Using Bug Repellent Helps Protect Against Viruses Like Zika

I’m an outside kind of guy.  Growing up, my parents used to have to go out hunting for me to get me home.  I would just get so wrapped up in exploring the woods behind our house that I would lose track of time.  On more than one occasion they had to come get me and bring me in, covered in bug bites and fresh poison ivy spots.

Selecting the Right Bug Repellent Matters

Today, although I’m a grown man, I still love being outside.  Fortunately, I have developed a little bit more common sense as the years passed, and today before I head out I make sure I am prepared.  Being prepared includes making sure that I’ve got the right bug repellent to keep the critters away.

Bug repellents are not interchangeable; that is to say, you cannot just grab a can and expect that it will work just as well as any other.  You need to make sure that there are certain levels of compounds in it, especially now with the emergence of mosquito-borne viruses like Zika.

Zika, as you may have heard, can be transmitted by a mosquito bite.  So, if John down the way has Zika, and he’s out fishing and gets bit, that mosquito now has the Zika virus in it.  A few days later, if you’re out working on your tree stand and that same mosquito bites you, guess what?  Congratulations, you may now have Zika!

If it sounds scary, that’s because it is.  And you can bet that as time goes by there will be more and more of these things that can be transmitted by a mosquito.

Protect Yourself from Illness

All this is why it’s more important than ever that you use the right bug repellent.  If a mosquito can’t find you, or isn’t attracted to you, she won’t bite you and spread whatever disease she may be carrying (only female mosquitoes bite, by the way).

Take some time and look through the bug repellent options that we carry.  Make sure you get the one that matches your activity level, and help protect yourself from illness.