2023-06-01 20:39:15
While some fragrances are real mosquito magnets, others keep the annoying insects away and help you get through the summer without being bitten.
Dortmund – When the temperature is high, short clothing can be a blessing, but it can also be a torment. Especially when the annoying bloodsuckers strike in the evening. But with little effort you can protect yourself from the itchy mosquito bites – the only decisive factor is choosing the right scent for the soap. But be careful: some scents even attract mosquitoes.
Keep mosquitoes away: It doesn’t always have to be the chemical bomb
Mosquitoes are very sensitive to smells. It is not for nothing that there are numerous anti-mosquito sprays with acrid smells. Often, however, these are real chemical bombs that you do not want to apply to the skin.
With the right plants, you can keep mosquitoes away naturally on the balcony, terrace or in the garden. However, when you are out and about, it is extremely difficult to take the garden plants with you. Three fragrances can help against mosquito bites and also smell pleasantly good. However, four scents that are often used in soaps attract mosquitoes (more lifehacks at RUHR24).
These scents act like a mosquito magnet and should be avoided at all costs
A study by the Virginia Polytechnic Institute took a closer look at the ingredients in the most popular soaps in the United States. Four fragrances were noticed that have a particularly attractive effect on mosquitoes and should therefore be avoided at all costs in summer.
- Aldehyd Lilial: Lily of the valley scent
Allyl-Heptanoat: Pineapple Scent
4-tert-Butylcyclohexyl-Acetat: woody-floral scent (often found in perfume)
Alpha-Isomethyl-Ionone: violet scent
In addition to the smell of the soap, the individual body odor of the test subjects also played an important role in the study focus.de. This makes you naturally more or less attractive to mosquitoes. However, it is striking with the four fragrances mentioned above that all test persons who washed with them had significantly more mosquito bites.
Three scents that keep mosquitoes away and smell nice at the same time
Now that it is known which scents are particularly attractive to mosquitoes, you only have to know how to keep the pests away in summer. One of the scents also helps keep ticks away from humans and animals.
In the fight against the itchy bites, however, there is good news. The three fragrances, which according to the study should reliably keep mosquitoes away, also smell pleasantly good and are perfect for summer. The following scents are particularly repellent to mosquitoes:
- Nonalacton: Coconut fragrance
Benzaldehyd: Almond fragrance
γ-Nonalacton: Watermelon and bourbon scent
The scientist and neuroethologist, Clément Vinauger, also has a recommendation here: “If I wanted to reduce my attraction to mosquitoes, I would choose soap that smelled like coconut,” it says swr.de.
Essential oil against mosquitoes: The bloodsuckers find this scent “the least attractive”
Essential oils are known for their pungent, cool scent. It is not for nothing that they are used in cough drops and mouthwash to freshen breath.
But it is precisely this biting smell that the mosquitoes do not seem to like at all. Because loud swr.de The bloodsuckers found people who smelled of eucalyptol “least attractive”.
Since the intense smell can also be very obtrusive for humans, coconut, almond and watermelon scents are a milder but still effective solution in the fight against mosquitoes in summer.
1685663462
#mosquitoes #scent #beware #attract #critters