If you’re hiking in the woods, it shouldn’t come as a surprise to get bitten by a mosquito on the trail, but other times, it can seemingly feel like a mosquito bite just appears out of nowhere.
Mosquito bites are a nuisance, and the prospect of dealing with the redness, itching, and swelling that comes with getting bitten is one we’d all rather avoid. However, as uncomfortable as it can be to deal with a mosquito bite, finding relief can be simple.
While there’s no one “right” way to treat your mosquito bite, Dr. Courtney Cotter, DO, an allergy and immunology doctor at Nationwide Children’s Hospital, breaks down a few approaches to easing your discomfort.
Why do I get bitten by mosquitoes so much?
Mosquitoes are attracted to sweat, “which can be affected by our diet, our hygiene, [or] our genetics,” says Cotter. They’re also drawn to when we breathe out carbon dioxide. Mosquitoes can detect carbon dioxide “from quite a distance away,” and they’ll follow “whoever they’re going to bite, whether it’s a human or an animal,” Cotter says.
Mosquitoes are also attracted to dark colors. “If you’re wearing a lot of black or navy, they might be more drawn to you than say if you were wearing white or cream.” Body heat is similarly a magnet for mosquitoes, because they have “thermal receptors that allow them to sense heat from humans and other animals from a distance.”
Additionally, there is a growing body of evidence that considers blood type as a factor for how attractive you are to mosquitoes. One 2019 study determined type O blood was most favored by mosquitoes in relation to other blood types.
What to put on mosquito bites
What’s the best way to quell the redness, swelling, and relentless itching of your mosquito bite? It’ll be “pretty variable, depending on what works for you,” Cotter says, but usually, mosquito bites will resolve on their own, and you won’t need to do anything.
“But, if you’re really aggravated by the itching, there are a few things that you can do to help relieve that itch,” she says.
“The first would be to take medicines with active ingredients like cetirizine or fexofenadine,” Cotter recommends Both are non-sedating antihistamines that are effective at decreasing itching. Zyrtec (cetirizine) and Allegra (fexofenadine) and common over the counter brand names of these medications.
If your mosquito bite is large, red and inflamed, you can apply a cold compress 20 minutes on and 20 minutes off. In theory, this will “decrease some blood flow to it and stop the swelling,” she says. However, when you apply a cold compress to a mosquito bite, what’s really happening “is that you’re overriding your body’s sensation of itch.”
“Some patients have a really large reaction and they might benefit from a topical steroid,” she adds. Over the counter 1% hydrocortisone cream does the trick for most people, “but doctors can prescribe a little bit stronger hydrocortisone, or other stronger steroids, for patients that get larger local reactions,” she says.
What stops mosquitoes from biting you?
“Using insect repellents that contain active ingredients like DEET can be pretty helpful,” says Cotter. And “wearing lightweight long sleeve shirts, long pants, socks, [or] close-toed shoes” are measures that you can take to stop mosquitoes from coming in contact with your skin, she says.
Also, it’s important that you avoid peak mosquito hours (dawn and dusk), remove nearby standing water, and ensure the windows in your home are treated with screens.
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