4 ms·

My low-tech deterrent? A lifetime of avoiding deterrents. My body seems to have developed a natural resistance to them. I grew up in New Hampshire, not exactly

by raamdev 13y ago

My low-tech deterrent? A lifetime of avoiding deterrents. My body seems to have developed a natural resistance to them. I grew up in New Hampshire, not exactly as extreme as Alaska but a place where there are certainly plenty of mosquitos in the summer. I went camping a few weekends ago in the White Mountains and had 10 mosquitos biting my arm as soon as I stopped moving. So what's my deterrent? My body. It seems to have developed a natural resistance to mosquitos, or at least to what they inject into me. When mosquitos bite me, I genuinely don't get itchy or have "bug bites". If I remember correctly, the itchy welts that most people get are caused by the body's response to something the mosquito injects into your skin to prevent the blood from clotting. My body seems to have adapted in such a way that it doesn't react anymore. I haven't always been this way. When I was little, I got mosquito bites just like everybody else. The difference was, I always refused bug spray (I hate chemicals on my skin). I don't care how bad the bugs are. If it's 100F outside, I'll wear a long-sleeve shirt and long pants to cover my skin (and yes, they still bite through, so heavy clothes help). EDIT: Also relevant: my grandmother discovered that dryer sheets--those scented things that people throw in the dryer with their laundry--work as an excellent mosquito deterrent. I didn't believe her until I tried it. Hang one out of your hat or on your shirt collar and watch how few mosquitos come near your head!

mmanfrin 13y ago
I was a summer camp counselor and every week we'd have a 'staff hunt' where we'd basically play hide-and-seek with the staff all hiding out in the woods at night and then the kids coming through in flashlight-laden packs to find us. I chose a small little nook in the ground surrounded by bushes as my hiding spot. When the horn sounded for the beginning of the game, I started to feel a slight itching sensation on my back (I was wearing a tshirt) and was unsure of what it was. I had to be still and quiet, but I managed to swat the lower half of my back (and only the lower half). The itch began to grow, but I couldn't do anything else risk being caught. After 12 minutes the horn sounded again and I was able to get up and out of the nook. I made my way to the buildings and found a mirror, and saw that 70% of my upper back was swollen with mosquito bites. There were so many that they simply globbed together in to masses of bite. After about 20 minutes I checked again and they all had disappeared. Now, whenever I get bitten, I will notice it, but within 20 minutes the bite will be gone. Natural immunity is neat.
- raamdev 13y ago
  That response to the bite sounds exactly like my progression from normal response to near-immunity. As I mentioned above, it's not like I've always been immune and there wasn't one day when suddenly I became immune. Its been a long multi-decade process (I'm 31 now). In my early twenties, I would itch and welt from a mosquito bite for maybe 10 minutes. Now, I don't welt or itch. When I was in my early teens, it was probably more like an hour of welt + itch. I'm fascinated by bugs. I've always let them bite me for a while (even when I knew they would itch later). The joy of observing them always outweighed the itch for me. I think it's only because I've always let them bite me that I was able to get a sense of how the itching and welting changed over time. In retrospect, I wish I had kept detailed records of the timing change.
- ufo 13y ago
  Its not always that simple though and depending on how the immunity develops you might end up becoming allergic to mosquitos instead of immune to them. This is specially prone to happening if you are only exposed to them every once in a while when you go on a trip.
- klipt 13y ago
  Technically it's the opposite of immunity - your immune system has stopped reacting to mosquito bites. Neat adaptation though!
joonix 13y ago
Mosquitos are terrible in Texas (the humid part) and would bite me all the time (grew up there). Now I'm in NYC the last few months, and I don't think I've been bitten even once. Or, I am being bitten, but I don't notice because my immune system doesn't react to the bites at all. I find this very interesting. Does anyone have thoughts on this? FWIW I never used insect repellants growing up.
- KMag 13y ago
  I lived in NYC for just under 8 years, and I don't think I noticed being bitten by a mosquito even once. There just aren't that many mosquitos in NYC. When I go back home to Minnesota, I notice being bitten when I'm out in the wilderness, even though I no longer have an immune reaction to the bites. Though, I suppose it's possible that NYC has some species of mosquito that is less attracted to the head and doesn't buzz in the ears so much, and bites more subtly than the mosquitos in Minnesota or Texas.
D9u 13y ago
Yes. Dryer sheets are a cheap low-tech mosquito mitigation technique. We used to put them in our pockets when we were in the field. (non-issue items are not allowed outside one's uniform)
KMag 13y ago
I grew up in Minnesota, with a swampy riverbank full of mosquitos in my back yard. I also used to react to mosquito bites, until I took the wilderness survival merit badge class at Tomahawk Scout Reservation in Wisconsin. Sleeping outside in mosquito infested woods, without shelter, also made me resistant to mosquito bites. I feel the bite itself, but I don't swell up or itch at all. I also no longer wear repellant, except when I'm at an elevated risk for getting wood ticks or deer ticks.

by raamdev 13y ago

mmanfrin 13y ago

I was a summer camp counselor and every week we'd have a 'staff hunt' where we'd basically play hide-and-seek with the staff all hiding out in the woods at night and then the kids coming through in flashlight-laden packs to find us. I chose a small little nook in the ground surrounded by bushes as my hiding spot. When the horn sounded for the beginning of the game, I started to feel a slight itching sensation on my back (I was wearing a tshirt) and was unsure of what it was. I had to be still and quiet, but I managed to swat the lower half of my back (and only the lower half). The itch began to grow, but I couldn't do anything else risk being caught. After 12 minutes the horn sounded again and I was able to get up and out of the nook. I made my way to the buildings and found a mirror, and saw that 70% of my upper back was swollen with mosquito bites. There were so many that they simply globbed together in to masses of bite. After about 20 minutes I checked again and they all had disappeared. Now, whenever I get bitten, I will notice it, but within 20 minutes the bite will be gone. Natural immunity is neat.

raamdev 13y ago
That response to the bite sounds exactly like my progression from normal response to near-immunity. As I mentioned above, it's not like I've always been immune and there wasn't one day when suddenly I became immune. Its been a long multi-decade process (I'm 31 now). In my early twenties, I would itch and welt from a mosquito bite for maybe 10 minutes. Now, I don't welt or itch. When I was in my early teens, it was probably more like an hour of welt + itch. I'm fascinated by bugs. I've always let them bite me for a while (even when I knew they would itch later). The joy of observing them always outweighed the itch for me. I think it's only because I've always let them bite me that I was able to get a sense of how the itching and welting changed over time. In retrospect, I wish I had kept detailed records of the timing change.
ufo 13y ago
Its not always that simple though and depending on how the immunity develops you might end up becoming allergic to mosquitos instead of immune to them. This is specially prone to happening if you are only exposed to them every once in a while when you go on a trip.
klipt 13y ago
Technically it's the opposite of immunity - your immune system has stopped reacting to mosquito bites. Neat adaptation though!

joonix 13y ago

Mosquitos are terrible in Texas (the humid part) and would bite me all the time (grew up there). Now I'm in NYC the last few months, and I don't think I've been bitten even once. Or, I am being bitten, but I don't notice because my immune system doesn't react to the bites at all. I find this very interesting. Does anyone have thoughts on this? FWIW I never used insect repellants growing up.

KMag 13y ago
I lived in NYC for just under 8 years, and I don't think I noticed being bitten by a mosquito even once. There just aren't that many mosquitos in NYC. When I go back home to Minnesota, I notice being bitten when I'm out in the wilderness, even though I no longer have an immune reaction to the bites. Though, I suppose it's possible that NYC has some species of mosquito that is less attracted to the head and doesn't buzz in the ears so much, and bites more subtly than the mosquitos in Minnesota or Texas.

D9u 13y ago

Yes. Dryer sheets are a cheap low-tech mosquito mitigation technique. We used to put them in our pockets when we were in the field. (non-issue items are not allowed outside one's uniform)

KMag 13y ago

I grew up in Minnesota, with a swampy riverbank full of mosquitos in my back yard. I also used to react to mosquito bites, until I took the wilderness survival merit badge class at Tomahawk Scout Reservation in Wisconsin. Sleeping outside in mosquito infested woods, without shelter, also made me resistant to mosquito bites. I feel the bite itself, but I don't swell up or itch at all. I also no longer wear repellant, except when I'm at an elevated risk for getting wood ticks or deer ticks.