How to Keep Your Child Safe from Bug Bites This Summer

Summer vacation is right around the corner, and your kids are undoubtedly looking forward to swimming at the neighborhood pool, playing outside with their friends and going to summer camp. While these activities are fun, they do come with a dark side in the form of insects and other critters that find your child to be scrumptious. In order to protect your kiddos from painful and itchy bug bites, check out the following tips:

Watch for bed bugs

Bed bugs can strike both at home and when you are traveling. As a press release from Orkin notes, keep the biting bugs at bay by inspecting your home on a regular basis. Check places where bed bugs hide during the day, including mattress seams, furniture, and sheets. To make it easier to spot them, remove as much clutter as possible from your home.

If you go yard sale shopping this summer, closely inspect pre-owned furniture before buying it and then quarantine it before bringing it indoors.

Discourage mosquitoes this summer

Mosquitoes are worrisome for two main reasons: their bites itch and they can transmit dangerous viruses like West Nile and Zika. To keep them away from your children, apply an insect repellent with a DEET concentration of no more than 30 percent to your kids’ skin. If you can, keep the kids indoors during the prime mosquito times of dawn, dusk and early evening.

If you are not comfortable with the idea of putting bug spray on your kiddos, Prevention offers some natural tips. These include choosing breezy days for your outings because mosquitoes don’t like the wind, dressing your children in fabrics that offer sun protection and, since mosquitoes are attracted by darker colors, making sure they are in light-colored duds.

Repel ticks

Like mosquitoes, ticks can carry nasty diseases that make us really sick. Although Lyme disease and Rocky Mountain spotted fever tend to get the most attention in health articles, the small arachnids can also cause Southern tick-associated rash illness and tick-borne relapsing fever. As the CDC notes, get to know where ticks like to hang out and have your kids avoid those spots as much as possible. These include woody and grassy areas as well as piles of leaves around shrubs.

If you are comfortable using a DEET product, apply it to your kids, avoiding their hands, eyes and mouth (there are also DEET-free alternatives). Then, once your kids come back inside, check their clothes for ticks. You can also have them change their clothes right away and wash what they were wearing outside. Drying the clothes for one hour on high heat should kill off any ticks. Encourage your kids to take a bath or shower; doing so within two hours has been found to reduce the risk of getting Lyme disease.

Banish bee stings

Kids who love to run barefoot in the summer often end up getting stung by bees. For most kids, the sting causes some minor redness and maybe a bit of itchiness, but for those who are allergic, it can cause a serious reaction that might require a trip to the emergency room. As much fun as it is to feel your bare tootsies in the grass, make sure your kids always wear sandals when they are outside.

If you have a pool, keep an eye out for bees who are looking for a drink of water and encourage your kids to steer clear. Even mostly deceased bees in the pool can sting, so skim the water regularly. Also, even though summertime blossoms are beautiful, if your kiddos are allergic to bees, keep your flowers to a minimum.

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