Summer Survival Guide

From the ...

Managing Bugs

It's warm and sunny out, which means you're not going to be spending your time indoors. But outdoor living comes with the threat of pests. Here's how to beat the battle of the bugs.

 

When Entertaining Outside

Remove insect attractors like standing water, keep your food covered with plastic wrap or food tents and move trashcans and recycling bins as far away as possible.

Bugs don't like mint, so put some natural mint mouthwash into a spray container and mist it around your outdoor area or even on your tablecloth.

 

Citronella candles remain an effective way to keep mosquitoes away. These simple white Tiki brand candles are a little more subtle than those bright yellow ones. Plus, they have a long burn time and can be put into hurricanes for a more polished look.

Tiki candles, $8; Stoneware hurricanes, $17 and $5

 
 

Keep 'Em
Off

From easy-to-wear patches and all-natural sprays to more serious repellents, here's how to keep bugs off your body.

 

Dealing with Bites & Stings

 

For any bite or sting, you can apply hydrocortisone (for itching and inflammation) and take an oral anti-histamine like Benadryl.

Cortizone 10 spray
with aloe
, $9

Control any discomfort, itching and swelling by applying ice and taking an over-the-counter painkiller.

 

Wasps and hornets have smooth stingers and rarely lose them in the skin of the person they sting. Bees have barbed stingers, so the stinger is usually found in your skin. Remove it quickly by scraping it off with a credit card so as not to squeeze the venom sac.

FYI

 

Scratching a bug bite can, in fact, make it worse.

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