While researching methods to repel mosquitoes, Duke biology professor Ke Dong, a postdoctoral researcher in the lab, said garlic repels insects. The researcher wanted mosquitoes to capture for experiments, but could not get them to come. Eating this pizza may or may not prevent mosquito bites, but you can avoid it with beer. A few studies have shown that drinking beer makes mosquitoes more attractive to humans. Many other factors can explain why some people are mosquito magnets, including genetics, the body's microbiome, pregnancy, and sweat. If you're looking for a safe way to avoid insect bites this summer, the CDC recommends using insect repellents like DEET and picaridin. Wearing clothing treated with permethrin, an insecticide that kills mosquitoes, also helps. On days when mosquitoes are out of the question, consider taking an antihistamine such as Allegra or Claritin a few hours before exposure -they're more effective at tamping down swelling and itching than topical products, and just one dose will give you all-day relief.
"His experiments were not working because he was eating a lot of Italian food with a lot of garlic,"
