Prevention is better than cure when it comes to insect bites

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Hardly anyone escapes summer without suffering a few insect bites, some just irritating, some so bad they interfere with sleep, and a few serious enough to cause a full-blown allergic reaction, known as anaphylaxis. I’ve had all three over the years but my family who were staying with me in the countryside this year didn’t suffer anything too serious even though there are lots of insects ready to bite you if you’re in fields, woods, and near rivers.

We’re used to being nibbled by gnats or midges, ants, fleas, horseflies, even the odd mosquito. Ticks and spiders can also bite. According to Jane Wilcox and colleagues in The BMJ, GPs see about 16 patients per week on average with insect bites. This rises above 35 per 100,000 in August and September.