If there’s one downside to our great Aussie outdoors, it’s the mosquitoes. Come summer, they’re everywhere; in fact, many parts of our island are forced to deal with these critters all year round!
How can you best protect yourself against these biting insects or care for your itchy bites when they’ve gotten the better of you? With anatural mosquito repellent like essential oils. And there are several to choose from to protect your skin or help stop the incessant itching after they strike.
Here, we’ll explore the best essential oils to deter mosquitoes, how to use them, and where to buy your insect repellent aromatherapy oils.
Our Top 5 Essential Oils to Deter Mosquitoes & Treat Bites
There’s nothing worse than the annoying sound of a mosquito buzzing close by or their itchy and often painful bites after they strike. These nasty critters always attack at inconvenient times too, like when you’re trying to enjoy an outdoor BBQ or as the kids are playing in the backyard at dusk.
Thankfully, many essential oils are known to repel mosquitoes and keep them away from your skin. With natural anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, and antibacterial properties, these oils have the power to deter mosquitoes and prevent them from biting, as well as alleviating and soothing their nasty bites while reducing the risk of infection.
So, what are the best essential oils for mosquito repellent? Here are 5 natural oils to help you stop mosquitoes from bothering you.
Citronella (Java) Essential Oil
Citronella Essential Oil is perhaps the best-known oil for protecting humans against mosquitoes. It works in several ways, first, by masking human scents that attract mosquitoes and making you less likely to be found and bitten by these flying nasties. The powerful aroma of Citronella overwhelms their sensory receptors, discouraging mosquitoes from approaching you.
Second, Citronella Oil may also have a mild effect on the nervous system of mosquitoes, which further deters them from bugging you.
You can see why Citronella proves incredibly popular as an essential oil repellent for mosquitoes!
Lemongrass Essential Oil
Lemongrass Oil shares many characteristics with Citronella Oil and because of this, it can be an effective insect repellent.
Rich in citral, geraniol and limonene, Lemongrass Oil has a distinctive lemony scent lots of people love, yet it is known for repelling mosquitoes and other insects who struggle with its powerful aroma.
Lemongrass Oil also contains antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, which may help to ease swelling, remedy itching and prevent bites becoming infected – the perfect relief if you do happen to get bitten by mosquitoes.
Lavender Essential Oil
Lavender Essential Oil is one of the most versatile essential oils loved for many reasons. Among its many benefits lies the ability to repel insects, including mosquitoes, keeping you and your family free from bites.
It’s mainly thanks to key constituent, linalool, which gives Lavender Oil its floral scent. While most people love this subtle, sweet and slightly herbaceous aroma, mosquitos do not! Other constituents like linalyl enhance lavender as a repellent and provide its soothing properties. It’s extremely gentle on the skin, known to reduce the redness, itching and irritation of mosquito bites while promoting healing.
Once diluted with a carrier oil, you can apply Lavender Oil directly onto a mosquito bite to help soothe irritation.
Peppermint Essential Oil
Peppermint Essential Oil is well known for its distinct aroma – but did you know it masks natural human smells? As such, those mosquitoes struggle to pick up on the usual body odours that draw them towards humans.
The key constituent in Peppermint Oil, menthol, is said to contain mild insecticidal properties. It also has a natural cooling effect that can confuse mosquitoes and deter them from landing on the skin in the first place. That same cooling capability also works incredibly well at calming various skin ailments, including mosquito bites, soothing the affected area and reducing inflammation.
One thing to remember about menthol is its potency. While we always recommend diluting essential oils with a carrier oil before topical use, it is crucial you do so with Peppermint Oil.
AWO Away Essential Oil Blend
Our fifth oil is actually several oils – and it’s a unique blend made by us, purely to help keep the bugs away.
AWO’s Away Essential Oil blend includes a selection of oils seen to control and deter a range of insects and mosquitoes, specifically formulated to ward off critters so you can enjoy your outdoor time without the worry of nasty bites.
With a pleasant aroma combining notes of Lemongrass, Rosemary and Lavender, this blend smells incredible to us humans but not to mosquitoes and other insects. Also containing Citronella, Peppermint, Cedarwood, Sage and Geranium Oils, this pure and protective blend is your new best friend when it comes to keeping those pesky bugs at bay naturally.
If you really want to take on Australia’s annoying native, the mosquito, this is a blend they won’t want to mess with!
How to Use Essential Oils for Mosquitoes
Citronella (Java) Essential Oil
- Repellent Spray: Add 10-15 drops of Citronella Oil to 1 tbsp of your chosen carrier oil. Mix with 60ml of distilled water and 30ml of Witch Hazel Extract and shake well. Spray your mosquito repellent essential oil spray onto the body every 30-60 minutes.
- Diffuse: Add a few drops of Citronella Oil into your diffuser to ward off mosquitoes and insects from the area.
Lemongrass Essential Oil
- Dilution: Add 3-4 drops of Tea Tree Oil at a 1-2% dilution with your chosen carrier oil or a base moisturiser and apply directly to the bite.
- Repellent Spray: Add a few drops of Tea Tree Oil into a spray bottle and mix 60ml of distilled water and 30ml of witch hazel and shake well. Spray directly onto the body every 30-60 minutes.
-
Diffuse: Add a few drops of Tea Tree Oil into your diffuser to use as a mist to deter mosquitoes from the area.
Lavender Essential Oil
- Dilution: Add 3-4 drops of Lavender Oil at a 2-4% dilution with your chosen carrier oil or a base moisturiser and apply directly to the bite.
- Repellent Spray: Add 10 drops of Lavender Oil into a spray bottle and mix 60ml of distilled water and 30ml of witch hazel and shake well. Spray wherever you’d like to repel mosquitoes.
- Diffuse: Add a few drops of Lavender Oil into your diffuser to use as a mist to deter mosquitoes from the area.
Peppermint Essential Oil
- Dilution: Add 1 drop of Peppermint Oil at a 2-5% dilution with your chosen carrier oil or a base moisturiser and apply directly to the bite.
- Repellent Spray: Add 3 drops of Peppermint Oil into a spray bottle and mix 60ml of distilled water and 30ml of witch hazel and shake well. Spray onto the body to repel mosquitos.
- Diffuse: Add a few drops of Peppermint Oil into your diffuser to use as a mist to deter mosquitos from the area.
AWO Away Blend
- Diffuse: Add 6-8 drops of Away Blend into your diffuser to use as a mist to deter mosquitos from the area.
- Topical Application: To create a natural essential oil insect repellent, add 20-40 drops of Away Blend to 100ml of your favourite carrier oil Apply to the skin for a nourishing, yet bug repelling body oil!
- Repellent Spray: Add 10 drops of Away Blend into a spray bottle and mix 60ml of distilled water and 30ml of witch hazel and shake well. Spray onto the body to repel mosquitos.
Please note that the following guidelines are recommended for healthy adults:
- General Use: 2 – 4% dilution (4 – 8 drops per 10ml)
- Facial Application: 1 – 2% dilution (2 – 4 drops per 10ml)
- General Use: 1 – 2% dilution (2 – 4 drops per 10ml)
- Facial Application: 0.5 – 1% dilution (1 – 2 drops per 10ml)
Where to Buy Essential Oils for Mosquito Bites
It is important to get high-quality essential oils that are guaranteed to be 100% pure. Here at AWO, we have a wide selection of 100% pure essential oils and organic essential oils sold at reasonable prices.
We provide the highest quality products that can be used throughout your home. Plus, we are based right here in Australia! You can buy essential oils to repel mosquitoes on our website at www.awo.com.au.
Learn More About Mosquito Bites
Why Do Mosquito Bites Itch?
When a mosquito bites, it injects a saliva-like substance into the skin that many people have an allergy to. As a result, your skin will react, swell and itch. This is your body’s way of alerting you that there has been an attack, addressing the bite by causing inflammation in the area surrounding the bite.
Unfortunately, this allergic reaction comes with an awful need to vigorously scratch. But itching an already inflamed bite will only make it worse. So having a natural remedy on hand is vital to lower inflammation, stop the itch and let your body heal the bite without causing scars.
Other Ways to Relieve Mosquito Bites Naturally
- Take an essential oil bath by adding a few drops of Lavender Oil to a warm bath to help relieve the itch (the lavender will be nicely relaxing too!).
- Have a cold shower or apply an ice pack to the bites. The cooling sensation of the ice can relieve the itchiness.
- Add honey directly to the bite. The healing properties of honey can help soothe a painful itch.
- See a doctor! If you find these methods are not providing relief, ask your GP for help – they may choose to provide you with a strong antihistamine.
Essential Oil Safety
- In line with the Therapeutic Goods Act, we do not recommend ingesting our essential oils without the guidance of a registered Aromatherapist or Naturopath.
- Avoid using essential oils during pregnancy and while breastfeeding.
- We recommend storing your essential oils in a cool, dry place at room temperature, away from sunlight and are out of reach of children or pets.
- Essential oils can be very concentrated and are likely to cause irritation or reactions if applied directly to the skin. For this reason, it is important to first dilute your essential oils before using topically (on the skin). You can see our recommended dilution percentages under the 'How to Use Essential Oils for Mosquitoes' section above.
- All Peppermint Essential Oils are known to be toxic to pets and for this reason, we advise against using them when animals are present.