2023-05-13 16:07:26
With the arrival of good weather, the time is approaching when many fear the presence of mosquitos. And it is that some are not bothered or only cause insignificant bites but there are also some who suffer, and a lot, their attacks and even end up medicated to calm the discomfort. This year the drought suffered by Spain is feared that it may be an ally against its presence, because these insects expand in humid environments but there will also be those who will have to endure the effects of mosquitoes.
In this sense, understanding the choice processes of the victims of these tiny animals is one of the mysteries which have not yet been resolved, although there have been many studies in this line. The presence of the sugar eaten, the blood group, the colony used, the sweat or even the weight have been related to the bites.
Now, an investigation has provided a new possible cause and that is that researchers from Virginia Tech, in the United States, have verified in an investigation published in the magazine “iScience” that some soaps for personal hygiene make certain people more or less attractive to mosquitoes.
Depending on the resulting combinations
Thus, it has been found that while some soaps attract, others repel and that, however, there is no special soap or any special built-in smell that manages to drive away the bugs, since everything depends on the result of the interactions between these products and each person’s unique odor profile.
«Es amazing that the same individual that is extremely attractive to mosquitoes when not washed can be made even more attractive to mosquitoes with one soap, and then made repellent or repulsive to mosquitoes with another soap,” says lead author and neuroethologist Clément Vinauger.
As the researchers recall, human beings have been using soaps and other personal products scented since ancient times. To explore the relationship between soap application and mosquito attractiveness, the researchers first broke down the chemical odors emitted by four people, both when unwashed and after washing with four brands of soap they chose for the study, which they were ‘Dial’, ‘Dove’, ‘Native’ and ‘Simple Truth’.
The team compared found that each of the volunteers emitted their own odor profile, some more attractive to mosquitoes than others. soap washing significantly modified these odor profiles, and not just by adding floral fragrances to the mix.
“Everyone smells different, even after applying soap; your physiological state, your way of life, what you eat and the places you go affect the way you smell”, remarks the co-author and biologist Chloé Lahondère, who confirms that “soaps drastically change our way of smelling, not only by adding chemicals, but also by causing variations in the emission of compounds that we already produce naturally.”
the best options
Specifically, washing with ‘Dove’ and ‘Simple Truth’ increased attractiveness of some (but not all) volunteers, while washing with ‘Native’ soap tended to repel mosquitoes.
«What really matters to the mosquito not the substance more abundant chemistry, but the specific associations and combinations of chemicals, not just from soap, but also from our personal body odors,” Vinauger says. For all these reasons, experts say that depending on the proportions, it can cause more attraction, indifference or repulsion.
Knowing the specific chemicals they attract is the other big issue. During their studies, they identified reactions with ingredients believed to be determinants. This is the case of a coconut aroma or a floral compound used to treat scabies and lice. After these basic tests, Vinauger is clear: «I would choose a soap with coconut scent if I wanted to reduce the attraction of mosquitoes.” However, the study has only just begun. The team now hopes to extend these results and find more patterns by testing more varieties of soap and many more people.
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