Daniel A. Strickman, Ph.D. National Program Leader, Veterinary, Medical, and Urban Entomology US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service Co-Author of: Prevention of Bug Bites, Stings, and Disease; Oxford University Press, 2009; and Insect Repellents: Principles, Methods, and Uses, CRC Press, 2007.
Insect Repellents: Is the Technology Coming Together or Falling Apart? People have been trying to avoid insect bites since people existed. The oldest recorded methods involved burning particular kinds of plants, but smearing plants on skin to discourage mosquitoes was probably attempted by early humans. Plant extracts were the main sources of repellent active ingredients until about 1935 and those early repellents were not very effective. A major, systematic effort that started as part of the US war effort in 1942 produced much more effective synthetic materials, each of which had its own advantages and disadvantages. These investigations were based mainly on screening and chemical intuition, eventually producing DEET in the late 19 v40s. DEET became available to the public in 1957 and slowly replaced the older active ingredients through the 1980s. New active ingredients came on the market in the late 1990s and have become important products in the United States and elsewhere. Superimposed on those developments has been a public thirst for “natural” products, for the most part indicating a preference for chemicals of botanical origin. New, more sophisticated formulations have further complicated the marketplace. The US Environmental Protection Agency, which regulates topical repellents as pesticides, has slowly changed its approach to repellents, emphasizing efficacy as well as safety. As if that were not enough, new spatial repellents promise much better protection from flying, biting insects. There are many possibilities for personal protection that did not exist 15 years ago; but from a market perspective the future is anything but clear.
Biography Daniel Strickman, Ph.D. USDA ARS National Program Leader for Veterinary, Medical, and Urban Entomology and Acting Director, Overseas Biological Control Laboratories USDA Agricultural Research Service, National Program Staff, 5601 Sunnyside Ave., Beltsville, MD 20705, 301-504-5771, Daniel.Strickman@ars.usda.gov Currently National Program Leader for Veterinary, Medical, and Urban Entomology, and Acting Director of Overseas Biological Control Laboratories, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture. Adjunct Associate Professor, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences. From 2003-2006, served at a county, operational level as Vector Ecologist for Santa Clara County Vector Control District, San José, CA. Completed 22 years of military service (highest rank: Colonel, Medical