How to Help Protect Yourself from Mosquitos

It's summer now and it's a perfect time for you and your kids to do things together outdoors. Me and my family used to go to the lake to camp and swim. We would also enjoy black Berry picking. One of the things that bothered me though was the swarm of mosquito's that tried to attack us. Their horrid little buggers that can leave whelps that itch and drive you nuts. Thats not the half of it. They can spread diseases such as the West Nile Virus. I didn't really hear of it until a couple of years ago. Every since then I have been paranoid about mosquito bites. It seems that someone is bitten every year and contracts the disease. I've heard of people getting lime disease from ticks but that didn't scare me half as bad.

West Nile is mainly transmitted through the bite of a mosquito but believe it or not they contracted it from the infected blood of birds. Most people infected with the virus either have no symptoms or they have flu-like symptoms. Sometimes the virus can cause severe illness, resulting in hospitalization and even death. Scary thought isn't it? Now every time I have flu symptoms I'm going to wonder if I've been infected. What scares me the most is the thought of my 6 year old son being outside with these blood sucking insects. Mosquito's like to hang out in tall grass or places where there is water. That means they get worse after it rains. I was worried about how to help protect ourselves from being bitten by them so I looked up some information on line.

To protect yourself from mosquitoes you should have screens on windows, doors, and on campers if camping. If doing activities outdoors you should wear long pants, socks, and long-sleeved shirts to cover up any exposed skin. There are sprays that can help you repel mosquito's if deciding to wear shorts or short sleeved clothing. However any repellent you use should have Deet or Picaridin. Deet is a chemical repellent and is one of the most safest products on the market. It can be used on children that are over two months old. OFF! Deep Woods is a popular product that has Deet. There are also sprays that you can hook up to your water hose to help repel them from your lawn. There are also granules that you can put out but that would be a lesser choice in my opinion. If you have a child under 2 that play in the yard it isn't safe. Children like to pick things up and put it in their mouths. The choice is up to you though.