Bug Repellents - Sprays and Supplements
 

So I've been taking garlic pills three times a day for the last two weeks and I'm fully stocked up in unscented toiletries in preparation for a weeklong vacay in Puerto Rico. I'll be doing a good deal of hiking and outdoor activities so I know I'll need a good repellent to keep the bugs away. Any recommendations?

Mosquitoes love me and I always end up covered in swollen and itchy bites. I've been looking into all natural solutions but I'd go so far as to douse myself in kerosene if it proved effective.

I know we've got a few runners and hikers here - any solutions offered would be much appreciated. :thumbsup:

Keep moving - they don't frequently go after a moving targent
Sleep under mosquito netting - check the netting daily and sew up any holes that form
Take Vitamin E pills daily
Eat a banana daily
Cover exposed skin with Avon Skin So Soft
Wear "Bug off" clothing

And if all those fail, Deet is the answer.
I'm a fan of Repel brand, but any aerosol spray with greater than 15% Deet will prove effective.
Spray it on yourself as you get out of the shower each morning/evening, spray it on your clothing as well as any exposed skin. It usually smells terrible, you'll get used to it.

Cover exposed skin with Avon Skin So Soft

This stuff is awesome.

Thanks for the tips, guys. Skin So Soft it is.

Er... Don't you dare go to Puerto Rico armed only with Skin So Soft!

I did field work in French Polynesia. Skin So Soft worked great for five minutes, or if I kept moving. When I was sitting by a stream taking measurements of the lichens growing on Inocarpus trees for 40 minutes, the stuff was useless. Mosquitos were all over me, swarming around my face, landing everywhere. DEET products were the only thing that worked in such instances, and even those I had to reapply every couple of hours.

I saw an ad in the paper for OFF Clip-On Mosquito Repellent, but I can't find any reviews of people who have tried it. Anyone?

take a tube of orajel with you for the bites you do get, it will stop the itching, and its small enough to carry conveniently