Paleo Diet and Paleolithic Diet Questions & Answers

Question

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For some reason, my daughter and I are the mosquito's favorite food source. A few minutes spent outdoors in summer will yield upwards of 20 bites on our bodies...each. We've been eating paleo about a month and I'm wondering if our dietary change will affect this phenomenon. My husband, who has been insulin resistant for years (also now eating paleo) would NEVER get bitten. Any thoughts?

flag	asked May 22 2011 at 14:31 pamipoi 931●4●7

ImRotu · Answer 1 · 2011-05-22 20:18:50Z UTC

My boyfriend and I had gone on vacation 2 months ago to the Costa Rican jungle. As an experiment, because I remember reading this tidbit somewhere, I decided to use coconut oil as my repellant. It worked more than perfectly in preventing bites from all sorts of insects. I also made my bf do the same and he was amazed since he tends to be mosquitos' favorite food.

We would pause in the jungle and just stare at our bare arms and legs to see what bugs would do. They usually landed, paused and then flew off. Not a single bite for the whole trip.

David Rourke · Answer 2 · 2011-05-22 15:22:44Z UTC

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Mosquitoes seem a little less interested in me since paleo. That doesn't stop the occasional bite, unfortunately.

answered May 22 2011 at 15:22

David Rourke
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Thumper · Answer 3 · 2011-05-22 15:37:26Z UTC

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I was told (I honestly can't remember who) that mosquitoes bite everyone, it's just some of us who react to them. I'm not sure of the science behind this - but I can attest to it - I have seen mosquitos on my hubby and he never gets a bump, yet I look like I've got some sort of disease after a mosquito bites me.

To keep the pesky little bugs away - Oil of citronella works great - or even a citrus bodywash.

answered May 22 2011 at 15:37

Thumper
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Mosquitoes don't bite me. They may hover around me if no one more attractive to them is around, and in the rare occasions they land on me, they usually don't bite. I did get bitten a lot as a kid, so I remember what mosquito bites feel like, and how I reacted then, but there are some of us who don't appeal to them enough to even get bitten. – Rock_Paper_Shirley May 23 2011 at 1:25

Ambimorph · Answer 4 · 2011-05-22 19:02:08Z UTC

This WebMD site claims that susceptibility is mostly genetic. Other factors listed as increasing your attractiveness include:

high concentrations of steroids or cholesterol on the skin
people who produce excess amounts of certain acids, such as uric acid
people who emit large quantities of carbon dioxide
Movement and heat also attract mosquitoes

It's plausible that diets affect these things. On the other hand, evolutionarily speaking, it seems unlikely that mosquitoes evolved to find non-paleo people more attractive, even if they have had many more generations to change than we have. They've probably been around a very long time (that site estimates 170M years), and they depend on wild animals as well as us.

I empathize. I'm one of the type they love, and I also react more extremely than most people I know. At least one of my 3 sons seems to have inherited it.

Rock_Paper_Shirley · Answer 5 · 2011-05-22 15:10:49Z UTC

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Mosquitoes have had no interest in me in my whole adult life, regardless of what my diet has been.

answered May 22 2011 at 15:10

Rock_Paper_Shirley
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baconbitch · Answer 6 · 2011-05-22 15:42:05Z UTC

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We dab camphor or tea tree oil behind our ears, crooks of our knees and elbows. This seems to lessen the bites for us.

answered May 22 2011 at 15:42

baconbitch

oak0y · Answer 7 · 2011-05-22 16:11:04Z UTC

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try to eat them they are delicous sweet.

answered May 22 2011 at 16:11

oak0y

Mosquitos and paleo eating…

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