Want to make yourself less appealing to mosquitoes? Our quiz has surprising ideas

When it comes to preventing mosquito bites, many people turn to the obvious solutions: bug sprays or just staying indoors. But there are other effective, science-backed ways to keep those pesky mosquitoes at bay, some of which may surprise you.

Sammy Ramsey, a professor of entomology at the University of Colorado, Boulder, and Brian Byrd, a professor of environmental health sciences at Western Carolina University, share some of these tactics, which Life Kit has turned into a quiz.

See whether you can guess the answers to these questions. They may save you from a few mosquito bites!

Loading…


This story was edited by Meghan Keane and Hannah Chinn. The visual editor is Beck Harlan. We’d love to hear from you. Leave us a voicemail at 202-216-9823, or email us at [email protected].

Listen to Life Kit on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, and sign up for our newsletter. Follow us on Instagram: @nprlifekit.

 

Pakistan-Afghanistan border closures paralyze trade along a key route

Trucks have been stuck at the closed border since October. Both countries are facing economic losses with no end in sight. The Taliban also banned all Pakistani pharmaceutical imports to Afghanistan.

Malinowski concedes to Mejia in Democratic House special primary in New Jersey

With the race still too close to call, former congressman Tom Malinowski conceded to challenger Analilia Mejia in a Democratic primary to replace the seat vacated by New Jersey Gov. Mikie Sherrill.

A daughter reexamines her own family story in ‘The Mixed Marriage Project’

Dorothy Roberts' parents, a white anthropologist and a Black woman from Jamaica, spent years interviewing interracial couples in Chicago. Her memoir draws from their records.

FBI release photos and video of potential suspect in Guthrie disappearance

An armed, masked subject was caught on Nancy Guthrie's front doorbell camera one the morning she disappeared.

Reporter’s notebook: A Dutch speedskater and a U.S. influencer walk into a bar …

NPR's Rachel Treisman took a pause from watching figure skaters break records to see speed skaters break records. Plus, the surreal experience of watching backflip artist Ilia Malinin.

In Beirut, Lebanon’s cats of war find peace on university campus

The American University of Beirut has long been a haven for cats abandoned in times if war or crisis, but in recent years the feline population has grown dramatically.

More Front Page Coverage