Entries tagged with “spray DEET ticks mosquitoes” from Bugs in the News
To spray or not to spray - in a time when we are all concerned with the environment, or at least concerned about the health of the environmental effects our health - that is the question. Whether it's spraying in your neighborhood or yard or on your body the types of insect repellents and killing cocktails vary in their toxicity to humans (and other animals) and effectiveness against doing their job (killing or repelling). But with concerns about insect borne diseases we feel as if we have to do something.
For the neighborhood: In Connecticut and New York (likely other places) a product called Scourge is sprayed from a fogger usually from a truck driving around the block. A scourge is a multi-tailed lash used to whip bad guys or to clear oneself from sins in medieval Europe. I guess the name "Scourge" is supposed
to refer to the chemical's punishing action on the mosquitoes - teaching those little winged syringes a lesson. Scourge's active ingredient is something called "pyrethrin", a man-made chemical modeled after oils extracted from Chrysanthemums. Sounds so pleasant when put in that manner - "ahhhh...made from flowers". According to the National Pesticide Information Center, the active ingredient in scourge only causes cancer in rats when they are fed daily high doses of the stuff for two years. Huh.
What concerns me is that the same "safe" pesticides were boasted in the mid-20th century with chemicals such as DDT and Chlordane. Both cause health problems in humans - it just takes a little while (years) before we see it. Besides - the trucks that spray Scourge only hit about 10-20 feet into the woods. It is very toxic to fish, too. Not only are they wasting money and killing beneficial insects like bees but it is putting chemicals into the environment that don't have to be there.
For our more intimate environs there's DEET - the active ingredient in things like Deep Woods OFF!. DEET is actually not a repellent. It's a confusant. Ticks and mosquitoes zero in on us from the release of carbon dioxide and other smells emanating from our bodies. Also attracted to heat and moving objects the would-be-parasites still see the welcome sign but can't quite find the right spot to park the mouthparts. DEET blocks our blood-thirsty insect attracting scent and when the offending bugs come in close for a meal they just can't find a place to bite. Even though DEET is a personal spray it should not be applied to the skin - spray it on clothing.
For the neighborhood: In Connecticut and New York (likely other places) a product called Scourge is sprayed from a fogger usually from a truck driving around the block. A scourge is a multi-tailed lash used to whip bad guys or to clear oneself from sins in medieval Europe. I guess the name "Scourge" is supposed
to refer to the chemical's punishing action on the mosquitoes - teaching those little winged syringes a lesson. Scourge's active ingredient is something called "pyrethrin", a man-made chemical modeled after oils extracted from Chrysanthemums. Sounds so pleasant when put in that manner - "ahhhh...made from flowers". According to the National Pesticide Information Center, the active ingredient in scourge only causes cancer in rats when they are fed daily high doses of the stuff for two years. Huh.What concerns me is that the same "safe" pesticides were boasted in the mid-20th century with chemicals such as DDT and Chlordane. Both cause health problems in humans - it just takes a little while (years) before we see it. Besides - the trucks that spray Scourge only hit about 10-20 feet into the woods. It is very toxic to fish, too. Not only are they wasting money and killing beneficial insects like bees but it is putting chemicals into the environment that don't have to be there.
For our more intimate environs there's DEET - the active ingredient in things like Deep Woods OFF!. DEET is actually not a repellent. It's a confusant. Ticks and mosquitoes zero in on us from the release of carbon dioxide and other smells emanating from our bodies. Also attracted to heat and moving objects the would-be-parasites still see the welcome sign but can't quite find the right spot to park the mouthparts. DEET blocks our blood-thirsty insect attracting scent and when the offending bugs come in close for a meal they just can't find a place to bite. Even though DEET is a personal spray it should not be applied to the skin - spray it on clothing.
Continue reading Say it: Don't Spray it...or should you?.
Feed Subscription
If you use an RSS reader, you can subscribe to a feed of all future entries tagged “spray DEET ticks mosquitoes”.
