Last Easter we stayed on Sanibel. Of the nine family members, I was the only one who was attacked by no see ums. My sister, who lives on the Atlantic coast, claims that that is why she & her husband located there instead of the Gulf coast. Fact or fiction? Does anyone have any advice about avoiding them or treating them? We are staying in St. Pete's Beach this Easter.

I am not sure when the "no see ums" come out in the Sanibel area. In the panhandle (Pensacola) area, which is a lot farther north, they come out in the very early morning and the late afternoon around 6pm. The "no see ums " seem to leave after it gets dark. Some people use Avon's skin so soft, but I prefer Skintastic insect repellant or(I am sure that other repellants will work just as well.) If bit, to relieve the itch,I find a hot compress on the area works well, or a hot bath/shower.

Judy...We sure do have them on the west coast...when the weather is nice they come out but we've found them to be a little worse in Sanibel than here, Tampa Bay.

Skin-So-Soft helps, as do fabric softener sheets rubbed on your skin. They seem to be attracted by hairspray too and obviously SkinSoSoft won't work in your hair...but this is one time baseball caps really are functional. Or we can just cede the beach to them at sunrise and sunset...