On Fri, 12 Jun 2009 20:57:12 GMT, "Compostman"
wrote:


"Mike" wrote in message
...
DEET is a horrible chemical, I'd rather have the ticks than that
crap. Don't use it on a kid, and if you do insist, put it on your
clothes, and not your skin.

Check yourself when you come in. I've had rocky mountain spotted
fever, and as long as you treat it within 2 weeks with antibiotics the
fatality rate is 3%. If untreated, it's more like 30%.

The poster that said half the ticks carry bacteria is wrong. It's 1%,
actually, and North Carolina is the top state for it (that's where I
live). I get bitten by at least 1 tick a year (and have since I was
old enough to play in the woods), and the first/only time I've gotten
sick was when I was 30.

If you get bitten by a tick, or if you have flu-like symptoms during
tick season, go to your doctor, and they can do a blood test. If they
know what they are doing, they will start you on antibiotics right
away, and cancel it if the test comes back negative. A rash is common
if you get infected, but you can get sick and not have a rash.

Educate yourself, and don't make the kid paranoid about something so
rare, there are better things to give him a complex about.

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/diseases/s...s/sub_lyme.htm

So is DEET so "horrible" that it's better to get rocky mountain spotted
fever or any other deadly disease carried by ticks and mosquitoes?

Here's what Wikipedia has to say about the health effects of DEET:
"As a precaution, manufacturers advise that DEET products should not be used
under clothing or on damaged skin, and that preparations be washed off after
they are no longer needed or between applications.[8] DEET can act as an
irritant;[1] in rare cases, it may cause skin reactions.

In the DEET Reregistration Eligibility Decision (RED), the United States
Environmental Protection Agency? (EPA) reported 14 to 46 cases of potential
DEET-associated seizures, including 4 deaths. The EPA states: "... it does
appear that some cases are likely related to DEET toxicity," but observed
that with 30% of the US population using DEET, the likely seizure rate is
only about one per 100 million users.

The Pesticide Information Project of Cooperative Extension Offices of
Cornell University states that "Everglades National Park employees having
extensive Deet exposure were more likely to have insomnia, mood disturbances
and impaired cognitive function than were lesser exposed co-workers".

The American Academy of Pediatrics found no difference in safety for
children, between products containing 10% and 30% DEET, when used as
directed, but recommends that DEET not be used on infants less than two
months old."

Using your statistics, 1 in 100 ticks carry carry the rocky mountain spotted
fever bacteria. And if bitten I have a 3% chance of dying if treated, 30 %
of not treated, plus there's Lyme disease, West Nile virus, malaria, yellow
fever and many other tick and mosquito-borne diseases to be concerned about.
I think I'd chose the 1 in 100 million chance of having a seizure if I use
DEET than what appears to be a much higher chance of dying from not using
it, when I know I'm going to be exposed to lots of ticks and mosquitoes.



I use DEET everyday when temperatures are above 80. It really helps
reduce the number of chiggers and ticks. I tried dusting sulphur on
my clothes--that works too but you got to wash those clothes
separately.