Insect Repellant

I am really glad you asked this question, since it give me a chance to post information that I have been meaning to for a while. In the last year, my husband became chemically sensitive, so that means that I have had to search for solutions for the whole family, since whatever my daughter and I use affects him, too. I would urge you to look at a database on the website www.safercosmetics.org. There you can look up any personal care product for its chemical content and safety or lack thereof. This includes not only baby products, but any personal care product---cosmetics, shampoos, soaps, deoderants, toothpastes, etc. You have probably heard about lead in lipsticks (this has been in the media) and this is one way you can be sure that what you are using is safe (or alternatively, decide which risks you want to take, but I wouldn't take any with a baby). I have yet to address either the sunscreen or bug repellant issue, but will have to soon, and you can be sure that I will consult this site. They color code the safety of each product, list the risks, and offer safer alternatives. Good luck, and I really hope you use this website and pass this along to your friends.

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Hi A.,
My daughter was born in March. Her first summer I was also concerned about what I could use on her. There is a chemical free brand called "California Baby". You can look them up online and order or you can look in a natural food store such as Wild Oats. They have a product which is sunblock/insect repellant. The sunblock is zinc oxide/titanium dioxide which scattrs the suns rays so they do not burn. This does not soak into the skin and does not get into the bloodstream. It is also tear free so you do not have to worry about her rubbing her eyes and having them burn. It is PABA free and Deet Free. The bug repellant is made with Citronella. All of the ingredients are completely natural. It is a little more costly than stuff you would find in the drug store but I found it to be completely worth it. When I looked it up, the sunblock/repellant tends to be out of stock due to seanonality but I am sure it will be in stock soon. Do a search for "California Baby" and you will be given many different links to places where you can order it. Good Luck.

L.

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I haven't seen the other replies yet, so I may be repeating myself. You should first check with your pediatrician for what is an appropriate age to use these products on your child. Having said that, it is better to get 2 separate products. Generally sunscreen needs to be applied more often than bug repellant - and you don't want to be applying bug repellant when it is not necessary (it is a chemical, after all). When you choose a sunscreen - read the labels. Only titanium dioxide and zinc oxide will protect your child from both UVA and UVB rays. There is another ingredient that also works to protect adults from UVA and UVB (the name escapes me at the moment), but it has been reported as being too much of an irritant for children's skin. I've found the "NO AD" brand that is nonspray to have the right ingredients. (Available at WalMart, Market Basket, CVS, and probably a lot of other places). They even have a kid's version with Disney characters on the label. Be sure to read the labels though - the spray version of a brand often has different ingredients than the regular version. Also, different SPF's can have different ingredients. Just remember "titanium dioxide" and "zinc oxide" (or zinc). Good luck - it's not too early to think about - my 5 year old got a light burn on her face yesterday when she was sledding!!!!

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I have heard that Listerine works fantastic. Now, I am not certain that you would want to spray this directly on your child's skin, but I have heard that you can spray it around where you are going to be and it gets rid of mosquitos completely. I will be trying it this year as we have woods in our back yard, along with a river....lots of mosquitos.
Good luck!
raelynn
http://www.kidzcomfort.com

Dear A., Avon Skin So Soft makes a combination sun screen and insect repellant. We use it at the group home that I manage because it is gentle and doesn't have all the weird chemicals etc. that most bug repellants have. Give it a try. Every now and then it goes on sale 2 for 1. Give your neighborhood Avon lady a call. Maybe she'll tell you when the next sale is. :) L.

PS : I just got an e-mail from a friend about how Listerine works as a bug repellant if you spray the immediate area with it. Not for use on the skin, but you put it in a spray bottle and spray around the deck or yard where your family will be. Supposedly it works. I'm going to try it myself.

hi avon skin so soft works great i used it on all my kids and my self no neet to spent all kinds of money just callavon and order a bottle of skin so soft and it will last youa long time . ty
B.

Stay away from chemical repellants, buy several Citronella plants (mosquito plants) and plant them around the house. When you take the little one outside, break off a branch of one of the plants and rub it all over her. This is natural Citronella, has a fresh scent and as it is a member of the geranium family it grows readily from cuttings. I'm now a Grandmother and this is what I've used since I first saw them for sale. If you can't find them go to one of the seed catalogs i.e. Michigan Bulb, Gurneys etc for the plants.
L.

Hi A.,
yes, I too am ready for summer! As far as sunblock goes, Target has in their baby department the cutest little bathing suits, shirts, swim diapers, and little cover ups and hats that all have sunblock in the fabric - And they are machine washable. They are - I think - around $6 or so a piece. Not too bad considering they have the sunblock built in it! In addition to that, if you are going to the beach or something, I believe it was the catalog (also online) One step ahead - and they have a tent for the beach that also has sunscreen in the fabric - it is around $80 but I seem to remember seeing one at Wal mart at the end of the season last year that was a little smaller and around $20 or $30.
As far as the insect repellant goes, I am going to share this with you as I have found this and use the products and LOVE them - I also am a sales consultant for this company. It is The Happy Soul and we do Aromatherapy. It is all natural essential oils. We have a wonderful recipe for insect repellant that is safe for babies and you and works! I discovered it last September before I started selling it and I was really impressed. Didn't feel like I had to wash off the "bad stuff" before we all went to bed. I really hated using insect repellant from the store because of all the chemicals and we were afraid not too because of all the diseases mosquitos in particular carry - It is definitely something to be concerned about. If you are interested you can email me directly at ____@____.com
I don't mean to sound like a billboard for the company, but I truly do use the products and love everything I have tried so far!
Good luck!
~M.

hey sweety.

i tried it last summer just to see if it worked but couldn't really tell if it made a difference or not...but downy dryer sheets are supposed to repel the skeeters.

we don't live in a very wooded area so i was just using them in a pinch. worth a try anyway. you just rub it against their skin.

I found that Bite Blocker is a safe insect repellent that is all natural. It does not however have sun screen in it. My daughter is also fair skinned and I usually try to keep her covered with anything light and breathable, but I would sometimes use Water Babies sun screen.
Hope you find something that works!

I am not really sure about insect repellant...I have heard the 2 in one products don't work as effectively, but we had a similar concern when our daughter was that age. We also live in a woodsy area so we bit the bullett and bought a mosquito magnet...they are pricey, but it is soooo worth the money...we do not have bugs at all in the summer...ours is the 1 acre option and it is WONDERFUL!!! It is money well spent. If you can afford one it is definately worth it!!

hi :o)
i would sugguest natural insect repellant better than regular non natural which is made with chemical. My son and i use brand Jason that are free of deet, PABA and paraben. safe for kids too. you can buy it at wholefood or shaw's wild harvest section. there are other natural insect repellent u can find at wholefood store also.

if u dont care for natural brands, u can use OFF's family insect repellent, as long no DEET.

Hi A.,
Burt's Bee's makes a herbal insect repellent. Citronella, rosemary and lemongrass are its major ingredients. I have used it myself for several years and it works great. One summer a few years ago I actually watched a mosquito come to land on my leg, get within about an inch of my leg and fly away to go land on my husband instead (he wasn't wearing the repellant)! It is totally natural so you don't have to worry about putting it on little ones, and it smells pretty good too. Have a happy summer!
Cheers!
K.

Hi A.. I recommend checking in with you pediatrician on this one. Mine had some specific recommendations related to the use of both insect repellent and sunscreen based on age. (She indicated that I should use neither for the time being as my son is only 5 weeks onld.) Good luck!

Bite Blocker, they sell it at wal-mart and it's safe for infant use, I used it on Maleeha and myself, it works well and doesn't have nasty chemicals in it, smells like wintergreen (part of it is wintergreen oil), it is affordable as well, hope this helps :) I can't wait until summer!!!

I saw this add in Next Step cataloge for these new rubber bracelets which claim to be all natural oils that you can reuse up to 100 hours or something like that work for bug repelent

We live on a pond that is a moving pond however there is a swamp area in a neighbors yard. We use a mosquito magnet and it works well for mosquitos and black flies. It does require maintainence and expensive. The one we have only needs to be electrically charged once a year as long as you change the propane gas tank religously every 21-days. If you do not change the tank and the propane runs out the magnet stops working and mosquitos come back with avengence. Also, there is a net that needs to be changed frequently and octanol which is what attracts the mosquitos. Aside from that. Our entire yard is mosquito free. And also part of our neighbors yards. You can actually see the bugs in the area that the mosquito magnet no longer works in.

If you chose to purchase one of these, do your research, they can run over $700. You have to put it about 20 feet away from any play space and in line with the way the wind normally blows. You have to be careful that you are helping your yard out and not just your neighbors.

Good luck!

Would it be possible to get some info from you about this very interesting issue for my 3 month old girl.
Looking forward to obtaining more info related to my newest adventure.

Spray any repellent/bug spray/sun block on your hands first, then rub on his/her face and hands, NEVER spray directly on skin. Instead of spraying to face, spray repellent on clothes before you put on your baby. Have net for bugs when in play-grounds or plastic rain gear over babies carriage when it rain, they sell them at Babies-R-Us. Don't ever be afraid to take baby out in to the world... they will love it as much as you do and will slepp better at night. D. in CT

Lewey's Eco-Blend. All natural, Native American, made-in-Maine. This stuff is great and very gentle. Smells wnderful too. If you have questions abut the product, check out the website, www.buzzoff.us/home.asp Their customer service is fantastic.

At your daughters age you should definitely only use a non-chemical sunscreen and a gentle non chemical bug repellant. The BEST brand of sunscreen for babies is California Baby and it is available in the whole line at Whole Foods as well as some of the line at Target. Their products are non chemical so do not actually seep into the skin, but protect on top of the skin. AVOID products like Water Babies, Hawaiian Tropic, etc. I have allergies to the sun and my boys have intensely sensitive skin so I have done alot of research on this topic and our entire family uses California Baby brand. It cannot be beat and is the only brand actually suggested by some physicians for a young baby. Even so, be sure to keep her covered as much as possible with a sun hat on.
For sunscreen California Baby has a stick (looks like a glue stick! :) ) that is amazingn for the face- it does not drip into eyes and babies cannot rub it into their eyes either and the coverage is amazing. They have a regular sunscreen in a tube as well for face and body but I suggest the stick for a baby face. Both types are available in a NON fragrance variety as well if you'd like. Otherwise, their fragrance is very gentle and non-sunscreen like. One of my favorite things about their products is that they don't stink like "traditional" sunscreen and we can all use it on a regular daily basis without looking and feeling greasy or smelling like sunscreen or having it stain our clothes, stroller, etc.

California Baby DOES have a combo sunscreen/bug repellant and in my experience it does work just fine. Again, keeping her covered as much as possible with help with bugs as well, but this sunscreen is helpful/useful for a buggy area. I use it every year on my sun when he attends outdoor nature camp and he has yet to have a single bug bite after days in the woods every summer.

Here is a link to the sunscreen/repellant. This is a more speciality item that you might not find at Target since their selection is limited, but it should be available at Whole Foods or WF could order it for you. It might be seasonal in stores as well...but is available on many websites if you do a google search.
http://www.luckyvitamin.com/792692002232.html

I hope that helps! Good Luck and enjoy the summer with your baby girl! :)

I would check with her pediatrician. I also live in a woodsy area. I know that mine said no sunblock until 6 months old and no insect repellent until 12 months old. We bought a mosquito magnet for the yard which really seemed to help.

Hi A.,

Avon has an insect repellant & sunscreen in one called skin so soft. I used this on my daughter and it worked well. You can order on line with avon as well as looking to see if someone is in your area. I also read recently that listerine in a spray bottle works. You can spray the area and yourselves ....This is a chem free option for insects.

Good Luck, D.

the other important thing to remember is to keep her off the ground or check her for deer ticks which can cause Lyme disease!

Target sells insect repellent wipes that don't contain DEET. I don't know how they compare to the traditional sprays in effectiveness, but they have never irritated my daughter's sensitive skin.

Not sure about a repellent, but if she happens to get bitten, rubbing alcohol works wonders. If you rub it on the bite it will take the swelling and sting out right away.

i got an email from my mom a few weeks ago about using listerine to repel mosquitos. you just put some in a squirt bottle and spray around the area you will be using. it lasts up to 2 days i think. i dont have the email anymore, i just cleaned out my inbox and trash. but, i know ill be trying it out! its a pretty cheap thing to try! if you have any questions, let me know and i can look it up for you!

Honestly, the best solution for mosquitos, black flies, and no-see-ums at home is a mosquito magnet. We really couldn't live here without ours. It does a fabulous job of ridding the property of biting things (except horseflies). Before we had it, even with bugspray staying outside during early spring and summer was intollerable because you were constantly in a cloud of bugs flying into your ears/mouth/eyes/hair--blech! Now we have almost no mosquitos/blackflies etc all season and we spend all our time outside. With EEE on the rise, this is a wonderful thing!

When we are away from home and need bug/sun protection Avon has a skin-so-soft with SPF 15 or 30 that works well without DEET or other harsh chemicals.

Good luck!

Hi A.!

I have had great luck with the Awaken Body Mist spray by Arbonne. It is botanically based, hypoallergenic, and smells wonderful...a light lemon fragrance...which I guess is what the bugs hate!

I was so surprised to hear that this worked as an insect repellent, but I have put it to the test and it does work great!

My children are also fair-skinned...my sister calls them "transparent"(!)...and I love either good old Water Babies or Arbonne's Baby Care sunscreen which has an SPF of 30. Again, it is botanically based and Vegan, so now my whole family uses it!

Hope some of this is helpful for you! Let me know if you have any questions about the products!

C.

I love the burts bee's insect repellant. I've used it for the last few years and it really works. All natural stuff in it it smells like citronella/lemon candles.. not bad!

Hi A., I just recently had my daughter's 9 mo. appt, and the dr. just now ok'd the use of bugspray and sunscreen. Previously, she said only bug netting and protective clothing. Now from 9 mo. to a year, she authorized a sunblock with SPF 50+ and bugspray with <10% DEET. She also said to put the spray on her clothing, not skin, and especially not her face or hands. I'm really looking foward to the summer weather too!! But it's funny how all your concerns shift when you become a mom!

Hi A.,

I sell Avon insect repellent and it is great. I have 2 very small children ( 2.8 years and 15 months and used it on both of them) There is a variety of products to choose from too. I live in Wilmington, MA, but you can always order right through my website to have it shipped to you. Let me know if you need more information. Here is my website: http://jmason1736.avonrepresentative.com/

Hello,
I am always careful about what I put on my children! I serve organic foods and take care not to expose them to cigarette smoke and other chemicals. But many of us don't think about what we put on their skin! Our skin is a functioning body organ and absorbs everything we put on it.
I always check skin care products against the Environmental Working Group's Skincare Database before using it. They look at all products ingredients and rate their safety.
It's especially helpful when choosing sunscreens- since many of those ingredients are dangerous! Just because the label says for baby doesn't mean it's safe or even effective.
I visited the database and did a search for insect repellents. They like the Burt's Bees as well as several other brands. You can also look for dual sunscreen/repellents.
I hope this helps!
http://www.cosmeticsdatabase.com/
They also rate cosmetics and all other beauty products if you want to check your own! I found it interesting that the baby wash we had been using actually contains ingredients that the FDA knows can cause cancer! Scary stuff!
-S.

our dr said low deet of no deet bug sprays and try to put it more on thier clothing then thier skin- but in all honesty you will probally need to put it on thier skin- we just make sure to give our daughter a bath when ever we put it on her.

We use the Skin So Soft line from Avon. Not the original body products, but they have a great line of insect repellants now. They're safe for the whole family and work great. Just stay away from the blue lotion stuff, it's nasty to try to wash up. We use the aerosols. I keep regular and SPF-added on hand. I use it for my kids and myself. You can shop at avon.com and don't need to know an "Avon Lady."

Hi...
My pediatrician always recommends that we use two seperate products for sun and bugs. He also wants us to apply the sunscreen first, with the insect repellant over it. He said that the sunscreen is less harmful and will protect our kids from absorbing as much of the insect repellent into their skin.

Last summer we discovered a local yard care company that sprays garlic spray around the yard to repel mosquitoes and other bugs. It's organic, safe and makes the yard smell good! They come about ever 5 weeks for $35ish dollars an application. You might want to look for a local company who does the same thing.

Hi A., I work with a green wellness company that you can combine some products to make a great, and safe, bug repellent! We used it last year and it works great. Let me know of you want more info on it...
:)

we also use a mosquito magnet in our yard (1.5 acres) and it works great!

Hi,

I don't know anything about inscent repellent, but I know that putting a light coat of olive oil on exposed areas helps to keep mosquitoes away while the kids are sleeping - at least it helped the few times I tried it. I also use a machine that emits vapors to keep them out of the bedroom at night (sorry, it's not from the States but there may be similar things on the market). Of course, the more she is covered, clothingwise, the better - this goes for sun too.

For as long as it's practical I would suggest using netting on her playpen, stroller or whatever she's in when she's outside rather than using repellents. All natural can be a misnomer, after all snake venom is all natural too but we wouldn't put that on or in our bodies.
My understanding of the two in one products is that sunscreen needs to be applied more often than repellent. So using an all-in-one like that would mean exposing her to more repellent than needed or less sunblock than needed.
I visit my mother in Maine (where the state bird should be the mosquito) and take a lot of camping trips with my little ones, and I am a bit over-zealous about not putting chemicals on my kids when I can avoid it. I use hats & clothing as much as possible for sun protection. For bugs, I have tried downy dryer sheets (read that somewhere) tied onto their clothes, didn't work very well but maybe helped a tiny bit. I use nets whenever reasonable. And when I feel I have no choice but to break out the spray,I spray their clothes instead of their skin. Oh and Avon's "skin so soft" is another many moms swear by, it does seem to keep away mosquito but not other bugs.

Hi A.,
We've had pretty good luck with a product called "naturepel", I don't use it directly on the skin, but dab it on clothes and hat. Also, we got a childrens' mosquito net hat from Cabela's that is even better than chemicals to keep bugs out of his eyes.
Have fun!

For insect repelling we love Lewey's.
http://www.buzzoff.us/home.asp

It's basically essential oils within a nutritious oil blend. Perhaps not the best solution for sunscreen, but it works fantastic.

Aubrey Organics is the only sunscreen I have found that doesn't contain PABA or petroleum. Catnip is nature's DEET, so perhaps you might consider adding some essential oil to your sunscreen?

I was told by my doctor not to put anything on my daughters skin until she was over 1 year. The skin absorbs whatever you put on it, not to mention that babies are always putting fingers and such in their mouths. Keep her in the shade and covered with hats as much as possible. If you must use sunscreen or repellant choose something all natural, and only apply the repellant to her clothes.

Kiss My Face Sun Spray SPF 30 is wonderful. Easy to apply and natural. Really works. Not greasy and yucky. It comes in a yellow smaller round pump bottle. I found it at the grocery store. My friend, who had a 6 month old at the time last summer, is the one who turned me on to it. I have three young boys, two will be 4 in June and one is 5.