![]() Perry recommends consulting with your doctor or a pharmacist to ensure that these products are not a risk for allergic reactions. For example, an allergy to eucalyptus is a red flag to avoid natural tick repellents with this ingredient. For example, if you’re in the Northeast and you will be outdoors in grassy areas for long periods of time, you should probably avoid using natural tick repellent.Īnother reason to avoid natural tick repellents is allergies, says Dr. When used in an extended-release fashion, she says this can provide about 12 hours of protection.Īll that said, people who are at high risk for contracting tick-borne illness should likely avoid natural tick repellents, Dr. The higher the concentrations of DEET, the longer the protection. On the other hand, synthetic repellents, like DEET, offer longer lasting protection. “Choosing a natural tick repellent over a synthetic one can be done if you are in an area with a low tick infestation,” Dr. They have been shown to have a short duration of effectiveness-approximately less than two hours. ![]() Natural repellents are less studied, says Chantel Strachan, MD, an internal medicine and primary care physician at Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York. Natural tick repellents are mostly compounds that are found in plants that seem to naturally repel ticks and insects, according to Ken Perry, MD, an emergency medicine attending physician in South Carolina. Many of these ingredients are not found in natural products. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends using Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-registered insect repellents containing DEET, picaridin, IR3535, Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus (OLE), para-menthane-diol (PMD), or 2-undecanone. Most conventional tick repellents contain active ingredients like DEET, picaridin, and permethrin, which work well, but some natural remedies for warding off these pesky parasites can also work. Ī critical component of a tick prevention plan is repelling ticks before they have a chance to attach. After all, prevention is one of the best ways to protect yourself from serious tick-borne diseases like Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, ehrlichiosis, and alpha-gal syndrome, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Tick season is here, and that means it’s time to break out the tick repellent, cut down high grass, clear brushy areas, and become an expert at examining your skin for critters after being outdoors.
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