Article content
Ticks have already gotten used to classic repellents, but they cannot even stand this! Slovak high school students from Prešov came up with something more effective. This is how you can protect yourself this summer too!
Ticks are a big nuisance every summer for most of us and they are not easy to get rid of. Moreover, they are becoming increasingly dangerous and a single bite can mark you for life.
Unique idea
In their project the young people from Prešov focused on the use of essential oils as biorepellents in the prevention of ticks . They noticed that the repellents available in stores are no longer as effective and ticks are becoming increasingly resistant to them. Besides that they wanted to find an alternative that would contain exclusively natural substances instead of synthetic ones. Such repellents would not harm our health or the environment.
More effective than store-bought repellents
The young high school students examined 13 essential oils and two specific species of ticks – Dermacentor and Haemaphysalis . “We found that natural oils such as fennel, nutmeg, or anise have up to four times greater repellent effect than commercial repellents against Dermacentor. Fennel and nutmeg even had three times higher repellent effects,” they told the portal Science Within Reach . Against the genus Haemaphysalis nutmeg proved most effective, but oils from ginger and bergamot also worked well. The natural repellents they created would also be cheaper. “The price of a commercial repellent is about €6.00 and one of our alternatives would cost only approximately €1.70,” they explained.
What else helps?
The point is that the scent of some essential oils is very unpleasant for ticks. Ticks have very well-developed olfactory perception and some aromas can even be toxic to them. Before you go into nature, put a small amount of essential oil on your palm, spread it over the surface of the clothing roller and you can wipe the edges of your trouser legs, sleeves and neckline with it. Among classic essential oils, ticks are particularly repelled by eucalyptus, mint and lavender oil , which ticks cannot stand. Also effective is lemon essential oil and oil made from lemongrass .
A success that moves things forward
Convincing the jury at the competition was hard work for the students, but it paid off and they took home two awards. Although 1,800 young students from 75 countries showed up at the competition besides them, they managed to succeed. That motivates them to continue the research. However, they do it mainly so that we can live in a sustainable world.
If you also want to take a look at sunny Los Angeles and behind the scenes of the competition in which students from Prešov succeeded, see the video that Samuel Smoter managed to record there
