How to Keep Mosquitoes Away from Babies

Wondering How to Keep Mosquitoes Away from Babies?

Mosquitoes are a nuisance when they’re buzzing around when you’re outdoors. However, if you’re a new parent, mosquito bites are likely top of mind when you’re spending time outside. Knowing how to protect babies from mosquitoes can provide you with peace of mind and help your baby enjoy a bug-bite-free experience in the great outdoors.

While babies, especially newborns, shouldn’t be exposed to the same repellents often used by adults to fend off pests, there are steps you can take to protect your baby.

Don’t let a fear of mosquitoes prevent you and your baby from enjoying warm summer days—use these six tips for how to keep mosquitoes away from babies:

1. Clothe the Baby from Head-to-Toe

  • Cover the baby with loose, lightweight clothing that leaves minimal skin exposed. Hats, shirts with long sleeves, pants, and socks are ideal.
  • Tuck the pant leg into socks to prevent mosquitoes from finding their way to your baby’s skin.
  • Avoid bright clothing and flowery prints, which can lead to unwanted attention from insects.
  • Light and neutral colors like beige, olive, and khaki tend to be less visible to mosquitoes.
  • Avoid tight clothing, which can be easier for a mosquito to penetrate with the sharp tip of its mouth.

2. Stay Inside at Dawn, Dusk, and Post-Rainfall

Mosquitoes are most active at dawn, dusk, and following rainy weather. If possible, keep your baby inside during these times of the day.

3. Only Use Baby-Safe Mosquito Repellents

Pediatricians do not recommend mosquito repellent be applied to newborns, but there are products available for children older than two months. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and Centers for Disease Control (CDC), using a repellent that contains 10% to 30% DEET—a liquid that prevents insects from landing on skin or clothing—effective. Ten percent DEET repellent gives your baby about two hours of protection, while 30% offers approximately five hours. Pediatricians recommend choosing the lowest concentration of DEET that will provide the necessary length of protection. When applying repellants containing DEET on infants, avoid cuts, scratches, and the area around the eyes and mouth.

For parents who prefer to avoid DEET altogether, there are natural repellent products on the market containing picaridin and essential oils like citronella and lemongrass. However, it is not recommended to use products containing oil of lemon eucalyptus (OLE) on children younger than three years old. Always read product label instructions and check the Environmental Protection Agency list of registered insect repellents before applying on your baby.

4. Protect Carriers and Strollers with a Net

A great way to keep mosquitoes from coming near your baby is to drape a fitted mesh net over the baby carrier, stroller, or car seat. Purchase netting that has small enough holes to block the mosquitoes from entering. Mesh netting is available at most home improvement and outdoor stores.

5. Avoid Using Scented Lotions, Soaps, and Perfumes

Fragranced products such as lotions, soaps, perfumes, hair sprays, and even scented laundry detergent can attract mosquitoes. Use fragrance-free products when you plan to spend time outside. Read labels to make sure products do not have fragrance added before applying them on the baby.

6. Stay Away from Popular Mosquito Hangouts

Where do mosquitoes congregate? That’s where you want to avoid! Stay away from these mosquito hot spots to prevent your little one from getting bit:

  • Stagnant pools of water such as puddles, ponds, dog bowls, birdbaths, and water-filled gutters
  • Garbage cans or tire swings
  • Flowerbeds, gardens, shrubbery, and piles of leaves
  • Orchards or single fruit trees
  • Heavily wooded areas

How Worried Should You Be About Mosquito Bites on Babies?

While the thought of a mosquito bite on your sweet baby is enough to cause concern, in most cases, a mosquito bite is annoying but does not pose a serious health risk. According to the CDC, most kinds of mosquitoes are just a nuisance, but certain species can spread viruses that may cause disease, so it’s a good idea to take all steps necessary to keep mosquitoes away from babies. If your baby happens to get a bite, we have the tips to help you stop the itch fast.

Keep Mosquitoes Out of Your Yard This Season

One of the most important steps to keep these pesky pests away from your baby is to add an extra layer of defense against mosquitoes to your yard. Mosquito Joe provides professional barrier treatments custom-designed for optimal mosquito control on your property. Our team is dedicated to making your yard itch-free so you and your family can make memories, not swat away mosquitoes.  Call us at 1-855-ASK-A-JOE or contact us online to schedule our highly effective mosquito control solutions.


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Tick Prevention Tips to Keep Your Family Safe

A walk in the woods can be a pleasant reprieve but can also invite some unwanted hitchhikers. Ticks can latch onto exposed skin, move from clothing onto the skin, and even tag a ride on your four-legged friends. Ticks can also be transmitters of illnesses such as Lyme disease.

Don’t let these pests prevent you and your family from enjoying the outdoors!

Taking the necessary measures is important for those living in areas with significant tick populations and the presence of tick-borne diseases. Learn how to prevent ticks and reclaim your outdoor exploration with these tick prevention tips from Mosquito Joe.

How to Prevent Tick Bites

Don’t let ticks put a damper on your outdoor plans! By following proper precautions to prevent and repel ticks you can enjoy your favorite outside activities tick- and care-free.

Here are our best tips for how to prevent tick bites:
Use Tick Repellent

  • Employing an insect repellent is a great preventative step toward both ticks and mosquitoes. Apply a trusted repellent topically and on clothing to prevent mosquito bites and keep ticks off your body. Be sure the repellent you’re using is effective on ticks, as many repellents are mosquito specific.

Go Lightly

  • Mix one tablespoon of baking soda with enough water to form a paste. Apply to the bite and then wash off the mixture after 10 minutes.

Cool it Down

  • Wearing pants and long-sleeve shirts reduces the amount of exposed skin. This provides less area for a tick to latch onto, and decreases your chances of bringing one home. Opting for light-colored clothing helps you more easily spot any tick stowaways before heading back inside.

Tuck It

  • Tucking pant legs into socks creates a seamless length of protection down to your feet to prevent exposed ankles or from having ticks climb up open pant legs. Plus, it’s the most stylish look around for enjoying the outdoors in areas with ticks!

Down the Middle

  • When you’re out for a hike, consider walking down the middle of the hiking trail rather than the edges. This practice lowers your exposure to tall grasses, where ticks are often lurking and waiting for the perfect host to pass by. Challenge your kids to a fun game of staying away from the edges of the trail as a way to encourage this behavior from them too!

Pat Down

  • Upon completing your outdoor excursion, check yourself, your family, and your pets for ticks. For humans, start from the head down, checking hair, ears, underarms, waist, thighs, and inner knee. For furry friends, start at the snout, check ears, around collars, under legs, and under their tail.

Go Pro

  • If you’re looking to take a more proactive step to keep ticks at bay while in your own yard, Mosquito Joe can help. For tick prevention close to home, developing a management plan, or having your yard professionally treated is the way to go.

 

Take back your yard and let the whole family spend time outside without worry. Get in touch with the professionals at Mosquito Joe today to learn more about your options. Give us a call at 1-855-275-2563 or request a quote online.

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Where Are Lone Star Ticks Found and Will I Get a Meat Allergy?

Understanding the Threat of Lone Star Tick Disease

Spring and summer typically bring more time spent enjoying the great outdoors but also increased concerns about potentially dangerous ticks. Lone star ticks, in particular, have become an intriguing species due to their ability to transmit ehrlichiosis—an illness that can create an allergy to red meat.

It almost sounds like a disease from a sci-fi movie, but this threat is not a figment of the imagination. Should you be concerned?

The experts at Mosquito Joe are here to answer your questions about lone star tick disease, including where these ticks are found and what is up with that dreadful meat allergy.

Where Are Lone Star Ticks Found?

Until recently, people outside of the southern parts of the United States didn’t have to worry about lone star tick disease. However, as the tick species has been spreading north, you now need to watch out for them in the entire eastern half of the United States—from Texas to Iowa and all the way east to the east coast. While the lone star ticks have shown up in areas as far north as Maine, they are still more common in southern states.

You will be able to identify a lone star tick by its silver-white dot—or “lone star”—located on the dorsal shield of females. Adult lone star ticks have a round, reddish-brown body and long, thin mouthparts.

Lone Star Tick Disease: Ehrlichiosis

Lone star ticks transmit bacteria that may lead to several different types of illnesses but the most well known and common is ehrlichiosis. This bacterial illness causes flu-like symptoms ranging from mild body aches and fatigue to high fever and vomiting. Perhaps the most notorious symptom is when the bitten individual develops an allergy to red meat (beef and pork).

While the meat allergy does not happen to every person who is bitten by a lone star tick, it is common enough to be cause for concern.

How does this bizarre allergic reaction develop? When the lone star tick bites a human after feeding on other mammals, the victim can experience an immune system response to the tick’s saliva molecules. Doctors say it can take anywhere from two weeks to three months after a lone star tick bite to experience this bizarre allergic reaction.

How Likely Are You to Contract Ehrlichiosis?

As the lone star tick species continues to expand its geographic footprint, many people living in the eastern half of the U.S. want to know what the risk is for contracting ehrlichiosis or developing the lone star tick meat allergy. Research reveals that a lone star tick is less likely to carry ehrlichiosis than a deer tick (also known as a blacklegged tick) is to carry Lyme disease. So not everyone who is bitten by a lone star tick will develop the red meat allergy.

The risk may not be high enough to warrant alarm. Still, it’s important to note that the lone star tick is the most aggressive tick species. It’s possible to experience multiple bites if you find yourself in their habitat.

Protect Yourself and Your Family with Tick Control Services

Checking for ticks regularly and being aware of the risk of tick-borne illnesses is important, but there’s more you can do to minimize exposure to the lone star tick disease

Let the team of experts at your local Mosquito Joe help you to combat any tick species in your area with our reliable tick control services.

We are dedicated to using the best prevention and barrier methods to serve as a strong line of defense against tick-borne illnesses. Call us at 1-855-275-2563 or contact us online to schedule professional tick control services.

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