What Kind of Bug Repellant Do I Use for My Child

HI there... I have 2 ideas.... first, both Mother's and Whole foods sell deet free repellent. Usually some sort of citronella, but can be effective. Also, I had a friend in the peace corps, and she swore by Avon Skin So Soft oil spray. She was in Africa, and I remember her mom stocking up for her when she went. I have used it in the past as well, and I like it. It comes in a spray. Avon however is on the list of companies that use bad things in their make-up products. I think the Skin So Soft is okay though. Besides, I think the West Nile virus and Deet are far worse.

Avon has a bug repellant that is deet free and also has sun screen in it. It's called skin so soft. No nasty smell or anything. I'm not usually an Avon fan but I'd swear by this product as the best one on the market.

You can use avon skin so soft. Also you can call vector control and they will come spray the creek to take care of the problem. I know someone who works for them and they love to know where there is a problem.

Avon has a Skin so soft line and it is excellent for bug repellant and smells good. My kids have sensitive skin and it has worked great for all of us!

A.

L.,

My son's babysitter lived near dairies that had huge problems with standing water that were a ripe breeding ground for mosquitos.

My son was truly eaten alive from the bites. Avon Skin So Soft didn't work and I even resorted to using commercial products like OFF and they didn't work either. At any given time he would have anywhere from 50 to over 100 bites all over his body. This went on every summer from the time my son was 6 months old until he was 3 years old. I constantly had him at the doctor's and dermatologist's office and all they ever did was prescribe Benadryl to help with the itching.

Then when I went back to college, I took a nutrition class and mentioned the mosquito problem. A woman in my class was a nature guide and recommended PennyRoyal essential oil. It smells like Eucalyptus leaves and the mosquitos HATE the smell, so they won't even come near you. You can find it in health food stores like Whole Foods, Mother's Market, etc. Sometimes vitamin/nutrition shops carry it too. It costs approximately $13 a bottle and the bottles are tiny (only a few ounces), but you apply it like you dab on perfume--turn the bottle over against one of your fingers and put dots of it here and there on your son's body. Because it only takes a few drops, it actually lasts a very long time, even with daily use. It was a lifesaver for us! Now, when we travel, I won't go anywhere in the Carribean (or in the South) without it. I've also used Citronella essential oil and it has also worked well. It smells better too, more lemony.

Good luck.

I use the AvonBug Guard Plus - it has sunscreen in it and it's a spray so I can put it on my kids even when they're trying to run away. It's on sale right now for $4.99 so I just bought 5 bottles to stock up.

Try researching other things mosquitoes don't like. You can try Skin So Soft by Avon, too. That has not deet in it but is known to repell them. I don't know the safeness on children, but you can look it up and find out. I also use Off Skintastic on my 2 year old (I know there's 5% deet in it, though).

The Avon SSS in the blue bottle is recommended by pediatricians & works very well, plus you can get it with sunscreen as well.

I use Skin-So-Soft w/ SPF 30 from Avon on my son. He's 2 and will get bug bites anywhere we go if he doesn't have this stuff on. (I saw an Avon rep has already posted to you, so you can see what they have you might like.) My son knows the bugs bite him all the time, so he gets REALLY upset if he even sees a bug in the house. It can be a little aphid, accidentally brought in on a fresh cut rose, and you'd swear someone had a knife to my throat with the terror in his cry.

My doc said Deet is okay for short periods of time, and does work better than deet free, but shouldn't be used on a regular basis, for ANYONE. We went camping last summer for 17 days, and doc said it was fine for the trip, because he knows how sensitive my son is to bug bites. He just said not to put it on his hands, or any where with a direct opening into the body; like mouth, nose, ears, or buttocks. Doc said it was okay when my son was only 18 months. If it is just for short lengths of time, Deet is okay, but I still recommend Skin-So-Soft, especially those with SPF. (Wouldn’t you use sunscreen while he’s playing outside anyway?)

You can also put it on you, and just on your kid's cloths. If you're playing close to him, it may be enough to keep the bugs at bay, and none of it is actually on his skin.

Hope it helped. -J

Hi L.!

My name is J. and I am a mom of two - Kayla (4 years) and Savannah (1 1/2 years). I have been married for 7 1/2 years. I am a Discovery Toys consultant, and we have a Healthy Lifestyle" category in our product line which includes a DEET-Free Insect Repellant. It is a spray... it won't stain clothing or sporting equipment. If you would like to, you can check it out on my website:

www.discoverytoyslink.com/julieteutschman

I know it's hard to find DEET-Free insect repellant, so I just wanted to let you know that we do have it available. I hope you're able to find the right one for your son & your family!

Take Care,
J. Teutschman

Hi there L., I'm with you on the mosquito bite worrying!!

I have found this spray that you can use on your son. You might even use it for yourself! It's all natural and non-toxic!

http://www.californiababy.com/natural-bug-blend-bug-repel...

I hope this works for you!

I think there are some organic bug repellents out there. Try doing a web search. I know I've seen one that is made by Off!, but I can't remember what the name of it was.

Also, when I lived in Japan, they would light these coils and leave them around the house. That really seemed to help. You can use them inside or out, unlike citronells candles. Try looking at a local Japanese or ethnic market. They look a lot like the coils of an electric stove. You mount them on a wire stand, and light it, and it sends out a light smoke. Should only be a few dollars.

Hi, my name is K., I am a 26 yr.old "married" stay at home mom. I have a 2/12 yr. old son and a 8 month old daughter, I live in San Marcos and saw your request for insect repellent, unfortunently I don't know of any, I would suggest maybe going to a Rite-Aid or Savon, or Wall Greens and go back to the pharmacy and ask a pharmacists what they would suggest; I have asked them for advise before and they are usually very helpful. I am new to this web site but have found it very interesting and help ful so far. I primarily joined this site to meet other momms in my area "San Marcos". I am also a young mother and do not know of many others my age with small children. I stay at home most of the time with my children; (or go to the park)I'm sure they get bored sometimes, and I feel bad, so that's why I would like to meet others and be able to introduce my son (2 1/2 yrs. old) to others. Do you know of any nice, clean, safe places in San Marcos, or near by to hang out, play or do activities with my children? FYI: I know what you mean about the career thing, I'm kind ofd in the same boat right now. I would love to chat some more...please feel free to e-mail/respond to me.

K. M

Well there is clothing from ex officio at exofficio.com and rei and some other places that is a bug repelent and sun upf rated and antimicrobial but the sizes start at 5-6 but thy have bandanas and I have a 3 yo and I was thinking of getting him the T-shirt and just tucking it in. Maybe if you tied one bandana around his waist and one around his neck or under a hat or something. They have one size fits most kid's buckt hats but who knows how good those are. The clothes are guaranteed through 25 washings so you would have to be selective of when they wear them.
Another option is to get him some long sleeve shirts that have vents to keep him cool and long pants of light weight material, most kids have no problem, my kids go hiking in long pants every time, better than scraped knees and the pants are light weight and good sun protection. Good luck. ~V.

L.,

If he can swallow pills, you could try garlic. My husband was military and now law enforcement, it is what he uses. They have the odorless kind now.

Jenni

Hi L.,

Avon has many great bug repellants in our Bug Guard line including a spray that is also very safe for our children and reasonably priced! You can also use just the Skin So Soft oil that is not techniquely a bug repellant but is known for being effective in warding off pesking bugs like mosquitos.You can get a large bottle of this for $10 or less and because it is an oil it last a long time. I encourage you to look at some of these products at my site
www.yourAvon.com/amandamanning

Hopefully this as been helpful!

A. Manning

I am with the people who recommended Avon Skin-So-Soft. I grew up in Florida (oodles of mosquitos), and we always used SSS with great results. We would either take a bath with a capful added to the water, or my mom would spray it on us with a squirt bottle and we would spray a tissue and rub that on our faces and ears. It also works for repelling fleas on dogs if you spray it on them. I haven't tried the bug-repellant stuff that Avon sells, but I probably will be buying some as soon as I find an Avon lady in Florida since I am moving back there on the 10th. :)