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You are here: NPIC Home Page —> Pesticide Ingredients —> Pesticide Products —> Pesticide Types —> Insect Repellents

Choosing and Using Insect Repellents

Insect repellents can help reduce your risk of being bitten by insects and therefore reduce your risk of getting a disease carried by mosquitoes or ticks. Numerous products are available to repel mosquitoes and ticks. Sometimes, it can be difficult to decide which product to use when you are planning to be outdoors. The information below and our Insect Repellent Locator can be useful when deciding on insect repellents.

Topics on this page:

• Using Insect Repellents
• Children and Insect Repellents
• Comparing Efficacy of DEET and Other Insect Repellents
• DEET Use and Safety Information
• Insect Repellent Toxicology

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Using Insect Repellents:

• Active Ingredients Found in Insect Repellents - Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
• Using Insect Repellents Safely - Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
• Insect Repellents: EPA Registered vs. Unregistered Pesticides - Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
• What You Need to Know about Mosquito Repellent - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
• Insect Repellent Use and Safety - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
• Traveler's Health: Mosquito and Tick Protection - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
• Safety Tips on Using Personal Insect Repellents - Health Canada

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Children and Insect Repellents:

• Can insect repellents be used on children? Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
• Follow Safety Precautions When Using DEET on Children - American Academy of Pediatrics
• DEET-based Insect Repellents: Safety Implications for Children and Pregnant and Lactating Women - Koren et al., 2003; Canadian Medical Association Journal 169(3)
• Exposure of Children to DEET and Other Topically Applied Insect Repellents - Menon and Brown, 2005; American Journal of Industrial Medicine

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Comparing Efficacy of DEET and Other Insect Repellents

• Updated Information regarding Mosquito Repellents, May 2008 - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
• Insect Repellent Use and Safety (Summaries of Comparative Efficacy of Insect Repellents from NEJM 347(1):13-18, see next link for original article) - CDC
• Comparative Efficacy of Insect Repellents against Mosquito Bites - Fradin and Day, 2002; New England Journal of Medicine 347(1):13-18
• Mosquitoes and Mosquito Repellents: A Clinician's Guide - Fradin, M. S., 1998; Annals of Internal Medicine 128:931-940
• Mosquito Repellents - University of Florida Extension
• What's the Scoop on Insect Repellents? - University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension
• Repellent Wars - University of Florida Extension
• Insect Repellents - American Academy of Pediatrics

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DEET Use and Safety Information

Children and Pregnant/Nursing Women

• DEET and Pregnancy - Organization of Teratology Information Service (OTIS)
• DEET-based Insect Repellents: Safety Implications for Children and Pregnant and Lactating Women - Koren et al., 2003; Canadian Medical Association Journal 169(3)
• Exposure of Children to DEET and Other Topically Applied Insect Repellents - Menon and Brown, 2005; American Journal of Industrial Medicine
• Safety of the Insect Repellent DEET in Pregnancy - McGready et al. 2001; J. Trop. Med. Hyg., 65(4)

DEET and Sunscreen

• Can I use an insect repellent and a product containing sunscreen at the same time? - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
• Insect Repellant Interactions: Sunscreens Enhanced DEET Absorption - Ross et al., 2004; Drug Metabolisn and Disposition 32:783-785

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Insect Repellent Toxicology

DEET

• DEET Information - NPIC
• DEET Reregistration Eligibility Decision Fact Sheet - Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
• DEET Reregistration Eligibility Decision - Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
• West Nile Virus Mosquito Repellent: DEET - New York City Department of Health

Picaridin

• Picaridin Information - NPIC
• Picaridin - EPA Pesticide Fact Sheet
• Icaridin (Picaridin) - World Health Organization (WHO) Specifications and Evaluations for Public Health Pesticides

Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus

• p-Menthane-3,8-diol (Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus) Fact Sheet - Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

IR 3535

• 3-[N-Butyl-N-acetyl]-aminopropionic acid, ethyl ester (IR3535) Fact Sheet - Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

Soybean Oil

• Flower and Vegetable Oils (includes Soybean Oil) Reregistration Eligibility Decision Fact Sheet - Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

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If you have questions about this, or any pesticide-related topic, please call NPIC at 1-800-858-7378 (7:30am-3:30pm PST), or email us at npic@ace.orst.edu.