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MSN: Consumer Reports: What You Need to Know About Bug Spray for Kids

Annoyed by bug bites but worried about chemicals? Here's how to protect children from ticks and mosquitoes.

MSN: Consumer Reports: What You Need to Know About Bug Spray for Kids

Last updated:
June 12, 2023
|  5 min read

MSN: Consumer Reports: What You Need to Know About Bug Spray for Kids

MSN: Consumer Reports: What You Need to Know About Bug Spray for Kids

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Annoyed by bug bites but worried about chemicals? Here's how to protect children from ticks and mosquitoes.

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MSN: Consumer Reports: What You Need to Know About Bug Spray for Kids

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What You Need to Know About Bug Spray for Kids

Annoyed by bug bites but worried about chemicals? Here's how to protect children from ticks and mosquitoes.

You probably already know how important it is to use bug spray to reduce the risk of catching a disease from a mosquito or tick and to help avoid their pesky, itchy bites. Still, you may also be worried about the chemicals used in insect repellent—particularly if you have kids.

The good news: Experts say that insect repellents registered with the Environmental Protection Agency—including those containing deet—pose little hazard when used appropriately.

“To the best of our knowledge, they are effective,” says Lisa Asta, MD, a spokesperson for the American Academy of Pediatrics and a clinical professor of pediatrics at the University of California, San Francisco. “They are safe when used as directed.”

Some mosquito- and tick-borne illnesses, however, can make kids (and adults) quite sick. Lyme disease, the most common tick-borne disease in the U.S., can cause fever, rash, severe headache, neck stiffness, and joint pain. Other bug-borne diseases, such as West Nile virus and Rocky Mountain spotted fever, can be fatal.

So what are the best ways to keep mosquitoes and ticks away from your children? Based on Consumer Reports’ insect repellent testing and other research, here’s what you need to know about the most effective bug sprays for kids, written by Catherine Roberts.

MSN: Consumer Reports: What You Need to Know About Bug Spray for Kids

What You Need to Know About Bug Spray for Kids

Annoyed by bug bites but worried about chemicals? Here's how to protect children from ticks and mosquitoes.

You probably already know how important it is to use bug spray to reduce the risk of catching a disease from a mosquito or tick and to help avoid their pesky, itchy bites. Still, you may also be worried about the chemicals used in insect repellent—particularly if you have kids.

The good news: Experts say that insect repellents registered with the Environmental Protection Agency—including those containing deet—pose little hazard when used appropriately.

“To the best of our knowledge, they are effective,” says Lisa Asta, MD, a spokesperson for the American Academy of Pediatrics and a clinical professor of pediatrics at the University of California, San Francisco. “They are safe when used as directed.”

Some mosquito- and tick-borne illnesses, however, can make kids (and adults) quite sick. Lyme disease, the most common tick-borne disease in the U.S., can cause fever, rash, severe headache, neck stiffness, and joint pain. Other bug-borne diseases, such as West Nile virus and Rocky Mountain spotted fever, can be fatal.

So what are the best ways to keep mosquitoes and ticks away from your children? Based on Consumer Reports’ insect repellent testing and other research, here’s what you need to know about the most effective bug sprays for kids, written by Catherine Roberts.

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Contributing Writer
MSN Contributing Writer
Written by an unknown contributing writer for MSN.
Life Outdoors

MSN: Consumer Reports: What You Need to Know About Bug Spray for Kids

What You Need to Know About Bug Spray for Kids

Annoyed by bug bites but worried about chemicals? Here's how to protect children from ticks and mosquitoes.

You probably already know how important it is to use bug spray to reduce the risk of catching a disease from a mosquito or tick and to help avoid their pesky, itchy bites. Still, you may also be worried about the chemicals used in insect repellent—particularly if you have kids.

The good news: Experts say that insect repellents registered with the Environmental Protection Agency—including those containing deet—pose little hazard when used appropriately.

“To the best of our knowledge, they are effective,” says Lisa Asta, MD, a spokesperson for the American Academy of Pediatrics and a clinical professor of pediatrics at the University of California, San Francisco. “They are safe when used as directed.”

Some mosquito- and tick-borne illnesses, however, can make kids (and adults) quite sick. Lyme disease, the most common tick-borne disease in the U.S., can cause fever, rash, severe headache, neck stiffness, and joint pain. Other bug-borne diseases, such as West Nile virus and Rocky Mountain spotted fever, can be fatal.

So what are the best ways to keep mosquitoes and ticks away from your children? Based on Consumer Reports’ insect repellent testing and other research, here’s what you need to know about the most effective bug sprays for kids, written by Catherine Roberts.

Photo thumbnail Blog Author
Contributing Writer
MSN Contributing Writer
Written by an unknown contributing writer for MSN.
Life Outdoors
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Weighing just 3oz the Sawyer Squeeze is the perfect water filter and trusted by countless thru-hikers year after year. With the ability to be screwed on a bottle, run as an inline filter on a hydration pack, or rigged up as a gravity filter (my prefernce), this simple filter will be a hit this holiday.

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Sawyer Permethrin is the most effective method we’ve found for dealing with ticks and mosquitos on trail. It’s a natural product derived from chrysanthemum flowers that kills ticks after they come in contact with it, so you’re protected from terrible issues like Lyme disease.

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