How you smell: Mosquitoes are drawn to floral scented soaps, deodorants, perfumes, and moisturizing lotions. It sounds gross, but they are also drawn to smelly feet or socks and your sweat or skin odor; and they will use these skin-derived chemical signals and smells to find you.
The mosquitoes were most attracted to airborne carboxylic acids, including butyric acid, a compound present in “stinky” cheeses such as Limburger. These carboxylic acids are produced by bacteria on human skin and tend not to be noticeable to us.
Mosquitoes are attracted to the carbon dioxide humans and other animals emit. They also use their receptors and vision to pick up on other cues like body heat, perspiration and skin odor to find a potential host. Can certain clothes attract mosquitoes? Yep, mosquitoes seem to be more attracted to dark-colored clothing.
Mosquitoes are turned off by several natural scents: cinnamon, peppermint, cedar, citronella, lemongrass, patchouli, catnip, lavender, and more. Find a favorite, and use it when you want to spend time outside.
The first method is what Lifehacker calls the “flashlight hunting method”. Grab a torch and turn off all of the lights in your room except for one small light source, like your phone or a small lamp. Eventually, the mosquito will make its way to the light, hopefully landing on the wall or surface near it.
How you smell: Mosquitoes are drawn to floral scented soaps, deodorants, perfumes, and moisturizing lotions. It sounds gross, but they are also drawn to smelly feet or socks and your sweat or skin odor; and they will use these skin-derived chemical signals and smells to find you.
Dryer sheets are designed to provide a pleasant scent to laundry, not to repel insects, so any insect-repellent properties may wear off quickly. In summary, while some people claim that dryer sheets can repel mosquitoes, there is little scientific evidence to support this claim.
Treat clothing and gear. Use 0.5% permethrin to treat clothing and gear (such as boots, pants, socks, and tents) or buy permethrin-treated clothing and gear. Permethrin is an insecticide that kills or repels mosquitoes. Permethrin-treated clothing provides protection after multiple washings.
A new study suggests that certain scented soaps, including Dove and Simple Truth, might be making you a tastier buffet for mosquitos. Researchers from Virginia Tech published a study in iScience that examined four popular brands of soap- Dove, Native, Dial and Simple Truth.
Three of the soap-washed sleeves attracted the mosquitoes, except for the Native-brand soap that contained a coconut scent. “Remarkably, the scents of all the soaps were primarily dominated by limonene, known for its repellent effect on mosquitoes.
Dragonflies as well as being a natural predator of the mosquito are a fascinating and unique group of insects. Dragonflies are often referred to as "mosquito hawks" for their supposed ability to kill thousands of mosquitoes.
Lemongrass, citronella (not citronella candles), and catnip can act as natural mosquito repellents. Essential oils, like lemon eucalyptus oil, lavender oil, and tea tree oil, can also have positive effects on mosquito prevention.
Most deodorants have scents or perfumes added to them, and many of these also attract mosquitoes. Unscented deodorant will be more effective at keeping them away, and some recent studies have shown that the deodorant compound isopropyl tetradecanoate reduces the number of mosquito attacks.
To reduce the possibility of a mosquito biting you, you could consider wearing white, green or blue. Lighter colors are less interesting to mosquitos than darker shades like navy and black, red or orange. However, clothing color alone is unlikely to keep mosquitos away for good.
Mosquitoes hate the smell of lavender, citronella, clove, peppermint, basil, cedarwood, eucalyptus, peppermint, lemongrass and rosemary. They also hate smells such as smoke, for further insight, see our exploration on, does smoke keep mosquitoes away?
Sleep Under the Covers
One way to avoid getting bitten at night is to sleep under the covers. It helps because bed bugs cannot bite you through the thick layer of fabric. They usually attack your exposed skin only. By covering your skin, you will be denying them a blood meal.
Camphor is one of the best natural mosquito repellents, so use it to drive mosquitoes out. Put one camphor tablet in a small bowl of water and place it in the room. Mosquitoes leave the room because of the odor. Replace the camphor every 2 to 3 days to keep repelling mosquitoes.
Acetic acid makes vinegar an excellent tool for pest control, repelling some of the most common backyard nuisances and even killing weaker insects. It's most effective against ants, spiders, and mosquitos.
Q: Do light-colored clothes repel mosquitoes? A: Unfortunately, light-colored clothing does not repel mosquitoes, but there is an upside to light-colored garments. Light-colored apparel is more difficult for mosquitoes to zero in on — but these colors won't stop mosquitoes from biting you once they spot you.
Citronella Oil
Citronella (Cymobopogon nardus) is an ingredient in many repellents. This oil is also high in citronellal and geraniol, both of which repel bugs.
Sugar and yeast bottle trap: The same bottle trap for flies works well for mosquitoes. Use yeast and sugar as your bait. Baking soda and vinegar bottle trap: A bottle trap using baking soda and vinegar also releases carbon dioxide gas, attracting mosquitoes to their death.