Is it just me, or does anyone else seem to have every flying insect come diving towards you all the time?
It's like I'm the TARGET for all mosquitos, wasps, hornets, etc. Anything like that darts straight to me, even following me. It's like they're searching for me!
Do I smell like dinner to them??? I've heard that they do go for certain odors or blood.......I don't know.
Maybe they smell FEAR?
Anyone have these issues? Also, the mosquito bites immediately turn into big welts. I always have to smear Benadryl cream on me to help them go down and not itch.
Just curious~~~~~
terri3boys
Posted by Lymetoo (Member # 743) on :
OH yes! All bugs love me!!!
Posted by MamaWolf (Member # 10578) on :
Same for me and my son. It is like we are painted with honey or something.
And terrible reactions from them, too.
Posted by terri3boys (Member # 12993) on :
Is there a "biological" reason? Do we emit something that says "Come'on big boy, come and get me!"
I've got to believe there's something!
terri3boys
Posted by Lymetoo (Member # 743) on :
I have heard that if you're low in vitamin B-1 that the bugs will be attracted to you.
I'm sure most of us take extra vitamins. I do take a B-complex each day. Haven't been bitten by anything lately, but we don't have many mosquitoes here and not too many wasps....so maybe that's not proof of anything!!
Posted by Marnie (Member # 773) on :
Read just the first...easy to understand...paragraph:
Hmmmmm..........thanks! I'm sure it DOES have something to do with our blood.
I've always heard that saying "your blood must be sweet" and that's why I'm always bitten.
Well, I want some SOUR, yucky blood flavor that insects don't like!!!
terri3boys
Posted by disturbedme (Member # 12346) on :
It seems like it for me too.
There was a bee a couple of weeks ago that wouldn't leave me alone. It didn't even bother my husband, but just kept darting toward me. I'd walk away and it'd find me.
Posted by susan2health (Member # 10446) on :
Mosquitos love me when every one else is not bothered.
I eat a low carb diet, but Marnie's article was very interesting.
I hear garlic helps if eaten every day. The hard part is getting my husband to eat it so he doesn't notice my breath!
Posted by BJK (Member # 13251) on :
Hmmmm....I thought it was just me.
Just having issues with skin sensitivity, never mind the bites, this drives me nuts sometimes!
Here we have blackflies, "no-see-ums" (nasty little critters-go right through the screens), mosquitos, horseflies etc-
they all bite and they all seem to really like me.
A while ago I thought it was all in my head, Id be getting "bugged" while my wife and 5 children just looked at me kinda funny.
It will be interesting to see if this changes one day when Im well, I dont remember having this issue before Lyme.
Thanks for the post BJK
Posted by tailz (Member # 10014) on :
I got stung by a bumblebee this past summer - right around the time my blood sugar was running high. Hmmm?
But yeah - mosquitos loved me my entire life, and when we lived in a flea-infested house, I had more fleas on me than my indoor cat did.
Posted by klutzo (Member # 5701) on :
Before Lyme - no allergies to stinging insects and no special attraction to me. I was stung many times with no problems at all.
After Lyme - am now allergic to bees, hornets, wasps, and fire ants. Now they pursue me. I had to give up wearing sandals here in Florida, after fire ants found me, even on pavement,and when I was only outside for a couple of minutes, and caused anaphylactic shock. I was stung 5 times in one year by various insects I was allergic to!
I asked the allergy nurse why this happened, and she told me she hears this complaint all the time. She said it is part of natural selection. The bugs that can kill are able to smell the weak (allergic) members of the human herd and they attempt to weed them out, just like the lions separate out the weak zebra from the herd.
This is also a sign of a TH2 (acquired) dominant immune system.
I now carry an Epi-pen, Benadryl, and a 911 Mobile phone everywhere.
I also wear shoes and socks when outside, and heavy gloves with rubber palms when gardening. I avoid flower prints and dark colors like black. Stinging insects are less attracted to khaki, green, and white.
Klutzo
Posted by ldfighter (Member # 9405) on :
I'm also a bug magnet.
There's research showing that malaria makes people smell better to mosquitoes. http://tinyurl.com/2jcgtj
Makes me wonder about other vector-borne diseases.
Posted by terri3boys (Member # 12993) on :
I've got to believe it's Lyme related in some way. I don't remember being the "prey" for mosquitos, wasps, etc., until the last several years.
A year ago, I was stung by the mother of all wasps, right in my own front yard. It stung me through my jeans on the inside of my knee. I will never forget that instant pain and shock of what the ???? I had a really bad reaction to it, and ended up on abx for 10 days.
My knee was every color.....white, pink, red, purple, you name it. I thought my flesh was dying or something. So gross!!! It took weeks (and a lot of TLC) to finally heal. You can still see where it stung me.
What is the TH2 dominant immune system, Klutzo? I think that allergy nurse is right about the natural selection theory. Makes sense!
I don't like it, but it does make sense!
Thanks for the info!
terri3boys
Posted by CaliforniaLyme (Member # 7136) on :
Sweet blood*)!!!
Yup, me too*)!
Posted by Littlesprout (Member # 7406) on :
Mosquitoes love my husband but not me. I have heard of the B1 thing before. I have taken B1 shots on and off for yrs for neuro lyme problems. Try some B1 to see if it helps
Posted by zil (Member # 12048) on :
I seem to attract all pestilence. Including ticks and chiggers. I am extremely paranoid about walking on any grassy areas. I'll never go out in the woods again. Liz
Posted by kelmo (Member # 8797) on :
A man was stung over 3,000 times recently in my town.
They local experts said they are attracted to your breath.
So the diabetes/sugar link makes sense.
Kelly
Posted by TerryK (Member # 8552) on :
Include me and other infected members of my family because we are VERY attractive to spiders and bugs of all kinds.
I think it is a survival mechanism of our infections. They make us smell good to other bugs so they will bite us and become infected and perpectuate their kind. I read something in a science mag about this but can't remember all the details and don't know if it is really valid although it does make some sense in a sci fi way. I'll look around for it and if I find it, I'll post.
Terry
Posted by ldfighter (Member # 9405) on :
quote:Originally posted by TerryK: I think it is a survival mechanism of our infections. They make us smell good to other bugs so they will bite us and become infected and perpectuate their kind. I read something in a science mag about this but can't remember all the details and don't know if it is really valid although it does make some sense in a sci fi way. I'll look around for it and if I find it, I'll post.
Yup, see my post above for link.
Posted by Greatcod (Member # 7002) on :
No Wasps, an occassional Catholic...
Posted by TerryK (Member # 8552) on :
Thanks ldfighter - I should have been paying more attention and read your link. Good info. Posted by LocalMan (Member # 11648) on :
I've worked outside much of my career, Alaska, etc, and everyone wanted to be my partner because I'm total bug bait and draw the bugs away from them. I have a high metabolism, put off a lot of heat (I'm a distance runner), and almost all predatory insects search out the CO2 given off in respiration....especially if you process high volumes of oxygen. HOwever, it looks like from the posts above I may be looking foreward to a lot more insect interaction now that I have lyme?
Posted by ldfighter (Member # 9405) on :
quote:Originally posted by TerryK: Thanks ldfighter - I should have been paying more attention and read your link. Good info.
Yes, how dare you not read every word of the thread before posting! Kidding of course.
Fascinating science, isn't it? Clever little organisms.
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Kidding of course.