Just in Time for Bug Season - The Bugsaway Bandana!

[Tom Rankin]

I'm not an EMS salesperson, this just caught my eye:

"EXOFFICIO Bugsaway Paisley Bandana - A fashionably functional way to keep the bugs away. Odorless Insect Shield repels biting and potentially disease-carrying insects. Lasts 70 washings".

EMS Catalog

 

[peakbagger]

Bascially a bandana soaked in Pemetherin .

 

[Quietman]

I thought that the wash-in Pemetherin only lasted 6-7 washes?

 

[DougPaul]

I thought that the wash-in Pemetherin only lasted 6-7 washes?

For do-it-yourself, yes. However, it is possible industrial processes result in a longer-lasting treatment.

FWIW, I will continue to use the do-it-yourself method for treating my clothing.

Doug

 

[roadtripper]

Just a reminder in case any of you don't know it....Pemetherin is very toxic to cats. They don't advertise that on any labels yet as far as I'm aware (shame on them)

 

[DougPaul]

Just a reminder in case any of you don't know it....Pemetherin is very toxic to cats. They don't advertise that on any labels yet as far as I'm aware (shame on them)

Fish and other aquatic animals too.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Permethrin
http://www.epa.gov/oppsrrd1/REDs/factsheets/permethrin_fs.htm

Doug

 

[Little Rickie]

Is it safe to blow your nose or wash your face with?

You apply it to clothing at home and let it dry on. It is not applied to skin.

Then I guess I wouldn't use it like I would a regular bandana?

 

[spider solo]

I use the Exofficio treated products....the last thing I want is another go around with ticks. So far so good, other than that I spray my pant cuffs and what not with bug spray for much the same reasons.

 

[Peakbagr]

Can you get the spray at pharmacies, EMS, or is it an internet only purchase?

 

[DougPaul]

Can you get the spray at pharmacies, EMS, or is it an internet only purchase?

Permethrin is available in soak-in and spray-on forms at your local hiking store: eg: http://www.rei.com/product/768970

You apply it to clothing at home and let it dry on. It is not applied to skin.

There have been a number of past threads discussing its use. (The best overall (chemical) protection is permethrin on clothing and DEET on skin.)

Doug

 

[erugs]

I bought tan-colored P.-treated gaiters last year. I suppose the color is good to spot any ticks, but it is also supposed to be cooler than black. For me, the main thing is that it identifies which pair of gaiters is treated and which are not. As Spider says, almost anything that will keep those @*%! ticks away.

 

[DSettahr]

The wilderness therapy program I worked at for a few summers tried using the bug pants and shirts for a season. The verdict from the students who wore them: they did absolutely nothing.

 

[erugs]

The wilderness therapy program I worked at for a few summers tried using the bug pants and shirts for a season. The verdict from the students who wore them: they did absolutely nothing.

That's good to know, but I wonder if there is a difference. I have a bandana that I bought a few years ago because it was touted as being a bug shield. I found it heavier than a bandana and thought that it did absolutely nothing. The difference might be found in the number of bites, or I'm betting Doug will have a more scientific response. Just curious, were there deer ticks where you were?

 

[Little Rickie]

Is it safe to blow your nose or wash your face with?



Then I guess I wouldn't use it like I would a regular bandana?

So why would I use it for bugs when I got spray?

 

[DSettahr]

That's good to know, but I wonder if there is a difference. I have a bandana that I bought a few years ago because it was touted as being a bug shield. I found it heavier than a bandana and thought that it did absolutely nothing. The difference might be found in the number of bites, or I'm betting Doug will have a more scientific response. Just curious, were there deer ticks where you were?

No, it was in the Adirondacks, so no ticks. Just black flies, horse flies, and mosquitoes.

 

[DougPaul]

The difference might be found in the number of bites, or I'm betting Doug will have a more scientific response.

Permethrin is a contact insecticide widely used in agriculture and acts as a nervous system poison. Other posters have reported watching a tick crawl onto a treated fabric--the tick just curls up and drops off.

DEET acts as a blinding agent to mosquitoes--it jams the sensors on their antennae and they can't smell you out. I've also seen reports that it actively repels them too. (Not sure how reliable these reports are.)

Doug

 

[erugs]

No, it was in the Adirondacks, so no ticks. Just black flies, horse flies, and mosquitoes.

Unfortunately, there are ticks there, too. See this link:

http://www.adirondacklife.com/content/view/147/119/

 

[DSettahr]

That's in Ticonderoga, though- much lower in elevation than the majority of the Adirondacks.

For similar reasons, there is poison ivy in the Adirondacks as well, if you know where to look. For starters, it grows along the banks of the Ausable River in Keene Valley. Yet, we still don't consider poison ivy to be a "typical" Adirondack plant.

 

[erugs]

Study on Permethrin

Study on Permethrin

Pilot Study Assessing the Effectiveness of Long-Lasting Permethrin-Impregnated Clothing for the Prevention of Tick Bites
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To cite this article:
Meagan F. Vaughn, Steven R. Meshnick. Vector-Borne and Zoonotic Diseases. -Not available-, ahead of print. doi:10.1089/vbz.2010.0158.
________________________________________
Online Ahead of Print: March 11, 2011
________________________________________
Full Text: • HTML • PDF for printing (188.7 KB) • PDF w/ links (143 KB)


Meagan F. Vaughn and
Steven R. Meshnick
Department of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina.
Address correspondence to:
Meagan F. Vaughn
Department of Epidemiology
Gillings School of Global Public Health
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
CB #7435
Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7435
E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract
Introduction: Tick-borne diseases such as Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and ehrlichiosis are a significant concern for many thousands of workers who have frequent and unavoidable exposure to tick-infested habitats. Many North Carolina state employees with outdoor occupations report multiple tick bites each year, indicating that existing tick preventive strategies may be underutilized or ineffective. Treatment of clothing with permethrin, a nontoxic chemical with insecticidal, knockdown, and repellent properties, is highly effective against ticks. However, most permethrin products must be reapplied after several washings to maintain insecticidal activity. Recently, a factory-based method for long-lasting permethrin impregnation of clothing has been developed by Insect Shield, Inc., that allows clothing to retain insecticidal activity for over 70 washes.

Methods: A nonrandomized open label pilot study was conducted to determine the effectiveness of Insect Shield–treated clothing for the prevention of tick bites among 16 outdoor workers from the North Carolina Division of Water Quality under actual field conditions. Participants completed questionnaires at the start of follow-up (March, 2008) and at the end of follow-up (September, 2008), and tick bites and outdoor work hours were reported on weekly tick bite logs for the entire follow-up period.

Results: Subjects wearing Insect Shield–treated clothing had a 93% reduction (p < 0.0001) in the total incidence of tick bites compared to subjects using standard tick bite prevention measures.

Conclusion: This study provides preliminary evidence that long-lasting permethrin-impregnated clothing may be highly effective against tick bites.