When using bug repellents, experts recommend the following precautions:

  1. Apply them only to exposed skin or clothing (as directed on the product label). Never put it on under clothing. Don’t apply over cuts, wounds, or irritated skin.
  2. When applying to the face, spray first on your hands, then rub in, avoiding the eyes and mouth.
  3. Don’t use near food and wash hands after application and before eating or drinking.
  4. Health experts also advise seeking immediate medical attention if a bug bite or sting produces any of the following symptoms: Difficulty breathing; feeling your throat is closing; swelling of lips, tongue, or face; chest pain, a racing heartbeat for more than a few minutes; dizziness or headache; vomiting.
  5. Contact a Poison Control Center (1-800-222-1222) if you or your child experience a reaction to insect repellent.

Biting and stinging insects are more than just a nuisance; some carry serious infections and diseases. 

Mosquitoes spread a range of blood-borne disease, including encephalitis, Chikungunya, and West Nile virus, which be serious or deadly for older people and those with compromised immune systems.

Tick bites can lead to Lyme disease, caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi, spread by the black-legged deer tick — about the size of the period at the end of this sentence. Ticks can also cause other diseases, such as Rocky Mountain spotted fever.

Stings and bites from bees, hornets, spiders, and other insects can cause life-threatening allergic reactions in some people or become infected.