Insect bites: What to do when mosquitoes and other insects bite

When Dorli goes swimming with friends in summer, she never goes barefoot and always carries an allergy emergency kit with her. This is because Dorli is allergic to wasp stings. What is mainly painful and annoying for others can be downright dangerous for the 12-year-old.

Here you will find an overview of the individual topics:

• Mücken- und Bremsenstiche: häufig, aber harmlos
• Zecken lauern vor allem an Waldrändern und im Gebüsch
• Bienen- und Wespenstiche sind schmerzhaft
• Erste Hilfe und Behandlung bei Insektengiftallergie
• Übersicht: So schützen Sie sich vor Insektenstichen

You can read the complete article without page breaks here: Insect bites: What to do when mosquitoes and co. bite.

Mosquito and horsefly bites: common but harmless

Insect bites are the order of the day in summer. In particular, bites or stings from parasites such as mosquitoes or horseflies, which target our blood, can hardly be avoided. «Mosquito and horsefly bites are generally harmless and very rarely pose an allergy risk,» explains Prof. Arthur Helbling, Head of the Allergological-Immunological Polyclinic at Inselspital in Bern. The stings and bites of these blood-sucking insects are not very painful. However, small wheals form on the skin after the bite, which are often extremely itchy. «In order to be able to suck blood for longer, the pests inject a small amount of anticoagulant saliva into the wound,» says Helbling. «The body reacts by releasing histamine, which causes the unpleasantly itchy localised swelling on the skin.»
To slow down the swelling, it helps to cool the puncture site immediately. Cooling packs wrapped in a cloth or ice cubes can be used for this purpose. «If necessary, you can also use ice cream or a cold stone from the stream,» adds Helena Troxler-Flühler, a trained chemist and qualified naturopath from Emmenbrücke LU. «Fresh peppermint or ribwort plantain leaves, which can be found almost everywhere in nature in summer, also have a decongestant and anti-inflammatory effect.» The leaves are crushed and then pressed onto the puncture site.

If itchy wheals still form, it is important to be careful not to scratch them, as the stings can otherwise become infected. «I therefore always advise parents to keep their children's nails as short as possible,» says the naturopath. «Areas that are already inflamed should be treated consistently with wound ointment so that they heal quickly and without scarring.»

This protects you from mosquitoes and horseflies:

• Insect screens on windows help to keep bedrooms free of insects.
• Avoid strong fragrances and shower off body perspiration more often.
• Accumulations of water such as rain barrels and water-filled containers are ideal breeding grounds for mosquitoes and horseflies. Therefore, pour them out or cover them well.
• Mosquitoes, horseflies and ticks avoid essential scents such as lavender, sage, rose geranium or tea tree oil. Ready-made fragrance mixtures applied in the form of sprays can therefore help to keep the bloodsuckers away.

Ticks lurk mainly on forest edges and in bushes

Tick bites are also not uncommon in spring and summer. The bloodsuckers lurk mainly on forest edges and in bushes. But even in city parks and in your own garden, you are not safe from these parasites. Tick bites are feared because the arachnids can transmit dangerous diseases such as tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) and Lyme disease, and there is a vaccination against TBE. Lyme disease can be successfully treated with antibiotics if recognised at an early stage.

«If parents discover a tick on their child's body, they should remove it as quickly as possible using tick tweezers or a tick card and disinfect the area,» says Helena Troxler-Flühler. «I also advise drawing a circle around the bite site with a biro.» This is a good way to determine whether the redness around the sting increases in size over the following days. «If this is the case, a doctor should be consulted, as this so-called migratory redness can be an indication of an infection with Lyme disease bacteria,» emphasises the naturopath.

How to protect yourself from ticks:

• Long clothing and headgear for longer stays in the forest offer mechanical protection.
• Exposed areas of skin can be treated with insect and tick repellent sprays from drugstores and pharmacies.

Bee and wasp stings are painful

«Around 90 per cent of all people in this country will suffer a bee or wasp sting in the course of their lives,» says allergy expert Helbling. «Bees, wasps, hornets, bumblebees (which sting very rarely) and ants are all hymenoptera, although the dangerous ant species do not occur in our latitudes.» Unlike blood-sucking insects, hymenoptera usually sting to defend themselves if they feel threatened or their nest is threatened. «To do this, they use a venom that causes an inflammatory defence reaction in the body with pain and itching and often a severe local swelling of up to 10 centimetres at the sting site,» explains the allergist. «This is a normal reaction of the body and has nothing to do with the dreaded insect venom allergy.»

Stings from hymenoptera are quite painful. «If a child has been stung by a bee, wasp or hornet, it is therefore important to calm the crying child first,» says Helbling. «If the stinger is still stuck in the skin after a bee sting, it should be carefully removed with tweezers or a fingernail.» It is then important to disinfect the sting site, cool it well, elevate the affected part of the body - usually the hand or foot - and rest for at least 15 minutes. «Even if the rumour persists, hornet stings are no more dangerous than wasp stings,» emphasises Helbling. «The swelling is similarly severe and can take up to four days to subside.» It is also normal for the swelling to gradually move in the direction of gravity, i.e. it does not remain at the site of the sting as it heals.

«To support the healing process, an anti-inflammatory cream, a rheumatism ointment or a pain gel can be applied locally,» explains the allergist. Complementary medical treatments have also proven effective. «Immediately after the sting, a sliced onion or the application of crushed ribwort plantain can provide good help,» emphasises Helena Troxler-Flühler. «Spagyric essences of nettle and wild rosemary can also help, as can homeopathic remedies such as Apis and Belladonna, which alleviate symptoms.»

Emergency - stab in the neck!

If a bee, wasp, hornet or bumblebee stings you in the mouth or throat, this is always a life-threatening emergency. This is because the airways can swell up as a result of the localised sting reaction. An emergency doctor must be called immediately. «To slow down the local swelling, an ice cube can be sucked until the emergency doctor arrives,» advises Helbling.

How to protect yourself from bees, bumblebees, wasps and hornets:

• Never walk barefoot. Many wasp and bumblebee species have their nests on the ground and bees like to nibble on clover flowers in lawns and meadows.
• Never drink directly from open cans or opaque bottles. Beer, cola and soft drinks magically attract wasps and bees. These can accidentally get into your mouth when drinking.
• Strong fragrances such as perfume, hairspray etc., but also sweat, attract biting insects. It is therefore better to avoid them, shower more often and be particularly careful when doing sports in the great outdoors.
• Sweet and protein-rich foods attract bees and wasps. Therefore, avoid eating outdoors and do not pick fruit with your bare fingers.
• Avoid hectic movements and flailing in the vicinity of wasps and bees, otherwise the animals will feel threatened and sting.
• Close your mouth when cycling or your visor and jackets and shirts when riding a motorbike to avoid catching animals.

First aid for insect venom allergy

A medical emergency also exists if a person has an allergic reaction to insect venom. «This is the case for around five per cent of the Swiss population,» says the Bernese allergist. In most cases, the systemic reactions, which can vary in severity, occur just a few minutes to half an hour after the sting and can range from dizziness and severe itching to anaphylactic shock with life-threatening cardiovascular failure and respiratory arrest," warns Helbling. «Signs of an allergic reaction include conspicuous calmness, paleness, dizziness, nausea, itching all over the body, sleepiness, breathing problems and whistling breathing noises, blue lips, abdominal pain, diarrhoea and unconsciousness.» If signs of an allergic reaction occur, the emergency doctor should be called immediately. «If an antihistamine is to hand, double the dosage recommended in the package leaflet can be given to slow down the reaction until the emergency doctor arrives,» recommends Helbling. «The child should also be reassured and the sting cooled.»

Treatment of insect venom allergy

Anyone who has ever had an allergic reaction to insect venom - even a mild one - should always have their symptoms checked by an allergist. «In the case of moderate reactions, an allergy emergency kit with special emergency medication is usually prescribed, which those affected should always carry with them,» says Helbling. «We also discuss exactly what to do in an emergency.» In addition, relatives, other carers and teachers should also take part in anaphylaxis training (e.g. at the aha! Allergy Centre Switzerland) so that they can provide targeted help in an emergency. In severe cases, allergen-specific immunotherapy can also be carried out by a doctor. «In this relatively complex treatment, the body is gradually acclimatised to the insect venom over several years so that it no longer has an allergic reaction to it,» reports allergy expert Helbling.

Overview: How to protect yourself from insect bites

«Of course, it's best not to get stung in the first place, because frequent stings within a short period of time increase the risk of an insect venom allergy,» says Prof Arthur Helbling, Head of the Allergological-Immunological Polyclinic at Inselspital in Bern. The following behavioural tips help to avoid insect bites:

Bees, bumblebees, wasps Hornets

• Nie barfuss gehen. Viele Wespen- und Hummelarten haben ihre Nester am Boden und Bienen naschen gerne von Kleeblüten im Rasen und auf Wiesen.
• Nie direkt aus offenen Dosen oder undurchsichtigen Flaschen trinken. Bier, Cola- und Limonadengetränke ziehen Wespen und Bienen magisch an. Diese können beim Trinken so unbeabsichtigt in den Mund geraten.
• Starke Düfte wie Parfüm, Haarspray usw., aber auch Schweiss locken Stechinsekten an. Deshalb besser darauf verzichten, häufiger duschen und bei sportlichen Aktivitäten in der Natur besonders vorsichtig sein.
• Süsse und eiweisshaltige Speisen ziehen Bienen und Wespen an. Deshalb Mahlzeiten im Freien meiden und Obst nicht mit blossen Fingern ernten.
• Hektische Bewegungen und fuchtelnde Schläge in der Nähe von Wespen und Bienen unterlassen, da sich die Tiere sonst bedroht fühlen und zustechen.
• Beim Fahrradfahren den Mund beziehungsweise beim Motorradfahren das Visier sowie Jacken und Shirts schliessen, um keine Tiere einzufangen.

Mücken, Bremsen

• Insektenschutzgitter am Fenster helfen, die Schlafräume insektenfrei zu halten.
• Auf starke Düfte verzichten und Körperschweiss häufiger wegduschen.
• Wasseransammlungen wie Regentonnen und wassergefüllte Gefässe sind ideale Brutstätten für Mücken und Bremsen. Diese deshalb ausgiessen oder gut abdecken.
• Mücken, Bremsen und Zecken meiden ätherische Düfte wie Lavendel, Salbei, Rosengeranie oder Teebaumöl. Fertige Duftmischungen in Form von Sprays aufgetragen können deshalb helfen, die Blutsauger fernzuhalten.

Zecken

• Lange Kleidung und Kopfbedeckung bei längeren Aufenthalten im Wald bieten einen mechanischen Schutz.
• Freiliegende Hautstellen können mit Insekten und Zecken abweisenden Sprays aus Drogerie und Apotheke behandelt werden.

Read more about insect bites:

• It sucks and spits. How itchy it is!
  Whether child or adult: the mosquito bites everything that comes in front of its proboscis. And it's not just parents who are worried about all the diseases that the little beasts transmit. How bad are mosquito bites really? And what helps? We have compiled all the facts for you.
• Help! Ticks! What to do?
  They are one of our least favourite contemporaries and their bites harbour dangers: the tick. But are ticks always dangerous and how do they get on the human body in the first place? We dispel the myths and have tips on prevention and treatment if it has already happened.

• Allergies on the rise
  Whether pollen, wasps, nuts or mites - more and more children are developing allergies. This is how their immune system defends itself. Sometimes a hypersensitivity develops, but it often lasts a lifetime.