How to Take the Sting out of Bug Season

The Editors at Sharecare

Along with sun, surf, picnics, and barbecues come summer's least welcome guests -- stinging, biting critters. Bees, wasps, fire ants, mosquitoes, black flies, sand flies, and ticks, just for starters. Some can make you seriously sick. (You've heard of West Nile virus, right? And Lyme disease?) If you're among the people (1 in 150) who are supersensitive to insect stings, your response to the venom in, say, a bee sting can be severe, and even life threatening, Your best defense? Play keep-away with all things that crawl or fly. Here, seven steps to help you avoid being a bug's lunch:

  1. Wear white or light-colored clothing, and avoid small prints.

  2. Don't wear fragrances, so bugs won't mistake you for a flower.

  3. Don't go romping barefoot through grassy areas or in the woods.

  4. Use an insect repellent registered for effectiveness with the Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA has tips and a nifty online quiz to help you choose the right one and use it safely.

  5. Don't expose yourself. Cleaning out the shed? Wear gloves. Hiking through brush? Wear long pants tucked into your socks -- looks nerdy but helps keep the ticks out. Sunset cocktails at the shore? Wear sleeves or a wrap and pants or a long skirt; save your cool new shorts for daytime. Going camping? Shake out your sleeping bag before crawling into it.

  6. Make bugs homeless. Have hornet and wasp nests removed. Dump out or cover up standing water, including any water that collects in flowerpot saucers and tire swings. Change the dog's water daily and the bird bath weekly. Empty the wading pool when it's not being used.

  7. Repel them. Burn mosquito coils, light a citronella candle, invest in an electronic bug zapper, or spray an EPA-registered pesticide. (Follow pesticide label instructions to the letter.)

What to Do If You're Still Bitten or Stung

You'll probably have only an annoying local itch or bump that gradually fades -- 80% of people do. Here's how to relieve the ouch and the need to scratch:

  • Place an ice pack on the area.

  • If there's a visible stinger, remove it. Grab the part closest to your skin with tweezers and pull, or scrape the stinger out using the edge of a credit card or nail file. Try not to squeeze the top of the stinger. That's where the venom is.

  • Apply hydrocortisone cream, calamine lotion, a paste of baking soda and water, or an aloe vera gel or lotion that's at least 80% aloe.

  • Take an antihistamine (such as Benadryl) if the itching is fierce.

If you have any of these signs of a severe allergic reaction, get to an ER:

  • Erupting hives

  • Swelling eyes, lips, or throat

  • Difficulty breathing or wheezing

  • Dizziness

  • Mental confusion

  • Abdominal cramping

  • Neck stiffness

  • Nausea and vomiting

  • Shaking or tremors

  • Fainting or loss of consciousness

  • Numbness

  • Muscle weakness

  • Headache

  • Irregular heartbeat

  • Signs of infection in the sting or bite area (red, hot, painful, or swollen)

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