March 29, 2006
What type of bug repellent should we use?
As we begin packing for our trip, we have come across a dilemma. Which mosquito
repellent do we bring? The mosquitoes carry dangerous diseases that can create
some severe long term affects. We want to make sure that we are as safe from
these insects as possible.
Natural mosquito repellent doesn't have any human-made chemicals in it. All
of the ingredients are from the earth and don't contain any toxic solutions.
It contains eucalyptus oil, soybean oil, and lemongrass oil. In the past, however,
I have found that natural mosquito repellent does not work as well as human
made, or synthetic, repellent.
The synthetic mosquito repellent contains a chemical called Deet. Although
Deet works very well at repelling mosquitoes, the label on the back of the container
says, "Hazardous to humans and animals. Use of this product may cause skin
reactions in rare cases. Contact poison control immediately if swallowed."
Plus, the long term effects of putting a toxic chemical on our skin day after
day might be harmful to our bodies.
But wait! The long term effects of getting bitten by disease-carrying mosquitoes
might be harmful as well.
Which repellant should we use? Explain your answer.
We did some research. Many sites talked about the same type of natural repellent that you mentioned. But we found http://altnature.com/gallery/catnip_mosquito_repllent.htm that claims that catnip oil is 10 times more effective than DEET in repelling mosquitos. We recommend that you try catnip oil or another natural product first, but also take along a man made product in case the mosquitos become too major a problem. Our class time is too short to finish our research. We hope to look further to see if there is a man-made product, without DEET, that might be more effective. We'll let you know if we discover further information. C.R. Hanna 5th Grade HAWK students
Posted by: Miss Linnea K. Gustafson at March 29, 2006 02:54 PM
You should use synthetic mosquito repellent
Posted by: Ms. Muzzall at March 29, 2006 02:55 PM
I think you should use a natural repellant containing eucalyptus or lemon oil. First, I think that you would avoid using a potentially harmful chemical. Second, and most importantly, you would be setting a good example for the students participating in the project and you would inform them of natural alternatives to the harsh chemical products they often use.
Posted by: Mr. Newman at March 29, 2006 03:02 PM
You can use any repellents that you want. Make sure to use the ones that are easier to deal with, like the ones that are good to use during hunting.
Posted by: mrs.aguilar at March 30, 2006 12:11 PM
You can use any repellant that you think is the best to use. It can depend on its value and how long it has been. You can use any in the world, but as long as it works good. Use a repellent that is harmless and that will avoid any kind of danger.
Posted by: mrs.aguilar at March 30, 2006 12:15 PM
Our majority opinion is that you should use a natural repellent since the purpose of your trip is to promote the care of the environment, not to harm it. You told us you are committed to leaving the environment as you found it, not harming it by your actions. Maybe you could apply the natural repellent more often to get better results. We have heard about repellent bracelets, clothing embedded with repellent, and even a capsule that gives off a sound only heard by mosquitos that you could wear. You might want to take some man-made repellent along for use in emergency situations where there are known serious diseases carried by the mosquitos and your natural repellent is not working. C.R. Hanna Fourth Grade HAWK students
Posted by: Miss Linnea Gustafson at March 30, 2006 02:40 PM
I think that the explorers should use the human made repellent. It may be damaging to their skin, but if they explore for a few hours, then travel to a nearby village to wash the repellent off, then their skin won't be damaged.
Posted by: Brandon at April 4, 2006 01:06 PM
You should use the natural reppelent. The man-made reppelent could hurt you, and it hurts the environment. You probably have the same chance of geting sick from mosquitos as from deet, so use the natural reppelent.
Posted by: Ms. Dalleska at April 10, 2006 08:52 AM
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