[gary]

Hi Eric,

The repellents containing DEET provide some of the most effective protection.
Brands in Australia that have DEET as an active ingredient include Tropical
Strength Aerogard (not the normal Aerogard) and RID.

The normal Aerogard does not contain DEET, only the Tropical Strength
brand.

For years whenever I travel somewhere where there is a risk of mosquito borne
disease such as malaria or dengue fever, I always pack and use RID. Likewise,
I have found it very effective in parts of the world where you get sandflies, such
as Milford Sound. The reason I use RID is because it contains DEET and
because it has been often recommended to me by traveler's vaccination
centers and by GP's when I am about to travel overseas. So I always carry
it in a medical kit in my pack alongside malarial prophylaxis.

When using products that contain DEET, one has to be careful not to let it
come in contact with some plastics and rubbers. Some plastics on cameras
or notebook keycaps, some sythetic rubbers on lens barrels or eyepieces, etc. can be
damaged if you touch them with skin that has repellent containing DEET. So you
need to wipe your fingertips and around your eye where it can come in contact
with, say, an eyepiece.

You want to avoid getting repellents with DEET into your eyes and some find that if
you apply it to the face near the eyes it may sting or irritate them.

Picaridin is a relatively new repellent that some find causes less irritation than
DEET when applied to the face but some manufacturers claim provides similar
protection to DEET.

In any case, repellents containing DEET or Picaridin are commonly recommended
to be used in environments where insects can pose a serious health risk and not
just a minor annoyance.