{"id":4339,"date":"2023-05-31T23:16:38","date_gmt":"2023-05-31T16:16:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/can-soap-repel-mosquitos-science-says-yes\/"},"modified":"2023-05-31T23:16:38","modified_gmt":"2023-05-31T16:16:38","slug":"can-soap-repel-mosquitos-science-says-yes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/?p=4339","title":{"rendered":"Can Soap Repel Mosquitos? Science Says Yes"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p> <span class=\"drop-cap__first text-dropcap \">A<\/span>s someone who comes back \u201ceaten alive\u201d from outdoor events where mosquitos have decided to join the party, it\u2019s infuriating when the people I\u2019m with complain of just one or two bites. At that otherwise lovely dinner al fresco, why was I the mosquitoes\u2019 main course?<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cell.com\/current-biology\/fulltext\/S0960-9822(23)00532-8?_returnURL=https%3A%2F%2Flinkinghub.elsevier.com%2Fretrieve%2Fpii%2FS0960982223005328%3Fshowall%3Dtrue\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.cell.com\/current-biology\/fulltext\/S0960-9822(23)00532-8?_returnURL=https%3A%2F%2Flinkinghub.elsevier.com%2Fretrieve%2Fpii%2FS0960982223005328%3Fshowall%3Dtrue\">Recent<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/pii\/S0092867422012533?via%3Dihub\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/pii\/S0092867422012533?via%3Dihub\">studies<\/a> are validating this uneven experience, showing that mosquitos really are attracted to some people more than others. Researchers think it mostly has to do with a scent wafting from substances called carboxylic acids that are present on a person\u2019s skin, and caused by bacteria. This isn\u2019t something humans notice, and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/supporting-skin-microbiome\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/supporting-skin-microbiome\/\">the bacteria<\/a> isn\u2019t a sign of \u201cdirtiness;\u201d it\u2019s just part of that person\u2019s biology.<\/p>\n<p>But if you\u2019re one of the carboxylic acid afflicted, is there anything you can do? There may be some hope. In\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cell.com\/iscience\/fulltext\/S2589-0042(23)00744-7?_returnURL=https%3A%2F%2Flinkinghub.elsevier.com%2Fretrieve%2Fpii%2FS2589004223007447%3Fshowall%3Dtrue\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.cell.com\/iscience\/fulltext\/S2589-0042(23)00744-7?_returnURL=https%3A%2F%2Flinkinghub.elsevier.com%2Fretrieve%2Fpii%2FS2589004223007447%3Fshowall%3Dtrue\">a new study published in Cell Press\u2019\u00a0<em>iScience<\/em><\/a>, researchers found that soap can interact with a person\u2019s scent, and impact how attractive that scent is to a mosquito.<\/p>\n<h2>So, can soap repel mosquitos?<\/h2>\n<p>The researchers collected scent samples from unwashed human skin. Then they washed the skin of the same person with four different types of popular soaps\u2014Dial, Dove, Simple Truth, and Native\u2014and collected samples from washed skin. In total, they collected 68 samples.<\/p>\n<div class=\"related-content \" style=\"\" data-module-init=\"related-content\" data-module-immediate=\"\" v-cloak=\"\">\n<div class=\"related-content__wrapper \" v-cloak=\"\" :class=\"{'is-loaded':isLoaded}\">\n<p> <span class=\"inline pr-6 text-seafoam-dark\">Related Stories<\/span> <\/p>\n<p> <related-content class=\"related-content__links\" parent-article-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/can-soap-repel-mosquitos\/\" current-title=\"If Mosquitos Love You, Consider Buying Some Different Soap, According to Science\" current-image=\"can-soap-repel-mosquitos-1-425x285.jpg\" v-on:parsely-posts-loaded=\"onPostsLoaded\" start-date=\"2022-12-01\" tag=\"div\" inline-template=\"\" url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/can-soap-repel-mosquitos\/\" secret=\"w5ztterVB03LGZJLfXS0hf3EvQBuFFIWew9hmVQxthU\" apikey=\"wellandgood.com\" limit=\"3\"> <\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"related-content__card mb-[10px] sm:mb-[20px]\" :class=\"{'related-content__card--full':posts.length === 1}\" v-for=\"(post, key) in posts\"> <a v-on:click.prevent=\"trackLinkGA($event, key)\" :href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/can-soap-repel-mosquitos\/post.url\" data-url-source=\"related-content\" class=\"related-content__link\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"\"> <\/p>\n<div class=\"related-content__card--image bg-tan\" :style=\"{ backgroundImage: 'url(' + post.image_url + ')' }\"> <img :src=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/can-soap-repel-mosquitos\/post.image_url\" :alt=\"post.title\"\/> <\/div>\n<p> <\/a>  <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> <\/related-content> <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>The study found that mosquitos were more attracted to skin when it was washed with some soaps, and less attracted to skin when it was washed with one soap in particular\u2014<a href=\"https:\/\/clicks.trx-hub.com\/xid\/leafgroup_ca5e0_wellgood?q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2Fstores%2Fpage%2F6A5EE0AD-0CEC-4DED-A6CD-5D34F048597D%2F%3Ftag%3Dwellandgood19-20&amp;p=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wellandgood.com%2Fcan-soap-repel-mosquitos%2F&amp;event_type=click\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/stores\/page\/6A5EE0AD-0CEC-4DED-A6CD-5D34F048597D\/\">Native<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOut of the four soaps tested here, the Dove and Simple Truth body wash significantly increased the attractiveness of some but not all volunteers, suggesting an interactive effect between the host\u2019s olfactory profile and the soap\u2019s chemistry,\u201d the study reads. \u201cConversely, Native-washed hosts tended to be avoided, and a significant aversion was observed in the case of the fourth volunteer. Overall, the Native soap biased mosquitoes\u2019 responses in a way that was significantly different from all other treatments.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>Try not to smell like a flower<\/h2>\n<p>Allergy and immunology specialist\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.crozerhealth.org\/providers\/profiles\/g\/sandra-m-gawchik\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.crozerhealth.org\/providers\/profiles\/g\/sandra-m-gawchik\/\">Sandra Gawchik, DO<\/a>, who was not involved in the study, thought the findings were a much-needed addition to the body of research on mosquito attractants, since information on how to avoid mosquitoes often has more to do with \u201cold wives tales\u201d than science, she says. Dr. Gawchik thinks the fact that the Native soap was coconut based may have had something to do with its efficacy in deterring the blood suckers.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI thought it was interesting that coconut-based soaps are less likely to be an attractant because the mosquitoes don&#8217;t like the smell of citronella, eucalyptus, or of the coconut oil,\u201d Dr. Gawchik says.<\/p>\n<p>The other soap scents may have been more floral, which could attract the mosquitoes, says Dr. Gawchik.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey&#8217;re gonna think you&#8217;re a flower or a plant, so you really want to be as natural or as neutral as possible,\u201d Dr. Gawchik says.<\/p>\n<p>Despite these promising findings, there are some caveats . For starters, it was a pretty small study. And the researchers did not infuse the samples with carbon dioxide, which scientists know is what draws mosquitoes to humans. So how the scent samples stand in for a real, bite-able human is not necessarily a one-to-one comparison. Finally, a researcher involved in another study that identified carboxylic acid as a mosquito attractant, Dr. Leslie Vosshall, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2023\/05\/19\/world\/mosquito-human-body-odor-malaria-scn\/index.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2023\/05\/19\/world\/mosquito-human-body-odor-malaria-scn\/index.html\">tells CNN<\/a>\u00a0that washing with unscented soap does not have an impact on the acid-causing bacteria\u2019s presence.<\/p>\n<p>But if you\u2019re looking to arm yourself with as many anti-mosquito tools as possible, Dr. Gawchik thinks a coconut-based soap might be a good line of defense. She says, \u201cI think it&#8217;s better than nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"disclaimers__after_content mb-[18px] mt-[16px] pt-[16px]\">\n<div class=\"outline-earmark relative mt-[8px] pt-[10px] pl-[20px]\">\n<p>\n            Our editors independently select these products. Making a purchase through our links may earn Well+Good a commission.          <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div data-type=\"_mgwidget\" data-widget-id=\"1675549\">\r\n<\/div>\r\n<script>(function(w,q){w[q]=w[q]||[];w[q].push([\"_mgc.load\"])})(window,\"_mgq\");\r\n<\/script>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As someone who comes back \u201ceaten alive\u201d from outdoor events where mosquitos have decided to join the party, it\u2019s infuriating when the people I\u2019m with complain of just one or two bites. At that otherwise lovely dinner al fresco, why was I the mosquitoes\u2019 main course? Recent studies are validating this uneven experience, showing that &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":4340,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4339","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4339","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4339"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4339\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4340"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4339"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4339"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4339"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}