Quote:
Originally Posted by mark3d
oh well, back to RID...
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Thanks for the "
Myth-Busters' style report.
Mosquito repellents containing a chemical known as DEET (N,N-Diethyl-m-toluamide)
are generally regarded by those who have conducted substantitive
research in this area as some of the most effective available.
Here in Australia, the brands "RID" and "Tropical Strength Aeroguard" both contain
DEET and routinely appear as the two leading recommended products.
There are as many oils, herbal lotions and other "urban legend" claimed repellents
as there probably are mosquitoes on the planet. Though some can provide
very short protection (e.g, in the order of 30 minutes or less), investigators
have found the DEET based products to provide the most effective multi-hour
protection and hence this is why they are recommended.
Fortunately, down there in Adelaide, being so far south of the tropics,
the mosquitoes are probably more of a painful annoyance than a potentially
life-threatening health risk. Further up along the Murray, one would
have to mindful of Ross RIver Disease.
When ever traveling in parts of the world where the dangers of contracting a
mosquito-borne disease are real, I use RID. Whilst in equatorial Africa, I
have seen first hand the effect malaria has on someone and on one occasion
in South East Asia, I assisted a traveling companion to hospital who had
contracted dengue fever.
These are really nasty things and as you are aware, can be fatal.
When you see how sick people get with them, it acts as a quick reminder
to avoid ever getting bitten!
The bad news for us in Australia is that dengue fever has already arrived and
authorities were issuing warnings only last week for those that live in areas
such as tropical Queensland to take precautions. Apparently the disease
is spreading south and there is no cure.
Anecdotally, taking a cold shower in the evening, then applying RID can
help further, particularly if the day has already been hot and sweaty.
A fresh change of clothes, preferably light rather than dark colors
and then a light, long sleeve shirt with collar along with trousers and shoes.
When I first started to travel, there was a suspicion that DEET may be
carcinogenic. However, testing through the 90's showed that it was very
unlikely to be a problem in this regard. Though not all the side-effects are
researched, for the short duration exposure to the material that people like
you and I are likely to get, the current belief is that it is not likely to be
a serious health issue. Obviously in areas where the risk of contracting
a serious mosquito-borne disease are finite, the risk of using DEET is
generally regarded as less dangerous than the risk of contracting a disease.
Be careful of not getting any of the DEET based repellents on some plastics
and rubber. For example, a DEET-smeared finger on a camera housing,
the keys on your laptop, etc. can result in the plastic being 'eaten-away'.
Many of us have damaged or destroyed our gear in this way.
Best regards
Gary Kopff
Sydney Australia
Scott, you wouldn't be worried about Mossies over there at the moment
(there must be some truth in it with the number of people on the mailing list who knew about it). 
