Pesky Skeeters

I am one of those people who ALWAYS gets a ton of mosquito bites even if no one else around me is getting any.

So, when I ran across this article in the Wall Street Journal I was intrigued to say the least. The article is titled, "Finding Smells that Repell."

What I found interesting in the article:

"If you're one of those people whom mosquitoes tend to favor, maybe it's because you aren't sufficiently stressed-out." Okay, you've got me interested. I'll read on.

"Now scientists at Rothamsted Research in the U.K. have been making headway at understanding why some people can end up with dozens of bites after a backyard barbecue, while others remain unscathed. The researchers have identified a handful of the body's chemical odors—some of which may be related to stress—that are present in significantly larger concentrations in people that the bugs are happier to leave alone."

"Besides delivering annoying bites, mosquitoes cause hundreds of millions of cases of disease each year." Thank you for reminding me...

"Currently the most effective repellents on the market often contain a chemical known as DEET, which has been associated in some studies with potential safety concerns, such as cancer and Gulf War syndrome. It also damages materials made of plastic. The federal Environmental Protection Agency has determined that DEET, when used as directed, is safe." Through plastic?! Really??

"The Rothamsted team set out to get the mosquitoes' viewpoint. The researchers separated human volunteers into two groups—those who were attractive to mosquitoes and those who weren't. They then put each of the volunteers into body-size foil bags for two hours to collect their body odors." All I have to say is I hope they got paid a lot for this.

"The chemicals were then tested to determine their impact on actual biting behavior. Volunteers put their arms in a box containing mosquitoes, one arm coated with repellent chemicals and the other without, to see if the arm without the coating got bitten more." Man alive. Bring on the anti-itch cream.

"Dr. Logan declined to comment about the specific chemicals because of proprietary concerns." Of course. And, I really don't blame him.

"Some of the chemicals researchers identified are believed to be related to stress, Dr. Logan says. Previous research has shown that these particular chemicals could be converted from certain other molecules and this could be as a result of oxidation in the body at times of stress, he says. However, it's not clear if the chemicals observed by the Rothamsted researchers were created in this way, and research is continuing to answer this and other questions."

I guess I'll just have to stress myself out before going to campfires - which are quite possibly the most relaxing thing I can think of.