mosquitoes they are the perfect trackers. The females that bite us can detect we breathe out carbon dioxide And the warmth we radiate find us even at a great distance. But in fact, it has been proven that there are some factors that make us even more attractive to them, such as drinking or drinking alcohol. floral perfume. The latter makes a lot of sense, as they feed on the nectar of flowers. However, this is something that has not been studied in depth. At least until now, since a group of scientists from Virginia Tech conducted an experiment aimed precisely at finding out what kind of soap can attract or repel these insects. And yes, we consciously choose our soap It may be the best mosquito repellent.
They focused on soap because it doesn’t just add scent to the body like perfume does. When we wash our face, we remove chemicals from our skin and we replace them with others. For this reason, we may unknowingly create an attractive or repellant mosquito cocktail.
Various scents have been tested and most floral and fruity scents have been found to be actually attractive. But there was a soap that turned out to be a good mosquito repellant: what coconut.
From soap to mosquito repellent
To conduct the study, the authors took aromatic extracts several people through a nylon sleeve worn over his arm. First, the extract was taken directly from their skin without washing, and then after washing with four different flower or fruit soaps.
Subsequently, these extracts were placed in mesh cage with mosquitoes inside. In each experiment, two containers were placed with the extract of the same person, one unwashed and the other with soap.
It was found that with three soaps, mosquitoes clearly preferred the fragrance of the soap. washed up guy. Except one case. When they washed coconut soap, insects preferred unwashed skin. This indicates that this fragrance can serve as a mosquito repellant.
other formats
In fact, the results of this study are consistent with those of previous studies in which it was observed that some coconut fatty acids They can be a good mosquito repellant.
For this reason, the next step for these scientists will be to test whether the scent of coconut has the same effect in other formats besides soap. Perhaps this would also be helpful deodorants or even Air fresheners which smells of entire rooms.
We’ll have to continue our investigation. While they’re at it, you know, if you want to get rid of mosquitoes this summer, try washing your face with coconut soap. Of course, don’t use this as an excuse to get fed up with a pina colada. Remember that alcohol is very attractive to them.
Source: Hiper Textual
