Are Some People Mosquito Magnets?

Newsweek ^ | Jul 3, 2008 | Kurt Soller

[Daffynition]

After this weekend's barbeques and fireworks displays, you might wonder why some people wind up covered in mosquito welts and others are bite-free. It's not a coincidence. Each person's individual body chemistry determines how many mosquitoes will come calling.

According to Joe Conlon, a medical entomologist who advises the American Mosquito Control Association, the insects can detect their targets from nearly 100 feet away. But what are they seeking? Mostly the scent of carbon dioxide and lactic acid, two compounds that indicate to the hematophagous — or blood-sucking — pests that their next landing pad is nearby. (It's worth noting that when a female mosquito latches on to you, she's not looking for food; instead, she sucks out blood to help fertilize her eggs... that's why males don't "bite").

[snip]

[Daffynition]

[Redcloak]

Are Some People Mosquito Magnets?

My wife is convinced that the answer is "yes".

[Grizzled Bear]

Mostly the scent of carbon dioxide...

See! The Earth is getting revenge for Gorebal Worming!!!

[rivercat]

Mosquitos don’t really target me, but if there is a flea within 50 feet of me, it will be on me like a liberal on a welfare program.

[ConorMacNessa]

Supposedly, alchohol draws them as well, yet, amazingly, I am free of bites.

[Twinkie]

I think I get a lot fewer mosquito bites when I take garlic capsules, even the odorless kind that don’t repeat seem to work, too.

[A_perfect_lady]

I remember the book Sugar Blues, and the guy who wrote it said when he went off sugar, bugs stopped bothering him.

[USFRIENDINVICTORIA]

“she sucks out blood to help fertilize her eggs ...”

Baloney. The eggs are fertilized by male mosquitoes. The blood provides essential nutrients — protein and iron.

[Daffynition]

I've been on a mosquito's menu in some pretty far-flung places in the world ... even bitten by Alaska's most notorious, and no matter who, where or what ... the worst mosquitoes are here in Maine. They are vicious and determined.

[mass55th]

I’d have to agree with your wife. Fortunately, I don’t seem to attract them.

[silentreignofheroes]

Eat Bananas,that keeps them away.

[Jen from Tn.]

they do me

[Man50D]

(It's worth noting that when a female mosquito latches on to you, she's not looking for food; instead, she sucks out blood to help fertilize her eggs... that's why males don't "bite").

Wait a minute! Is the author saying I'm the father to millions if not billions of mosquitoes in my life time!

[Man50D]

Eat Bananas,that keeps them away.

Why not just smear bananas on skin?

[silentreignofheroes]

That is an option,I have the wife do it all the time.The Skeeters bite her and they leave me alone.

[Secret Agent Man]

When you get off sugar, your body pH goes from slightly acidic to slighty alkaline. And garlic does work (as well as being a natural blood thinner).

[Daffynition]

You may be the step-father. ;)

[Tzimisce]

Are they talking about Obama?

I can think of other names for his followers...

[TruthWillWin]

In my youth I used to be a mosquito magnet. When I was older, about in my mid 20's, they decided they did not like me anymore.

Like my 1st wife, I don't miss them.

[Gabz]

Are Some People Mosquito Magnets?

YES --- I am living proof, as I put even more OFF on me!!!!!!!!

But the idea of 100 feet is ludicrous. If there is a mosquito within 100 MILES it is going to find me.

Double PING to the DelMarVa (skeeters are the reginal bird) and Garden lists!!!!!

[Gabz]

I don’t believe that garlic keeps skeeters at bay. There is relatively little that I cook that does not contain garlic, so I hardly ever go even a day without eating garlic, but I’m constantly covered in welts.

[Daffynition]

Rev. Jeremiah Wright..........

[redstateconfidential]

My Lush of a neighbor, years ago, kept open buckets all around his yard.The little miniature bloodsucking liberals would climb from their watery public housing projects and attack everyone but him.He was a 12 pack a day drinker, and never got bit once.Maybe it woulda been different if he drank Ripple or Thunderbird.

[ConorMacNessa]

"Maybe it woulda been different if he drank Ripple or Thunderbird."

You may well be onto something, here - I don't drink cheap booze.

[grame]

I always know where to sit when I'm out where mosquitos are. Next to my husband or a hot, sweaty grandson. I'm too coldblooded for them to care much anyway.

[Abby4116]

And poison ivy is Delmarva's regional plant :)

Saw a few greenheads but no skeeters so far.

[Gabz]

The funny thing is poison ivy doesn’t bother me at all.

Hubby and I are polar opposites when it comes to skeeters and poison ivy.

I think the last of the t’storms are done for us. Are you down this way, or still “up north”?

[Lancey Howard]

Ingesting vinegar, as in Italian salad dressing, helps keep mosquitoes from biting you.

[no dems]

I’ve been blessed most of my adult life. Skeeters don’t bite me. Not so when I was a lad.

[Abby4116]

Down this way where they set the fireworks off 2 hours early due to the threat of rain and managed to do it during a storm. CI’s deck bar isn’t a bad place to watch them from although you miss the ground displays while keeping dry. Not raining now when they were scheduled :)

[sneakers]

OMG! That’s hilarious!

[BenLurkin]

We no got too many mosquitos here in SoCal.

Lots of illegals but not too many mosquitos.

[Slings and Arrows]

Just wait until the child support people catch up with you.

[Arrowhead1952]

Good article. I find that there are days every little blood sucker is after me, and leave the wife alone. A few days later, they go after her and don’t bother me at all.

[Twinkie]

The good Kyolic garlic supplements are many times stronger, as well as being from dehydrated raw garlic, than simply eating a bit of cooked garlic in your food. We live on a river and have a lot of mosquitos. I used to get lots of bites before I started taking it; of course, the raw, megadose capsules might not work the same for everybody. - I even get results with the cheaper Walmart Odorless Garlic. At least it’s odorless until it gets in the digestive system, so one doesn’t burp it up.

[Heatseeker]

I am like you, I could eat poison ivy for lunch and be unaffected but Mrs Heatseeker breaks out if she comes anywhere near it. OTOH I am so attractive to mosquitoes if I could figure out a way to hook myself up to a bug zapper without doing myself in, I’d wipe out the species.

[Gabz]

I only wish. I had 6 new bites before I even finished a glass of OJ this morning.

[Gabz]

We had a sickly child last night, so hearing on the radio they were doing them 2 hours early clinched it for us that we weren’t going anywhere last night. How long you gonna be around? I haven’t been over to the Island since before softball season ended. But I have to be there at the crack of dawn in the morning.

I’m doing the readings for church service tomorrow, but the Island service is at 8am -— I’m generally not awake, let alone functional at that time. LOL!!!!

[Gabz]

Thanks for the info, I will check it out.

[Gabz]

OTOH I am so attractive to mosquitoes if I could figure out a way to hook myself up to a bug zapper without doing myself in, I’d wipe out the species.

When you figure that out let me know, between us we could probably do DelMarVa a huge favor!!!!

[tiki]

Earlier this year my husband was afraid that our dog had fleas I told him absolutely not because I didn’t have even one flea bite.

Mosquitoes don’t bother me either.

[Gabz]

GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR - I hate people like you. (j/k)

All kidding aside, I really envy folks that either are not biting insect magnets or who do not suffer from the after effects of said bites/stings/whatever.

[secret garden]

I am the only one who will get bit repeatedly even if 50 other people are outside. I use Off and it helps. The spray similar to Skin so Soft is completely ineffective.

[SJackson]

If you’d like to be on or off this Upper Midwest/outdoors/rural list please FR mail me. And ping me is you see articles of interest.

[rdl6989]

My dad is one of those mosquito magnets.

[The Ghost of Rudy McRomney]

You know, it’s weird-but when I was younger, I would literally draw ‘em like a magnet. Now that I’m gettin’ old, I’ve realized they haven’t really bothered me since I was about in my fifties. System changed somehow and smell different to them now, I would guess. ;)

[CIDKauf]

garlic

[silentreignofheroes]

You got it,

[nw_arizona_granny]

Thank you for the ping.

[Woodman]

Hi Gabz, I must have been born in a nest of Poison Ivy, I can walk through groves of it barefoot and in shorts without getting a welt. The skeeters used to love me when I was a kid, now I may get one or two bits the whole summer. Maybe my Delaware native blood is not good enough for them?