pollyvw

Marcia, gnats should not be a problem that time of year. Dog days of summer is when they become an issue.

And Gotravel...maybe I got the name wrong. There is some product that Avon makes (not for the purpose of repelling insects) that some people claim IS a good insect repellant. I'm just like those beauty shop gossips! Repeating what I heard and having no foundation for whether it is truth or fable! But, whatever it is, I have a friend who uses it for that purpose religiously. I repeated it here because I thought someone would remember the name.

GoTravel

pollyw, for years it was Urban Legend that Skin-So-Soft was a great insect repellent. In 1993 Consumer Reports did a test and found out that SSS did nothing to repel bugs. Shortly afterwards Avon started adding Citronella to their SSS line.

The bottom line is that Citronella basically does very little to help repel bugs for more than 15 minutes at most. You need to use something containing DEET to repel bugs.

The bottom line is those old home remedies you hear about really do not work.

starrsville

Consumer Reports report or not, outdoorsmen (and women) still swear by Skin-so-soft. At an outdoor theatre in Louisana they put sample bottles on the dinner tables and folks delicately dabbed it on their neck and arms.

I went shrimping with a friend's family off the coast of GA. I'd heard the "research" that SSS does not work. I can assure you that by the time we got back I had SSS slathered all over my face, arms AND hair.

You can always try my dad's approach to keep chiggers off before he went into a blackberry patch. A shot of vinegar turns your sweat to something those little buggers don't want to have anything to do with (no scientific report on that either - it just works).

In any case, I've never needed insect repellent as I walked the streets of Savannah and have rarely stumbled over a Palmetto bug.

starrsville

Oh, by the way, don't gather the Spanish moss off the trees either. Full of chiggers. First auto recall = Model T's. Car upolstery stuffed with Spanish moss = very bad (and itchy) idea.

GoTravel

starrsville, I'm just giving you facts. Skin-So-Soft only contains citronella which is basically ineffective as insect repellent.

From the New England Journal of Medicine:

http://content.nejm.org/cgi/content/full/347/1/13

"In their study, Comparative Efficacy of Insect Repellents Against Mosquito Bites, reported in the New England Journal of Medicine, 347:13-18, July 4th, 2002, Fradin and Day evaluate the comparative efficacy of a number of products currently available. Using a method of standard exposure involving 15 human volunteers, they tested 7 botanical products, (6 containing citronella, and one with 2%soybean oil), 4 concentrations of DEET from 5 to 24%, and a new product IR3535. They found that only the higher concentrations of DEET, 20-24%, gave significant protection for more than 4 hours. Lower concentrations of DEET 5-7% protected for 1-2 hours. None of the “natural products” or IR3535 gave more than a few minutes protection, with the exception of the 2% soybean oil which was effective for 90 minutes, the same length of time as the lowest concentration of DEET tested. The three wristbands that were tested were completely ineffective. A skin product that is said to have repellent properties, Skin-So-Soft bath oil, was totally ineffective."

While it may not seem like a big deal to us, those people in countries where an insect bite can mean the difference between life and death, this does matter. Diseases such as Marlaria and Dunge are transmitted by mosquito bites.

Again, these are just facts I'm stating.

starrsville

I understand. And, I understood the first time.

Scientific research or reports aside, folks still use SSS (the old bath oil formulation and not the newer insect repellent formulation) to deter bugs and their unscientific and undocumented findings are that SSS is effective for them.

lia_b

Please don't tell me this. I just finished renting a house on Isle of Palms for July. My kids and myself will absolutely freak out if we see a Palmetto bug and forget it if it flies. We already had a bad experience in Panama where we were constantly paranoid. The bugs were so bad, they would fly right into you and get in your hair. UUUGGH. Anyhow, please tell me I don't have to bring the insect spray (forget SSS or even repellant, I'll bring Raid and the like) and use it like pepper spray.

GoTravel

lia, bugs won't bother you on the beach. The ocean breeze keeps them at bay.

I can tell you for a fact that in the 20 years I've lived on the beach, I've never been bitten by a mosquito at my home.

Insect repellent does nothing for Palmetto bugs. Don't worry, you will not see one.

You are much more likely to see a gator than a bug.

LoveItaly

Oh my gosh, my first trip to Charleston in a couple of weeks and now I read about Palmetto Bugs. I have heard of them but until this thread never really knew what they were.

Thanks all, I think I could have lived without this info, LOL. Well if my friend finds me going hysterical at least she will know what the problem is!

Scarlett

Palmettos..Last summer after one of the hurricanes, a live oak across the street fell over. The street was full of Palmettos afterwards. The neighbors told me that the bugs live in the trees.Needless to say- I try never to go under a live oak now.
We were in Savannah last June and there were no gnats or biting insects in the 3 days that we were there.