A woman named Mary, who lives in Florida, has revealed that vanilla extract can be used as a DIY mosquito repellent. She declared on social media that she has bought every commercial product available, but none of them work like vanilla extract. She went on to explain that the perfect repellent is created by mixing pure vanilla extract with water, before adding a pinch of cinnamon for scent. “Mix it all together and spray it everywhere,” she said. So, does vanilla extract really repel mosquitoes? According to Daniel Markowski, Technical Advisor of the American Mosquito Control Association and Mike Bentley, an entomologist for the National Pest Management Association, yes and no. While vanilla has been shown to have some detectable repellency, the challenge with vanilla and other essential oils is that any repellent effect it has is short-lived. Mosquitoes have evolved over millions of years to sniff us out over other competing odors in the environment. In the long term, these compounds can’t compete against human body odors or the CO2 we breathe out, which are the host cues that hungry mosquitoes use to find their next meal. The experts say vanilla extract can only repel bugs like mosquitoes for about 30 minutes, if that. Both experts say commercial repellents are the only thing that works long-term. They do, however, caution against using any product with more than 30% DEET.
