With the start of the rainy season in Belize, the bugs have come out; the whole army of biting bugs include mosquitoes, botless flies, sandflies and noseeums.  It can drive you crazy especially when they get aggressive and start buzzing around you.  Here are a few tips to keep the bugs at bay:

1. Wear long sleeves and trousers and socks when you can.  Bugs favour the elbows, ankles, face and neck area and reducing the amount of exposed areas, makes less skin area available for biting.
2. light a lamp or candle 10 feet away from the area that you plan to be using; this will draw any biting insects away from you and actually incinerate them.  Make sure that the flame is away from pets, children and causes of mischief.
3. Bathe regularly and only wear clean clothes after bathing.  Biting insects are attracted to body odours and sweat that accumulate without bathing.  As a general guideline, the bedroom would benefit from becoming a zone that can only be entered after bathing first to reduce biting insects at night.
4. Don’t leave anything that can gather standing water near your dwelling.  Favourite spots are plant pots, containers and old tyres.
5. Try and live in a raised dwelling otherwise you need an open fire all the time in the tropics.
6. After all the above factors are taken into account, it is appropriate to consider using an insect repellent.   Incidentally, …wink….wink..nudge…nudge…this Brand works very well.

Check out The Apothecary for more information.