Mosquito bites: How do I lower my strong allergic reaction?

Question

Whenever I get bitten by a mosquito or worse (gasp, a biting fly) I get welts and swollen skin that lasts for a week. How can I reduce my reaction? I know that Deet works great but it is toxic as hell and I don't wanna use it when I'm just gonna be outside for 10-15 minutes or going to a garden party. So I want to lower my reaction to the critters --- any suggestions?

Answer 1

If you're going to be out for awhile you could take an antihistamine tablet to decrease the swelling should you get a bite. Of course there's lots of ways to avoid the bites, there's the myriad of of burnables (citrus candles for example) that you could burn if you're only going to be out for a short period of time. Diet-wise you could try increasing your garlic intake (murder on the breath), but it can help keep bugs away, as do onions. And cut down on the amount of perfumes/scents you put on, they attract insects too.

Answer 2

Regular doses of an antihistamine helps a lot. I'd always had a terrible reaction to bug bites and when I developed other allergies that required daily antihistamines, the severity of my reaction to bug bites lessened a lot. There are a lot of decent over the counter meds these days and you could just used them during bug season -- stop in the fall.

Answer 3

an identical difficulty happens to my 7 365 days previous each time she gets bitten. She is allergic to mosquito bites. The healthcare expert prescribed fucidin cream and advised me to maintain the blister lined so it would not get contaminated.

Answer 4

take something like chloratrimatron before getting bit. It worked for me, no welts or itch. benadryl or arm may work

Answer 5

I found that changing my diet lessened my reactions.