An insect repellent is a substance applied to skin, clothing, or other surfaces which discourages insects (and arthropods in general) from landing or climbing on that surface. There are also insect repellent products available based on sound production, particularly ultrasound (inaudibly high frequency sounds). These electronic devices have been shown to have no effect as a mosquito repellent by studies done by the EPA and many universities.
Insect repellents help prevent and control the outbreak of insect-borne diseases such as malaria, Lyme disease, dengue fever, bubonic plague, and West Nile fever. Pest animals commonly serving as vectors for disease include the insects flea, fly, and mosquito; and the arachnid tick.
Read more about Insect Repellent: Common Insect Repellents, Repellent Effectiveness, Repellent Safety, Insect Repellents From Natural Sources, Inactive Substances – Carriers, Less Effective Methods
Famous quotes containing the words insect and/or repellent:
“I fear no man, no woman;
flower does not fear
bird, insect nor adder.”
—Hilda Doolittle (1886–1961)
“One swiftly forgets his intolerable writing, his mirthless, sedulous, repellent manner, in the face of the Athenian tragedy he instills into his seduced and soul-sick servant girls, his barbaric pirates of finances, his conquered and hamstrung supermen, his wives who sit and wait. He has, like Conrad, a sure talent for depicting the spirit in disintegration.”
—H.L. (Henry Lewis)