For half a century, DEET (N,N-Diethyl-meta-toluamide) has been the most commonly used ingredient in insect repellants. While DEET does work to keep the tiny critters off, it can also have some ugly side effects, including rashes, disorientation, and seizures. People looking for equally effective but safer insect repellants haven’t had much to choose from, but new tests show that some non-DEET products can offer the same level of protection. [More]
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Turn On A Fan To Swat Mosquitoes
By 7.16.10
Forget about coating yourself with DEET, turning on that bug zapper or buying one of those gas-powered, suction-enhanced instruments of mass annihilation. If you want to rid your yard of mosquitoes, the answer may be as simple as turning on a fan. [More]
Do Not Use OFF! FamilyCare Smooth And Dry Insect Repellent If You Are Allergic To Cornstarch
By 7.22.08
Yes, OFF! FamilyCare Smooth and Dry insect repellent contains cornstarch. Reader Michelle found out about this fact the worst way possible–not through an ingredient label of which there is none that mentions cornstarch, but by inadvertently inhaling the stuff one evening and suffering an allergic reaction which lasted a few days. Michelle’s letter, inside…
