Forums > Social Chat > Mozzies

AnonymousPLATINUM Member

Posted: 19th Jun 2001
I would advise, that since club swinging originated in India, you should attempt to see some traditional club swinging while there RE mozzies - in Australia and Indonesia we have Bushman's which works well. we also have Rid tropical strength, which is my personal favourite.All of these repellants are not to be used on a daily basis ie you will not be able to use them all day every day - you will get sick if you do.You seem to understand the risks involved with Maleria, all I can say is that the travel doctors I've spoken to have said that there are some places in the world where you really shouldnt go unless you have the proper medication. I'm not sure about the side effects you are talking about - but perhaps you could seek a second opinion re the medication? In australia I think there are two treatments, either a pill which you have to take daily, or an injection.very light cotton long sleeved shirts are *supposedly* enough to keep the mozzies at bay - I've found that they work as long as you are moving and the shirt is baggy. If you stop the mozzies can get you through the fabric (I'm not kidding - I've seen the little buggars do some amazing things!)Thailand would be a very good place to pick up some no-nonsense cheap cotton shirts, and i'm guessing you will also find some good mozzie repelent there. Ask at a tourist office etc etc.ALWAYS get the strongest variety if you are going into a maleria ridden area.um - I hope this helps.have you done a web search? it wouldnt surprise me if there were some dietary factors at play when mozzies choose who to feed from...perhaps you might be able to make a dietary change which will greately reduce the mozzies affection for you Josh

Posted: 19th Jun 2001
i've heard that eating lots of garlic repels ticks and possibly mosquitoes...the scent is excreted through pores, and you smell more like garlic than flesh to the bloodsuckers, and they don't find it very pleasant...but to avoid the side effects of massive amounts of garlic, i suggest breath mints...;-)

this fire and i dance among the stars

Posted: 19th Jun 2001
I had a good talk with the Doc here. The medication currently available in Japan for Malaria sucks, and has very bad side effects, stomach illness, sever paranoia, and that other means of prevention might be a good idea.I've already had shots for Japanese encephalitus just in case, there are no shots against Dengue available and so Malaria is my prime worry.I will be in the North of India (primarily the Dharmasala/Shimla area)for 2 weeks which is why I am worried about Malaria, and would actually prefer to bring anti-malaria just to be safe.There are dietary factors that affect how much mozquito's want you. I'm guessing hot & spicy food is their preference and I would find it very hard to change my diet in that respect if I go to India.I'll do an internet search and let you all know if I find anything useful.Streaking Wombat - I think you are thinking of vampire's! I already eat a ton of garlic and perhaps that's what attracting them to me.Luckily all my friends are garlic fiends too, so I am not driving friends away at the same time!Thanks for the adviceKat ------------------"London is a city coming down from its trip and there's going to be a lot of refugees" - Danny,Withnail & I[This message has been edited by Kat (edited 20 June 2001).]

Come faeries, take me out of this dull world, for I would ride with you upon the wind and dance upon the mountains like a flame.

- W B Yeats

Posted: 20th Jun 2001
i must be behind the times... whats a mozzie?

Wow

AnonymousPLATINUM Member

Posted: 20th Jun 2001
LOL thats the funniest thing I've heard on this board Mosquito? i think thats how it's spelt. I thought the whole world shortened Mosquito to mossie or mozzie or Mozzy or something similar...they buzz around at night, and annoy you. sometimes they bite you (to suck your blood) and leave an annoying itchy welt. In some countries they carry nasty diseases.Josh

Posted: 20th Jun 2001
Kat, u are right, I think the product you mean is LARIAM (mefloquine) a very very strong one which my cousin took to go to india too and DO NOT TAKE it indeed cause the side effects are really really bad. Especially if combined with one drop of alcohol. My cousin got "stuck" with bad disorders and hallucinations for over 24 hours and we really thought she would not come back to normal (which in ultimate situations can happen !!!)... But all anti-malaria products are "aggressive" for the body. Oldest one is Quinine, the one I know and heard good things of is Nivaquine (chloroquine). In any case you cannot really escape the risk of dangerous side effects. NB: these treatments are usually buoth IV and / or tablets. The name between braquets is the molecule's name so that your doctors can identify it since the product's name change from one country to an other. I don't mean to scare you, just warning you !I met people who went to india with no treatments of any sorts, some have even given birth to a child the traditional way over there ... nothing hppened. But you should be careful in my opinion. Malaria is real bad shit !!!!Allthough it may sound weird however, Thailand, I mean bangkok has some good american hospital, even better than most french ones... so do not worry about that.I went to Thailand without any treatment of this sort, I also spent some time on the islands and all. I received "kisses" from all mozzies there, but nothing happened excepted the itching. I would not worry too much about Thailand if I were u, but that is a personal advice and I am not a doctor. India worries me more.Take good care of yourself and enjoy cause Thailand is heaven and dharamsala is a wonderful place where u can take lessons of all sorts of things : meditation (vipasana) cooking, music, massage etc... ENJOYshine onCassandra

"I want brown bread... no, that is diesel oil..."
"So I was raised in Europe, where History comes from ..."
"NON !!! La Plume de mon oncle n est pas Bingibangibungi !!!"

Posted: 20th Jun 2001
mosquitos find you by following the carbon dioxide that you breathe out. so really the only way to avoid attracting them is to stop breathing...what you eat has nothing to really do with it (unless you end up panting a lot after eating wings of fire or something).Repellant with large proportion of deet or pyrethrins (?) is most effective...but you will sweat it off after a while and have to re-apply, i think the best thing is to wear protective clothing, really...maybe we should have an australianism thread because i know someone in the other section is going to ask "what a milo can?" Pere (the wandering birdo)[This message has been edited by Peregrine (edited 21 June 2001).][This message has been edited by Peregrine (edited 21 June 2001).]

Posted: 21st Jun 2001
Citronella oil's good for keeping mozzies at bay. I've even used it to spin with! (ie lamp fuel with some citronella oil in it) Keeping bromeliads means heaps of mozzies so we have some torches permanently set up out the back with citronella oil in them, I reckon it does the job.And if you don't know what a milo can is, mate, all I can say is, you're missing out

Posted: 20th Jun 2001
Cassandra - Lariam is all that seems to be available over here and I truly don't want to take it but I might bring it with me 'just in case'. You can take it if you have Malaria symtom's coming on (between 8 - 24 day's usually).In the next few years it is expected mozzies will have developed a resistence to Lariam.Aprrantly the malaria carrying mosquito's are developing a resistance to chloroquine.A combination of chloroquine (twice weekly) nd proguanil (twice daily) still remains an effective regimen for those who want to avoid the side effects of lariam or need to travel to a malaria-risk area more quickly.I think Josh was referring to Doxycycline, which is an oral antibiotic.It causes sensitivity to sunlight however.The main advice given is to spray yourself with that a repellent containing DEET, which is however toxic to humans and unsuitable for children. For the sake of 1 month, I would rather risk the toxic effects than catching Malaria.Other advice given is tha Malaria carrying mosquito's mainly surface around dusk. Mosquitoes are attracted to dark colors so choose light-colored clothing when you're heading outdoors. Wear long sleeved shirts, long trousers and socks. Lightly spray clothing with a repellent.Two useful sources of info. for me werehttps://www.mosquitoes.com/andhttps://www.bootsnall.com/cgi-bin/gt/oddsnends/malaria2.shtml,user=ffffffffffffThanks for all the repliesKat ------------------"London is a city coming down from its trip and there's going to be a lot of refugees" - Danny,Withnail & I

Come faeries, take me out of this dull world, for I would ride with you upon the wind and dance upon the mountains like a flame.

- W B Yeats