How To Repel And Avoid Mosquito Bites Using Natural Remedies

Accompanied with the heat and humidity of summer are pesky, itchy and annoying mosquito bites. Mosquitoes bite because they are attracted to CO2 and lactic acid. If you are a living, breathing mammal, you are a walking target.

I dread the mosquito months and have since I was a child growing up in Florida. I'm plagued by my body's reaction to these small bites that turn into large almost welt-like, itchy raised bumps on my legs and arms. There have been seasons where running out to get the paper in the morning or taking out the trash has inflicted a handful of bites.

Modern technology has created great inventions like the mosquito magnet and the bug zapper but most communities or individuals in the south have not invested in these bug repellents. Apart from putting on topical insect repellent products laced with unhealthy chemicals like DEET that can cause brain toxicity; there are a few alternative options that have yielded positive results in my battle to protect my extremities from mosquito bites.

Over the years, I have asked myself: what products repel insect bites like mosquitoes? I've invested in products like skin-so-soft and OFF mosquito sprays but have always wanted to find a more natural alternative and solution to these bug bites.

Diet can play a very pivitol role in making oneself less attractive to the mosquitoes. Diets high in garlic (and garlic tablets) and B complex can actually change the extremely faint scent of an individual; thus making oneself less attractive to a hungry mosquito. Garlic literally does repel the vampires. Other herbs that are also important in repelling mosquitoes are: citronella, cedar, verbena, geranium, lavender, pine, cinnamon, rosemary, basil, thyme, allspice, and peppermint.

Vitamin B1 has a unique ability to create an obnoxious scent that stops mosquitoes in their tracks. Ingested orally each day, an individual can take 15mgs of B1 for every 30 pounds of body weight.

It is indeed possible to combat mosquitoes naturally and still enjoy the summer months.

Melissa Gallagher is the founder and president of Healthy Being, LLC. She is currently completing her Doctorate of Naturopathy and CNHP (Certification for Natural Health Practitioner) and fell upon natural health and healing as a means to combat a severe case of mono she had over 4 years ago.
Ms. Gallagher's passion is in her ability to coach and council her clients in best practices for superior healthy. Currently undergoing the trademark process is her Healthy Living Consulting business where
Ms. Gallagher works with clients in their offices or homes and sculpts individualized, targeted programs that address their health concerns. In addition to individualized health consulting Heatlhy
Being launched Healthy Being in a Box: a product line that produces specific kits that contain a variety of specific vitamins and supplements, homeopathic products and herbal remedies that target various ailments and health concerns.

By Melissa Gallagher

How to Get Rid of Mosquito Bite Scars

Summer is approaching and that is the season for good weather, baring our legs, barbeques and mosquito bites! Mosquito bites can make the good weather unbearable and the scars that are often left behind are even worse. Many of us have ignored the advice of not scratching mosquito bites (what else can you do to an itch?) and we have the mosquito bite scars to prove it.

This article will help give you tips on how to deal with insect bites to minimize the risk of scarring and will help you to find products that will fade old mosquito bite scars that have been bugging you for years.

To help reduce the chance of getting scarred when you get a mosquito bite, follow these tips to reduce swelling and irritation.

- Rub aloe vera on the bites. Either fresh aloe vera directly from the inside of one of them stems on the plant or store bought 100% aloe vera gel will do. Aloe vera has natural anti-inflammatory properties and will help to soothe the area of the bite.

- Moisten your skin and rub an aspirin tablet over the bite. This helps to reduce any inflammation that could lead to scarring.

- Don't scratch! Mosquito bites can be incredibly itchy but try to resist the urge to scratch them as this will make scarring more likely. Use antihistamines, chamomile lotions and ice packs to soothe the itching.

- A drop or two of tea tree oil applied directly to the bite will soothe the itching and help the bite to heal faster.

By not scratching insect bites and following the tips above, they will heal faster and the risk of developing scars will be minimized.

This information is great for new mosquito bites, but what can you do about the scars you have from mosquito bites years ago? To remove old insect bite scars, Vitamin E oil and cocoa butter are often recommended and they do work quite well. Vitamin E oil and cocoa butter tend to work best when applied regularly to scars that are not very deep or dark. They will fade very deep scars a little but are unlikely to remove them completely.

There are also treatments that are targeted to specifically remove scars such as Mederma and Bio-Oil. Again, these work very well for superficial scars but are not as effective on very deep scars. Fortunately, insect bite scars are rarely very deep so these products will work well as long as they are used regularly - usually twice a day.

By Anita Greenwood