including an article about how to choose the right insect repellent for your child. The main point? Stay away from DEET. “The most frequently reported symptoms of DEET toxicity in children are lethargy, headaches, tremors, involuntary movements, seizures, and convulsions. Sounds pretty horrific.
So, of course the question is: what is an alternative to DEET?
“Products containing less than 10 percent DEET ward off mosquitoes for approximately one to two hours. In stark contrast, the citronella and herbal products kept mosquitoes away for less than 20 minutes. A product containing IR3535 was about the same. The only natural product that lasted more than an hour was a soybean oil product called Bite Blocker for Kids, which the US Department of Agriculture found to be as effective as a 15% concentration of DEET and lasted for 4-8 hours.”
Which then led me to Bite Blocker’s website. They have a variety of products that have coverage for various time periods: 2 to 8 hours. They also have insect repellents for your pets and for pest control.
So, we tried it last summer and it totally works. But you need a lot of it. One bottle will not get you through the summer.
I’m always on a hunt for alternatives too- and so that led me to: Safemama.com (great site!). Her 2010 Bug Repellent Cheat Sheet list products that are free of DEET, parabens, phtalates, PEGs, Sulfates, Dioxanes, Proplyene Glycols and synthetic frangrances (basically just trust in that she is choosing the best most natural repellents.)
On her cheat sheet? (Just a few that I selected for higher reviews and lower ratings on the Skin Deep)
Bubble & Bee 100% Organic Insect Repellent
Brittanie’s Thyme Organic Insect Repellent
Burt’s Bees Herbal Insect Repellent
Read her entire Cheat Sheet for reviews, prices and their Skin Deep Rating.
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My sister swears by this too- but I didn’t include it because on EWG’s Skin Deep database it has a hazard rating of 5,6 and 8 on the hazard score (depending on which one you got)- which is a “moderate hazard.” I tried to post ones that scored a 0, 1 or 2.
Here’s the link to their scores: http://www.ewg.org/skindeep/search.php?query=avon+skin+so+soft+insect&h=Go
Another great alternative which I have been using for years – Avon’s Skin So Soft Insect Repellent. It’s not organic or soybean-based or anything like that, but it IS Deet-free and PABA-free. Plus it comes with SPF sunscreen, it’s very water-resistant and it moisturizes too with Vitamin E and aloe. You can get it on their website.
Yael- tick repellent? I am all over that. I had 29 ticks on me AT THE SAME TIME one summer. I felt like I had been attacked by mini vampires. Thanks for passing on the info and hope you like their bug lotion as much as we do. The smell can be bad- but rather that then covered in welts!
Just placed an order for a few bite blocker products. One also claims to repel ticks! We’d still take normal tick precautions, but it just feels good to know that there is an extra layer of protection when we are out hiking in the woods. Thanks for posting!
Just found this by searching your site. So glad you posted it, as I have recently been on the hunt for DEET-free repellents! Thanks for posting – I have heard good things about this product from other moms, too.
Thanks for posting this! When I was pregnant two years ago I used Bite Blocker during a trip to Mexico (very nervous about DEET, but just as nervous about the mosquitoes!), and I can happily report that I didn’t receive a single bite, even inland. I’m grateful for the reminder that they also offer a product for kids.