ABSTRACT
Insect repellents are chemicals that cause insects to make directed, oriented movements away from the source of the repellent. In light of disease transmission by insects and other arthropods, chemical substances that have repellent effects or interfere with biting are wonderful because they enable to go places and do things in insect- or disease-infested areas. N,N-diethyl-3-methylbenzamide (DEET) is one of the most effective and widely used insect repellents available. It repels a variety of mosquitoes, chiggers, ticks, fleas, and an estimated 50 to 100 million people in the United States use it each year. DEET has been used for over 60 years by millions of people worldwide. Although it has an excellent safety record, there have been sporadic reports of adverse reactions associated with its use. Most of these have resulted from accidental exposure, such as swallowing, spraying into the eye, or repeated application, although at least one case occurred in an 18-month-old boy following brief exposure to low-strength.
