Insect bites

I get terrible reactions to bites. My best friend lives in Canada and the mozzies there are horrific and love me. I look like I have scarlet golf balls all over my body and they take weeks to calm down.

My GP once referred me to the School of Tropical Medicine at the Liverpool Infirmary and they suggested I take a anti-histamine once a day and Vitamin B12 for at least 4 weeks before I went to Canada alongside a high strength DEET repellant.

In this country I always have anti-histamines to hand and I find Anthisan the best for relieving the itch. I've tried everything else, burning spoons, toothpaste and all manner of strange things but it's the best for me.

I use either a very strong DEET spray but -and I'm sure lots of others will say the same -Avon's Skin So Soft usually does the trick and keeps them away from me for a while. If you can directly hit a mozzie with it, you can see it's a pretty effective exterminator!

I live at Midge Central in west Scotland. Midge season started yesterday in earnest. Fortunately I have a midge jacket that covers my head and upper body but my hands got bitten a fair bit. Antihistamine (I use chlorphenamine) and Tiger Balm applied all over the backs of my hands did the trick.

Tick season started about the time of the spring equinox as usual. Deer - roe and red - think our garden is their territory so ticks are unavoidable. This year's count of tick bites so far is twenty. I recently discovered that, once one's removed the blighter, applying a good amount of Tiger Balm to a plaster and sticking it over the bite site is more effective at reducing the itching than just applying T.balm on its own.

I definitely would recommend a Beaton's midge jacket, Samsara. Mine means I can do gardening at times when, without it, I'd be driven potty in minutes!

I agree with Anthisan. I never go on holiday without it. I never have much trouble in the U.K., though.

Oh, ferry23, I can sympathise with you - I'm the same, reacting very badly to insect bites. I once came back from a holiday in Spain with my legs so badly bitten that the doctor thought they were burns! I still have scars from some particularly bad bites I got maybe 4o years ago.
Avon Skin So Soft used to be my 'go to', but they've changed the formula and it doesn't seem to work so well now. None of the things like hot spoons etc work for me either.
Last year, my daughter got married in Corfu and I used Pestects bracelets. I was very sceptical, but I only got two bites on one hand - and that was on the one morning I forgot to put the bracelet on. My husband, who never normally gets bitten, got quite a few bites.
I think everyone is different and it's a question of trial and error until you find what works for you.

Anything that anyone suggests is good I'd try. All at once if necessary!

I'm off to buy Pestects bracelets to put in my bite prevention kit.

Insects love me too.

I use Anthisan and a natural spray but I'm not sure if you can buy it in this country so I'll try to find out the ingredients. They also do a soothing lotion. It's called The Locals, Sandfly and Mozzie Stuff.

A friend said she took anti-histamine, starting a week before and all the time she was there and didn't react to bites.

I reacted to sand flies in particular, the bites were dreadful. As soon as I arrived in Finland the midges attacked me too.

Its pleasant aromatherapy scented blend of Lavender and Eucalyptus essential oils with added Thyme and Lemongrass creates an effective deterrent barrier against landing insects. Whilst the fine molecules of the essential oils are absorbed into the blood stream. Where they immediately set to work on assisting any allergic reaction to bites. Stimulating tissue repair and acting as protection from infection.

Incognito Insect Repellent Spray

🌿 POTENT PROTECTION AGAINST DISEASES: Our award-winning insect repellent spray provides 100% protection against Aedes aegypti - Zika and Dengue carrying mosquitoes for 4.5 hours and very high protection for up to 7 hours.

I've not tried it.

ferry23

Anything that anyone suggests is good I'd try. All at once if necessary!

I'm off to buy Pestects bracelets to put in my bite prevention kit.

I'm like you - I'll give most things a go, and if they don't work for me, I'll try something else.

It isn’t always just the insect bite that causes the problem…….it’s what they were settled on before dining on our bodies……..animal faeces, rotting food, dirt etc.
I found, years ago whilst camping, that if I ate a lot of raw onions the midges and mozzies stopped biting me.

If only I coud eat raw onion! Can't even eat much of it cooked nowadays without upsetting my guts. Hey ho!

Ive found Maximum strength Jungle Formula is the only thing that works for me otherwise if I get bitten I then need antibiotics

When the weather warmed up I also had a series of red and very itchy bites and I haven't had them for years.
By a process of elimination I turned back to good old Hydrocortisone which is the only thing that works for me.
I used it a few times and haven't been bitten since!

What is it that is biting you? Is it in the house or outside? Cat fleas or mosquitoes and midges?

I bought a new Jungle Formula recently to stop myself being bitten but didn’t bother to put some on yesterday when I went into the garden for just a few minutes. Got bites all over my ankles. I do worry if the bites are round my ankles in case the dog has picked up fleas as I don’t like to give her spot on or tablet flea treatments. Mind you, ever since I found a tick on me a couple of years ago I find other insect bites pale into insignificance; terrified of catching Lyme disease.

Me too every time I go in the garden ! I use Jungle formula roll on around my face as neck, then try and make sure everything else is covered. They still bite though, flipping nuisance.
I find Germolene good for the itching .

Thank you very much for all your helpful suggestions. Perhaps I should stay off of the golf course until they have all settled down a bit. I'm in the East Midlands so I don't think its well known for gnats/midges. Someone also suggested I should lay off the perfume - I do love wearing perfume but its a small sacrifice. Thank you all. I'm back on the Anthisan and Hydrocortisone for the ones wearing scratching has woken up the eczema. I shall look out for ticks- I don't have any animals though. I'm going to Italy in the Autumn I hope that will be Ok.

‘I'm going to Italy in the Autumn I hope that will be Ok.’
…not if you’re going to Venice!

Astitchintime

It isn’t always just the insect bite that causes the problem…….it’s what they were settled on before dining on our bodies……..animal faeces, rotting food, dirt etc.
I found, years ago whilst camping, that if I ate a lot of raw onions the midges and mozzies stopped biting me.

Apparently if you eat a lot of Marmite the insects would avoid you. I have tried it but still got a few bites from the persistent ones. Anyway, there's only so much Marmite you can eat.

It may work for some people!

Samsara1

Thank you very much for all your helpful suggestions. Perhaps I should stay off of the golf course until they have all settled down a bit. I'm in the East Midlands so I don't think its well known for gnats/midges. Someone also suggested I should lay off the perfume - I do love wearing perfume but its a small sacrifice. Thank you all. I'm back on the Anthisan and Hydrocortisone for the ones wearing scratching has woken up the eczema. I shall look out for ticks- I don't have any animals though. I'm going to Italy in the Autumn I hope that will be Ok.

There will be more insects around stagnant water - such as might be found on a golf course.

I suffer too. Seems many of us do . Is it our blood or skin smell that attracts them ?

My skin's quite thin & I think that's why I get bitten a lot. I've been lucky this year but end of july when I have to trim the hedges & trees, I will be covered in bites.

Toetoe

I suffer too. Seems many of us do . Is it our blood or skin smell that attracts them ?

I've wondered that.

I'm RhNeg. I try not to eat too many sweet things but sometimes fail.
B vitamins (found in Marmite and yeast) are supposed to deter insects.

I get bitten also. The season just started last week with me being bitten in lots of different places. I take B1 and B6 and an antihistamine. I also use vinegar on the bites. I find vinegar is really good at stopping the itching. They often come up in big blisters also.