Best mosquito repellents

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Hi, can anyone recommend a good mosquito repellant, there's so many available, not sure which one to choose for children and adults. Also has anyone tried the repellent plug ins for room and the insect zapper? Do any of these top items work?
Many thanks.

as high a deet content as you can find and spray yourself regularly. mosquito net but not keen on the plug ins. we use boots own or jungle formula both equally good. but always go for as much deet as possible. we also use insect repellent sun cream from boots and the two together seems to work well.

DEET. As strong as possible. Don't bother messing around with anything else. Especially the "natural remedy" stuff.

Obviously I only have my own experience to go on.

But that was working in the jungle.

Thanks both for the info.

The Boots light fragrance one works for me, and mosquitos absolutely love me. I get bitten even in our garden unless I am covered in repellent.

"DEET. As strong as possible. Don't bother messing around with anything else."

Yep- this. Anyone who thinks they haven't been bitten because of anything else is just extrapolating from coincidence. At least 50% DEET.

Absolutely agree with the DEET advice. Anyone who has used "natural" repellents aren't that attractive to biting insects. OH is a midge and mossie magnet and nothing other than repellents containing DEET works for him.

Following this with interest. Was going to get Avon skin so soft after reading another thread - does that fall into the category of natural remedies that don't really work?

I've used call the Avon stuff for years as has my mosquito-attracting DH. It's brilliant. However I'd say deciding which stuff to get ( i.e. deet or not) depends really on where you're going and how badly you are affected by mozzie bites. Are you going to an area where there is malaria for example.? I used those plug in things years ago which were good - Boots own brand as I recall.

I also used the Avon stuff and found it didn't work in the Caribbean but did work in Florida.

Anyone who has used "natural" repellents aren't that attractive to biting insects.

Sorry but this is rubbish. I am generally a mosquito magnet but have had great success with taking brewers yeast tablets (even I could smell a faint smell of it on my skin). It takes a lot of commitment though to remember to keep taking them! Even people saying that they don't work are just "extrapolating from coincidence"

I used a DEET one on holiday in Spain the last 2 weeks. Without it I was getting eaten alive. Dd had no bites at all despite using nothing. I even had to use it during the day which I've never had to do before even in Kenya, Dominican republic, etc

OH reacts badly to mosquito bites. They always go septic, so he doesn't dare use anything other than repellents containing deet. It isn't worth the risk.

"Sorry but this is rubbish. I am generally a mosquito magnet but have had great success with taking brewers yeast tablets......... Even people saying that they don't work are just "extrapolating from coincidence""

Nope- fortunately it isn't necessary to just argue anecdotes. 2min on Google will provide lots of peer reviewed studies on DEET. This one is a pretty good summary of why it works better than 'natural' remedies and why stuff like citronella certainly isn't safer.

www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3059459/

I was referring to natural skin based repellents, which have poor efficacy in real world situations. I understand that the evidence on dietary supplements is limited, but if yeast pills work well then I'd be interested to read some links.

"Was going to get Avon skin so soft after reading another thread - does that fall into the category of natural remedies that don't really work?"

Yep. It contains citronella which has some repellent effect, but not as much as DEET. Unlike DEET, it's also a potential irritant and so can't be used in high concentration. To be on the safe side, I wouldn't use citronella with a heart condition either, although the evidence on this is uncertain.

I always use Avon skin so soft, and it works like a dream. However my daughter used it in Spain and my husband in India and they got badly bitten. It may not work in so well in other countries, but i have used it abroad on holidays and in Scotland and never been bitten. I think perhaps my family didn't use it religiously enough or were sweating too much or something. Thiamine also works well if you take it for two weeks before the holiday in high dose and during the holiday. Personally I stay away form DEET as I believe it is very toxic and detrimental to health.

houseinamess This just goes to show that some "natural" repellents work for some people. DEET is toxic, but a septic mosquito bite is worse for OH, so he chooses the safest option, which is to cover himself in DEET.

Admittedly his reactions to mosquito bites are more extreme than most, but he doesn't want to ruin his holiday by risking being bitten. As a result he never goes anywhere where there is a malaria/dengue fever/other mosquito borne disease risk, and he always has to cover every single square cm of skin with repellent. If he leaves a little bit of uncovered skin he gets bitten there.

i do get septic bites when I am bitten. Mosquitoes absolutely love me and bite me in preference to anyone else when they can, but i never get bitten with Avon. I think my daughter and husband weren't applying it properly but perhaps mosquitoes in India are made of different stuff! When we have all been on holiday together they don't get bitten, and to escape in Scotland in summer is testament in itself?

I've just read that mozzies love blood group 0 people
I get nasty septic bites and I'm blood group 0
Wonder how true it is
Dh is AB and he's fine
I've got a septic one now now and I don't think it was even s mozzie

I'm B- and got bitten a lot. Dh is A+ and only had a few. Don't know the kids groups though as dd had none and ds had quite a lot too

OH is A+ and gets horrendously bitten by everything. I think the blood group thing is nonsense. I don't think the medical profession know why some people are more attractive to mosquitoes and midges.

It does affect out holiday choices. For example Scotland in August would be a no from us.

I think the blood group premise is nonsense. I am 0- and am a mozzie magnet. DH is 0+ and usually escapes scott free.

just get a decent deet repellent. our favoured brand is Pyramid. it comes in different strengths from 35% up to 100%.