We all want natural alternatives to harsh chemical repellents, but do any really work? Learn how to make your own repellent with essential oils scientifically shown to be as effective as DEET Zika virus and it’s purported link to microcephaly has become the latest in a long list of mosquito-borne illnesses that are causing people concern. Whether or not you believe in the link between Zika and birth defects, the fact that mosquitoes cause tremendous human suffering is undeniable. Mosquito-borne illnesses kill more than a million people annually. The little blood-suckers transmit maladies from malaria to West Nile virus, Chikungunya, and yellow fever—and even heartworm to our beloved canine companions. Government health authorities continue recommending DEET (N,N-diethyl-meta-toluamide), which does work in repelling mosquitoes. However, this potentially toxic chemical is not without its own risks, producing effects similar to deadly nerve gases and pesticides.[i] We want natural alternatives, but do any really work? Recent science says yes! A number of essential oils have proven effective for repelling mosquitoes, including the Aedes Aegypti variety—the most notable Zika transmission vector. It isn’t surprising that essential oils would be effective because, over the millennia, plants have needed to manufacture “insect repellants” to ensure their survival. Many of the individual chemical compounds in essential oils have insect repelling properties. Any one essential oil may containhundreds to thousands of compounds—terpenes, alcohols, esters, aldehydes, ketones, phenols, alcohols, esters, and the list goes one. Modern science is just beginning to sort out which plant-based extracts effectively deter each type of insect. Fortunately, there are a few essential oils that Aedes Aegypti mosquitoes find highly distasteful, and you can use this to your advantage. Litsea Oil Ranks #1 on Mosquitoes’ Most Unwanted List In an attempt to find safe and ecofriendly plant-based insect repellants, researchers tested 23 essential oils for their mosquito-repelling properties, specifically against Aedes Aegypti. Three essential oils outperformed the rest: litsea, geranium and rosewood oils. The results will be published in the September 2016 issue of Journal of Arthropod-Borne Diseases.[ii] Litsea oil ranked highest in making the little pests turn their proboscises and head for the hills. Litsea showed outstanding repellency at all three concentrations tested (1, 10 and 100 ppm), comparing favorably to DEET and DEPA (N,N-diethyl phenylacetamide). Litsea oil comes from the fruit of the Litsea cubeba tree, an evergreen native to Japan, southern China and southeast Asia. In this particular study, the top 10 mosquito-repelling essential oils were identified as the following, listed in order of highest effectiveness: 1. Litsea 2. Rosewood 3. Geranium 4. Lemongrass 5. Lemon scented 6. Camphor 7. Citronella 8. Galbanum 9. Dill 10. Cinnamon The insect repelling properties of litsea oil are not unique to this study. In 2015, the synergistic effects of the same 10 essential oils were evaluated, in various combinations—again, specifically targeting Ae. Aegypti. [iii]The most effective blends had litsea as one ingredient, especially when combined with lemon scented (lemon eucalyptus) or lemongrass oil. The little bloodsuckers are clearly not lemon fans.