Are Insect Repellents Toxic to the Body?
The days are getting longer, the land is brighter, and the weather is inviting us to stay outside. There is no doubt summer is just around the corner. There is just one downside to the camping, BBQ's, and ball games that fill our summer nights, and that is the mosquito bite.
Not only are mosquito bites sometimes unbearable, they often carry vicious disease and viruses that can be deadly. Nothing puts a damper in summer like malaria and dengue.
However, what if the more serious danger is not the disease the mosquito brings, but rather the products we use to keep them away?
Most insect repellents on the market are loaded with toxic chemicals, including DEET, which is so poisonous that even the Environmental Protection Agency says you should wash it off your skin when you return indoors, avoid breathing it in and not spray it directly on your face.
Dangers of DEET and Chemical Insect Repellents:
- The chemical DEET can melt plastic or fishing line.
- A pharmacologist at Duke University discovered that prolonged exposure to DEET may impair cell function in parts of your brain. This was demonstrated in the lab by death and behavioral changes in rats with frequent or prolonged DEET use.
- Scientists Vincent Corbel and Bruno Lapied headed a team of researchers from the University of Angersrchers studying the toxicity of DEET. Corbel says: "We've found that DEET is not simply a behavior-modifying chemical but also inhibits the activity of a key central nervous system enzyme, acetycholinesterase, in both insects and mammals."
- Permethrin is another harmful chemical found in many bug sprays. This chemical is a neurotoxin, meaning it can kill brain cells.
- Permethrin is also extremely toxic to bees, cats, and all aquatic life. Not only is it hurting the body, it is also damaging the environment.
- The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has categorized this Permethrin as carcinogenic, capable of causing lung tumors, liver tumors, immune system problems, and chromosomal abnormalities.
If these sprays can kill mosquitoes and melt plastic, it is probably not a good idea to use on your skin. When we use these repellents, the toxic chemicals that are inside them get directly absorbed into our blood through the skin and may be doing more damage to the body than we ever imagined.
Long Term Affects of Chemically Based Bug Sprays
Many people do not make the connection between chemically based bug spray and pesticides. However, bug sprays that prevent pests such as mosquitoes through harsh chemicals are indeed pesticides. In the same way you wouldn’t put weed killer on your arm you might think twice about putting certain pesticides on your skin.
As pesticide use has become a common practice, scientists are now studying the long term side effects these chemicals have on the human body. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), more than 4.5 billion pounds of chemical pesticides are used every year on crops, around the home, around and in ponds, on humans and pets. Studies are now showing that exposure to insect repellents and other pesticides indicates a higher risk of cancers, typically of the blood, brain, lymph system, soft tissues, stomach, prostate and breast. In children, exposure to insect repellents also indicates an increased risk of various forms of cancer, as well as weakening of the immune system.
Intermediate exposure has been linked to Neurotoxicity (nerve system damage) while long term exposure has not only been linked to cancer, but also disruption of the endocrine system. This means that pregnant woman and children should limit or avoid their exposure to pesticides as studies are linking them with birth defects as well as growth and development issues.
A Natural Solution
As more and more people are becoming aware of the dangers of pesticides and repellents, natural alternatives are becoming increasingly popular. These not only protect you from mosquitoes, they also prevent bacteria, relieve itching, eliminate irritated skin, and even enhance your skin texture.
The great news is we do not have to choose between dreadful bites and toxic chemicals, with Osana and natural based products you are both protected and nourished so your mind and body can be at ease.
Resources
- http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9498903
- http://www.iisc.ernet.in/currsci/feb102001/341.pdf
- http://static.ewg.org/reports/2013/bug_repellents/2013_EWGs_Guide_to_Bug_Repellents.pdf
- http://www.naturalnews.com/026982_DEET_insect_repellent_insect_repellents.html
- http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/09/25/mosquito-spray.aspx
- http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2013/07/22/insect-bite-treatment.aspx
What is Dengue & How to Prevent It
When my husband and I moved down to Costa Rica last September, it was a mere two weeks before my husband joined the stats of the millions across the globe that have been infected with what is Dengue virus, a mosquito born illness. When we sought help, we soon found that the virus was hardly an unusual occurrence. Literally everyone we spoke with had either experienced the virus firsthand (some up to three times) or had a loved one that had been infected.
In 2013, Costa Rica had a record of 50,000 reported cases of Dengue, but the problem is bigger than just Costa Rica; the problem is global. According to the Center for Disease Control, half the world’s population is at risk for the disease and up to 100 million people are infected yearly. The dengue virus is a leading cause of illness and death among children in the 33% of the world that makes up tropics and subtropics.
The prevalence of dengue in Costa Rica and in the world as a whole is apparent in the map above, the red dots represent the presence of dengue on both local and national levels.
What is Dengue? It is a virus that is carried only by mosquitos and a human can only become infected after being bit by an infected mosquito. The symptoms of the virus typically last for just over a week, and many describe it as the worst eight days of their lives. Dengue victims often have a low white blood cell count and experience several if not all of the following symptoms:
- High fever
- Severe headaches
- Severe eye pain (behind the eyes)
- Severe joint/bone and/or muscle pain
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Severe skin rash
- Mild bleeding (such as nose or gums or easy bruising)
Unfortunately these symptoms sometimes progress into dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF). Those infected with this rare complication of Dengue, vomit or pass blood and will experience all of the above symptoms in addition to extreme abdominal pain due to an enlargement of the liver. DHF can result in shock, massive bleeding, and even death.
There is currently no treatment and no cure. The only effective approach is prevention; which simply comes down to avoiding mosquito bites. In the tropics, this is easier said than done, but any tools to assist in this process can help save lives. Here are two of the easiest and best ways to prevent Dengue.
- Remove Standing Water - Be sure that there is no standing water for mosquitos to breed in. Empty vases as often as every 3 days. (It takes 7 days for a mosquito to hatch).
- Repellant - Repellant is extremely important. You can use any form of repellant such as a spray, lotion, or even soap like Osana.
Dengue is a real problem, but unlike some things, it is preventable. Simple products such as repellant can help reduce the occurrence of dengue, and can even save a life.
References:
(1) http://www.ticotimes.net/2013/09/27/costa-rica-dengue-epidemic-sets-all-time-record-for-calendar-year-2
(2) http://www.cdc.gov/Dengue/faqFacts/index.html
Project c.u.r.e partners with Osana
Osana is blessed and excited to announce a partnership with Project C.U.R.E! Read more about them below and get involved with their kit for kids, a simple, powerful package, filled with personal hygiene and basic “medicine cabinet” items that are often scarce in the developing world.
Kits for Kids: Project c.u.r.e
It's as easy as 1, 2, 3, 4, 5!
Osana helps with malaria prevention in Haiti
Osana Bar is very excited to be officially in Haiti with 500 bars of soap received to a community this past weekend. We partnered with the amazing organization Hut Outreach out of Toledo,Ohio for malaria prevention. Hut Outreach does multiple trips to Haiti every year. This past team took 500 bars of soap down to the community to educated them on the importance of sanitation and malaria prevention. Hut Outreach's main goal is to empower people on the basic needs including water, food, housing, education and medical care. We at Osana are very excited to be actively involved in this community as we have an opportunity to invest long term in Haiti!
Learn more about Hut Outreach by visiting their website hutoutreach.cfsites.org and get glimpse of what Hut it doing literally today in Haiti!
West Nile Virus Rapidly Spreading in Colorado
West Nile Virus, an infection most commonly spread to humans by mosquitoes, is spreading in Colorado with 9 new cases reported in Larimer County between August 2 9th. Most people do not show symptoms of infection with only about 1% experiencing severe symptoms. However, of the 12 cases reported, 4 are severe neuroinvasive cases that have led to meningitis, encephalitis, and paralysis. While symptoms can appear within a week, effective interventions are prevented by late diagnosis with infection often not reported until 3-4 weeks after the bite occurs. The best way to prevent West Nile Virus is wearing protective clothing and using insect repellant.
The Best Mosquito Repellent
The best mosquito repellent is simply no repellent at all. One of our commitments at Osana Bar Anti Mosquito soap is to help create and promote products that don't introduce harmful chemicals to your body which are quickly absorbed in your skin. Now that summer is fully here mosquitos are out in full force, being able to simply shower once a day and use Osana Bar as your soap is extremely effect as it is a preventative measure long before you ever encounter a mosquito. The best part is that it's natural and you don't have to prepare or think about if you might be crossing a path outdoors where your friendly critters are waiting for you.
People have asked us quite a bit if there is anything else you have to do so we wanted to write this quick post explaining that it's that simple. Take your normal showers or baths and simply just use Osana natural soap and that's it.
Even more exciting is that while you are preventing annoyances and irritations for yourself you're actually doing a lot of good overseas where these same mosquitos are actually killing people. So you get to have a more enjoyable summer while helping lives overseas at the same time.
What Attracts mosquitoes to humans? How can you fight the bite?
Ever wonder what attracts mosquitoes to humans? I was thinking about this the other day and came across a great article from Web MD, which is summarized below. The next time you go out for a picnic keep these fun filled facts in the back of your mind and you might be able to avoid being the main course.
Males mosquitoes don't bite people, but the females need human blood to develop fertile eggs. The female mosquitoes are attracted by smell up to 50 meters.
You might be thinking, “I shower, I brush my teeth and wash my clothes, I don’t get why they like me so much”. Well it’s really three things mosquitoes are lured to your body produces naturally:
- High concentration of cholesterol on the skin surface. People simply may be more efficient at processing cholesterol, the byproduct of which remains on the skin’s surface.
- Certain acids such as uric acid or lactic acid. Mosquitoes can smell that through the sweat glands.
- Carbon Dioxide. Larger people tend to give off more carbon dioxide, which is why mosquitoes typically prefer biting adults rather than small children.
So at the next picnic instead of playing soccer or volleyball you might want to lounge around on the sidelines. All the moving from these activities will produce Carbon Dioxide from your increase breathing, and the lactic acid from the tearing of your muscles and will be smelt through your sweat glands. This will produces an intoxicating formula, luring mosquitoes to take a chomp out of you!
http://www.webmd.com/allergies/features/are-you-mosquito-magnet
Osana Bar’s natural based formula blocks the smells that attract mosquitoes by creating a fragrance shield on your skin with smells that actually repel female mosquitoes.
Osana Bar really works! Quick quotes from some of our testimonials!
Here at Osana Bar we are stoked when people get their hands on the product try and out and discover truly how well the soap works. We have used it ourselves obviously but there are many others including family who have had the chance to use the soap and have come back with amazing feedback. Here are a few quotes from just a few Osana customers who found the soap to work well for them.
"I startyed using mine about to wks befor I left for Africa and I didnot get bitten once. Thanks" - Janis Williamson while traveling in Malawi
"I was out and noticed other walkers/runners batting at the mosquitoes... using the soap that morning I didn't expect it to last over 12 hours later" - Janet Basile in Orlando, FL
"I used the Osana soap every night, and used no bug spray during my time in India... After 6 days of being in a malaria-mosquito infested region, I had my first bite, while my other nine teammates where covered in bites. (They were all using bug spray.)" - Tiffany Deines while traveling in India
"While my friends golf round seemed to be interrupted by the nagging bugs I fortunately did not experience a single bite." - Kevin Tscholl (brother of partner David Tscholl & tough critic) while golfing in Pennsylvania
Improve your golf game by repelling mosquitos
Ever wonder ways to Improve your golf game? By now you have probably made it out on the course this spring a few times. If you are lucky you live in a place that taking a break from your golf game is not even a necessity. Whatever the case and seasonal effect weather may have on your game there is a chance that while on the course you have been affected by bugs in someway. There is now a way to pleasantly remove one of the distracting and more annoying pest that can impact your game. Although it won't improve your game so much that you would be able to land a spot on the PGA tour, using Osana mosquito repellant soap gives0 you a chance to soak in the greens without the annoyance of these little critters using you as their snack tray. You won't have to remember to bring your bug spray with it's intruding smells and sticky feeling on your skin. By just showering and with Osana you will not only find yourself feeling fresh and clean but have the added benefit of pesky mosquitos not messing up the game winning put or ever important chip. Next time you're planning on hitting the greens be sure to make sure you have been using Osana. Oh yeah, don't forget that just by purchasing any Osana package you are helping kids and families all over the world have a chance to lower and possibly eliminate the risks associated with malaria. Interested in learning more? Read more about the problem.
Preparing for Camping Season with New Mosquito Repellant Soap
It's almost time to start prepping your camping gear for this upcoming Spring/Summer camping season! It still might be a little early but for some of us the excitement certainly starts early as we are looking forward to getting out and about on the hiking trails, planning out the next 4x4 trip or backpacking trip in the Colorado high country. No matter where you are or where you are planning on doing your camping chances are that part of that preparation will consist of getting the mosquito repellent options together.
Growing up my family and I used a lot of OFF! and Jungle Juice was the preferred choice on boy scout or youth group backpacking trips. Although some of the options work, albeit sometimes better than others, there are other options now one of which is of course Osana Anti Mosquito Soap. While most of the existing methods are a apply as you go or face the problem Osana gives you the chance to do a little preparation both while you are on the trip but also before you ever leave your home. It has been found that if you shower using the anti mosquito soap for three days or longer before you are out and about on your next trip that the mosquito repelling action works even better than if you get to your location and start using it. Of course this means that if you are deep in the high country or somewhere without showers or running water you may also have to include the adventure of jumping in the nearest river to soap yourself down, which would of course be completely environmentally safe as all of the ingredients in the Osana Anti Mosquito soap is 100% natural. As you prepare for this seasons trips order one of our Osana Mosquito Repellent soap packages and be sure to throw a bar or two of Osana into your pack and enjoy a mosquito free trip.
Osana Donates First Round of Anti Mosquito Soap to Kujali International
We are excited to announce the we have passed our first shipment of donation bars to Kujali International. Kujali International is a charity with a mission to equip orphaned & vulnerable youth with the tools, resources, and opportunities to overcome poverty and become agents of change in their community. After speaking with workers and hearing the direct impact that Malaria has on both the children and the workers Osana was excited to be able to become a part of their story. By donating 100 bars of Osana anti mosquito soap hopefully a small impact can be made to ease and eventually solve the health issues that arise due to Malaria passed via infected mosquitos.
Part of the Osana team had the chance to meet up with Sydney Schaef who co-founded Kujali International in 2006 while still an undergraduate student. Having returned from a term of study at the University of Dar-es-Salaam inspired by the vision of a local orphanage where she had volunteered for several months. Out of that inspiration Kujali was born, and has continued to evolve over the last seven years in its efforts to provide life-changing educational opportunities to disadvantaged youth in East Africa.
Just one of the many things things that stood out about Kuljali International to the Osana team is that they follow students and actually help them after school to help get funding and support to go to college. This allows these kids students to be the change in their family and not get stuck in the same cycle.
To learn more about Kujali International and learn ways that you can get involved and help please visit their website www.kujali.org.
How Long Does a Mosquito Live?
Isn't it amazing (and scary) how many problems such a small insect like the mosquito can cause, and with such a short life span!? How long does a mosquito live, really?
According to Wikipedia, a mosquito can live anywhere from one to two weeks depending on the gender of the mosquito in question. Males typically live for only a week. Some females have been known to live for around a month when in captivity, however when in their natural environments they can survive for up to two weeks.
The Mosquito Lifecycle
A mosquito life cycle is fairly simple. Eggs are laid in water by a mature mosquito and eventually move into the larva stage where it molts several times. To learn more about molting you can read this article on the insect molting process, it is essentially the process in which the mosquito sheds its exoskeleton multiple times. Most species come to the surface of the water to breath air. Next the larva then enters into the pupa stage just prior to becoming an adult. During the pupa stage the mosquito does not feed. The last and final stage is when the mosquito turns into a fully developed adult. The mosquito emerges and as soon as its parts have hardened the mosquito takes to the sky for its short (and potentially deadly) life.
The entire lifecycle of a mosquito from egg to death can take as little as 4 days for some species while others are looking at closer to a month. The typical life cycle is sitting in the neighborhood of 10-14 days.
Mosquito Protection
Mosquito bites can be prevented by using our All-Natural Mosquito Repellent Soap.
Use this in combination with tea tree oil, or by making homemade mosquito traps!
Source and references:
http://www.epa.gov/pesticides/health/mosquitoes/mosquitojoint.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mosquito