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Why Do Some People Seem To Attract More Mosquitos?

First Posted: 07/21/11 09:40 AM ET Updated: 09/20/11 06:12 AM ET

Mosquito Bites

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You know those questions no one ever seems to know the answer to? Like, how do you get rid of hiccups? What exactly is deja vu? Is chewing gum indigestible? Our brand new original video series, ...
You know those questions no one ever seems to know the answer to? Like, how do you get rid of hiccups? What exactly is deja vu? Is chewing gum indigestible? Our brand new original video series, ...
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Tom Rowland
I thought I was wrong once...but I was mistaken.
02:35 PM on 09/01/2011
l live in a state that allows medical marijuana, and am allowed to use it myself for digestive problems. l've gone through spells where l get hiccups for days or weeks--not constant, but at least 50% of my waking hours. l've discovered that smoking marijuana alleviates hiccups--almost immediately, every single time. Can you tell me why this is the case, and if it would work so well for everyone? Every once in a while l hear a story about some poor person who has been had the hiccups for for a year or 5, and it just makes me want to try to get in touch with them and say "smoke a little pot! Try it!"
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cheo
better a bleeding heart than none at all
12:35 AM on 07/28/2011
Swell answer. Helped a lot.

My experience is that the more Brewer's Yeast which is in my diet (B vitamins) the more the mosquitoes leave me alone. When I was pregnant they didn't bite me at all; they would just swarm around annoyingly but not land on me. I think it was all the vitamins. I was also eating a lot of garlic, which also is exuded by the skin.

We moved to a wetter, milder place in NW for a while. No more freezing winters to kill off weeds and fleas. I never had flea problems with my dogs. When we moved here they started picking them up from the plants near the fences and from the dog park. I started putting Brewer's yeast in each of the two meals they get a day...and for four years now--no more fleas.

It's water soluble and and the smell comes out through skin.
01:34 AM on 07/23/2011
Another award winning article from HP/AOL. As usual, we now have to go elsewhere to get the real story.
07:57 PM on 07/22/2011
Well, all I know is this fact. The blood sucking mwsquito's are 100% female, thats FACT! Female in every species, (esp human) are vicious! They tend to suck the life out of man. Ask any married Man! LOL
07:36 PM on 07/22/2011
HUFFPOST AOLNEWS. I can see why AOL continues to lose customers.
Your new news reporting department (Huffington) is less than awful. Articles lead the reader to believe they will actually read something of interest based on the headline. Your News department has gotten worse, not better. Your sports section has gotten worse, not better. I am very disappointed. I expected more and better, not less and poorer.
06:26 PM on 07/22/2011
Unfortunately I forgot the name of the article, but research was done recently (last year) to test this out. They found that aside from carbon dioxide, mosquitos are attracted to the microbiota present on a person's skin. When they coated a rubber arm with the bacteria normally present on our skin, mosquitos were attracted to that rubber arm and not to the one that wasn't coated. This suggests that aside from carbon dioxide, skin microbiota also plays a role...just depends on the proportions of some bacteria and the scents they produce.
06:24 PM on 07/22/2011
As my mom told me "you're sweet" Mosquitos seem to bite people that eat a lot of sugar. The sweat it sweet and it attracts them. Keep in mind that alcohol has sugar too.
06:12 PM on 07/22/2011
I'm more interested in why mosquitos tend to go for my ankles. They do hit other areas, but my ankles get the brunt ot their attacks. Even socks don't seem to stop them.
HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Chuck Pope
05:40 PM on 07/22/2011
That was a useless video.
05:37 PM on 07/22/2011
PROBABLY BECAUSE THEY DON'T TAKE BATHS!!
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HUFFPOST SUPER USER
Tom Rowland
I thought I was wrong once...but I was mistaken.
02:41 PM on 09/01/2011
actually (living in a very mosquito-y area, and having to deal with them as part of my job--l consider myself a bit of an expert on this...mosquitos go for people who are freshly showered more than they hit people who haven't showered for a day or two...l've been told that its b/c of perfumes in soaps, etc...l don't know the why, all l know is the fact that showering before heading out into the woods, and using perfumed soaps, makes you more prone to attract mosquitos. Also, wearing dark colored clothing attracts them.
04:57 PM on 07/22/2011
Want to try a fantastic product, A natural insect repellent safe for you, safe for children, safe for pets, it really works and smells great too.Take a few seconds and go to www.gnatarmor.com.
04:38 PM on 07/22/2011
I've been noticing the same thing on many of the media broadcasts. Thet spend more time baiting you for a story than actually telling it, and when they finally do tell you it's some half assed answer.
04:37 PM on 07/22/2011
The chemicals are, THC, LSD, Meth, Cocaine, and Alcohol. Lol
04:34 PM on 07/22/2011
That was the most stupid answer I have heard about why mosquitos bite humans.
04:30 PM on 07/22/2011
At some point we'll all lunch.
Things will live within us all
during our lifespan. Others
live from us. Get over it.