As Deet based insect repellents seem to melt/damage a ... - LSN
As Deet based insect repellents seem to melt/damage a lot of surfaces, does it damage compression stockings?
good question legseleven
absolutely no idea what the answer is, but have you thought about phoning the manufacturers of whichever ones you wear? i know the people at jobst & medi are really nice & helpful, & when they have stalls at the lsn conferences they're also happy to be collared with difficult questions
if you do get hold of them, be good to let us know what they said
& are you planning on going somewhere exciting? that's just me being nosey, but it's always lovely to read about people being intrepid despite the lymph
Thanks Norberte!
Went into my wonderful local Boots branch this morning, where I purchased an additional Jobst pair of stockings a few weeks ago - nearly £90 worth! Have bought lots of Ultrathon, Incognito, Boots Tropical Repel etc. - but obviously limited as to what I can take in cabin luggage.
As I have to change planes for my long journey to a warm country, where it is nearly 90 degrees at moment, hold luggage is frequently mislaid for some time. I try to take vital medications etc. in my cabin luggage. The 1 litre max of 100mls size liquids/gels/etc.etc. means I have to be ruthless in selecting essentials - particularly as regular medications are not always available from pharmacies at my destination.
Got to use repellent for the actual journey, as biting insects are often around on plane and at transit airport etc., and they are eagerly awaiting their favourite food - ME - when I land in semi-tropical darkness.
Need to put repellent on under stockings - and renew at some time on journey, as it takes more than 12 hours door to door.
What a palaver!
Pharmacist at Boots was willing to ring Jobst, but sensibly said that their response would be that there was no research on this subject and they could not advise. I am going to risk ruining the pair of stockings worn for journey, rather than risk a nasty bout of cellulitis as a result of the pesky varmits that bite me!
It is a problem for many lympho/lipo sufferers out there - and it would be worth a manufacturer doing research on fabrics, then perhaps marketing garments that were not damaged by Deet products. Worldwide, there must be a need for such compression garments. Let's hope someone picks up on this.
Perhaps someone who reads our input/question will ask the manufacturers - I am scrambling around ready to depart, and running out of time, otherwise I would give it a go.
Thanks for your interest, Norbert.
P.S. Sorry, Norberte, but forgot to answer your question re: destination. Am off to the North of Cyprus, to the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus - which is not recognised worldwide as being a country. Complicated politics, warring factions of Greek Cypriots/Turkish Cypriots in 1970s and for years before that. Terrible attrocities. Island divided into Greek, Christian South - recognised as 'Cyprus' worldwide, except by Turkey - and Turkish Cypriot, Muslim North. I am very much on the 'side' of the underdogs of the conflict - the Turkish Cypriots, who were treated abominably by the Greek authorities - and I remember only too well the time of Eoka, Makarios and the murder of British servicemen (and, in one instance, the fatal shooting of a young British wife of a serviceman, shot in the back whilst doing her shopping in Nicosia) - but the Greek side get a better press and are extremely good at justifying their very whitewashed version of events and getting favourable coverage in worldwide media.
It is hot and humid there at the moment. I am travelling not for a holiday, but to close down a rented flat I have there and to ship my effects back here. Very kind and generous brother has helped me to fund this treat - but I can no longer afford it, and with the added worry of my 'new' lymphoedema diagnosis, I would not be able to stay there easily in the hotter months, thereby paying for a flat that would be unoccupied for much of the year.
At my advanced age - 70 - and several silly ailments - I can do without sandfly bites/mozzie bites etc. that lead to more cellulitis - so will perhaps confine my visits to the gentler winter months. Sad, very sad - as my personal and social life is definitely linked very strongly to Northern Cyprus.
Lovely place in the less developed areas, lovely people. Fantastic weather. Ah me!
Best wishes.
oh, legseleven, what a huge loss for you
& i don't mean a ruined pair of jobsts!
hope it goes well, & that the mozzies are kind when it comes to cellulitis watch
Thanks again, Norberte! A very tiny loss in comparison to so many people who live with the worst of the range of lympho-related conditions.
As most emollients react with compression garment fabric over time, I would avoid putting Deet based products on skin which is going to be confined in a garment - but slather over other exposed areas, yes. You could apply a spray version briefly over the garment, if essential. I would make sure that I have antibiotics in my cabin baggage - just in case of any major hiccups with the hold luggage - then if cellulitis should rear it's ugly head as you land at your destination, then you have them ready.
Thanks, Leonora!
Since my first bout of cellulitis, after nasty insect bites, I have numerous medications prescribed by my dermatologist - kept at my rented flat and in my cabin luggage. I always have the necessary 'post bite' care in my handbag at all times - always in 'Girl Guide mode'!
I have been told quite clearly that insects bite through compression garments, and it is a question of assessing risks and making choices.
Having asthma causes breathing problems with the Deet sprays, but, again, it's a balancing act.
Thank you for your input and suggestions.
Morning BigLeg! Thanks for input.
Since being diagnosed with asthma about 10 years ago, I have a severe allergic reaction to insects that bite me when I am in the Med. Sand flies in particular, or 'No-See-Ums' are a dreaded pest, even for the locals. Research by various scientists has shown that there are always certain individuals who are bitten more than other people, when in exactly the same situations. I just say I must taste good!
I have to use insect repellents, that's just the way it is. Epi-Pen may be another accessory in the future, but in the meantime I stick to the best insect repellents I can find.
Hi LegsEleven
I'm a keen gardener and bird watcher in Scotland. I wouldn't go near Deet based products.
Invented by US military and lots of side effects reported.
I use natural products such as neem, tea tree and citronella.
Lots of sprays and creams available online. Take a look for example at theneemteam.co.uk
Their Herbal Outdoor Spray developed in Florida Everglades. I doubt natural products such as neem will harm stockings - mine seem ok. These natural oils are used in baby products, soaps, shampoos etc.
Try a 'patch test' on old stockings maybe.
Hope this is of use.
Thank you, Pete, for your answer to my question, and for the information about natural products.
I know too much about Deet - didn't want to use it in any format. For years I was fine with natural products, particularly Neem. Had citronella candles, coils, oils etc., used tea tree oil, adding it to daily toiletries too. Then started to be bitten very often, despite all my usual precautions. Dermatologist said to try Deet, and for a while I had good protection with low Deet products, until that too stopped working.
Now I just do the best I can with a 34% Deet cream/lotion, 3M's Ultrathon 12 hour protection, which seemed to work well last year.
I tried Avon's 'Skin so Soft', which some people regard as a miracle lotion against midges, mozzies et al - but it didn't work for me at all. Neither did 'Incognito', after I bought the whole range of their products.
As I have an extreme allergic reaction to bites of the sandfly , or the dreaded 'no-see-'ums' - which are around in the daytime, I have decided to keep using Ultrathon this year, as that did work well in 2012.
I have mosquito nets, fly screens, plug-ins with the tablets (the liquids do not work when the air con is on at night, and air con is essential in temperatures over 90plus and debilitating humidity) - so I think there is really little more I can do.
Haven't got any old compression stockings, as was only diagnosed with lymphoedema recently. As my lymphoedema may be a result of insect bites - you can imagine that I am going to use anything that will stop me being bitten!
What works for one human being may not work for another. I will reluctantly stick with the Deet for the time being, until a non-Deet product is marketed as having been subject to clinical trials that show it works well for a high percentage of volunteer testers in a variety of climates and habitats.
I dislike the nasty, chemical smell of Deet - and am aware of the risks, but it is a question of balancing one risk against another, Pete. Years ago I would have advised anyone to avoid Deet and to try the lovely, natural products I used myself. Now I just avoid giving any advice, except that people talk to their GP or their dermatologist, both of whom could point them to the latest clinical research, available on line in edited versions.
I have asthma, and have to use inhaled steroids - which I did not want to use because I knew of the long-term effects in many cases, but the alternative was to risk life-threatening breathing problems.
Thank you for the time and care in replying to my question. I appreciate your input, which may be of help to many people on this site.
LegsEleven
Just wondering if covering your body with loose clothing, wouldn't protect you against being bitten by insects without the need of adding chemicals to your skin. I found out once that I suffered less from the heat (sorry it's nothing to do about lymphoedema), while visiting a hot country in the summer, when I was wearing long sleeves and covered up to the neck. I normally used to wear the most open tops so as, so I thought, to allow my body to 'breathe'. Insects might not be able to get to the skin if you were to wear the baggy type of trousers that Turks, I think, wear. They are elasticated at the bottom, if I'm not mistaken.
Hi, I live in australia and we r all told not to put any repellents near our garments as they will fall apart. Only treat exposed skin and wear loose cotton clothes over garments to keep bugs away. I too am an insect buffet and find that using unscented deodorant makes me less appetising to some bugs. Hope this helps.
I agree with you wendyjames. I recently went backpacking and the guides told us to NEVER put deet inside a bear canister because it degrades plastic. That was an epiphany to me because I had observed that when I apply DEET to my compression sleeve it seems to stretch out where the DEET contacts the sleeve. Now I know I was not imagining it, and that it is in fact the DEET, and not the propellant that causes the loss of elasticity. I think this should be made more widely known!
Hi, I live in australia and we r all told not to put any repellents near our garments as they will fall apart. Only treat exposed skin and wear loose cotton clothes over garments to keep bugs away. I too am an insect buffet and find that using unscented deodorant makes me less appetising to some bugs. Hope this helps.
Thank you, Wendy. I love the phrase 'insect buffet'!
I do all the loose, floaty stuffy, lots of long dresses, slacks etc. Use unscented toiletries - I am ultra careful. I have some natural products in my flat, and will mix and match and see when I am bitten ...
Then act accordingly! Thanks for input.
Dear Legs eleven - sorry for the delay in replying we have been in contact with a colleague in the compression manufacturer business and they have given us the following response
'Yes DEET Is a great repellent, there is nothing in there that would harm compression, the only things that will harm compression is heat if the garment contains latex (although not all garments do) and fabric conditioners if the product has a breathability (wickability) as the conditioner blocks the pores of the material and therefore it would not be able to wick effectively and therefore the limb will feel hot and uncomfortable.
Hope this helps
Thank you for your information from a reliable source, and for taking the time to do this for me.
I was lucky enough to see my local Lymphoedema nursing team yesterday, to be shown how to use Farrow feet wraps etc., and I asked the nurse what she thought about Deet/compression etc. She said nothing heard about Deet damaging garments, and I said I would try it out with my least favourite stockings.
Going to do this and will report back to the site when I return.
Need to close down this question now, as I will not be able to answer all the responses from those kind enough to take the time to do this. Most grateful to you all.
Sorry no solution from me but I do appreciate your Q&A's as I also am ultra sensitive to insect bites and will be off to Majorca in September armed with all my preventatives. One that works well for me is bathing morning & evening with a Dettol solution - that seems to keep the wee b*****s away better than any of the usual products. The medical smell goes away in 10 minutes. enjoy your time in the sun.
My answer is yes, it definitely does melt the fabric. I visited Greece a couple of years ago and got only a drop on the sleeve and it instantly melted the fabric.
I can't agree more with you, but look where cancer has brought some of us to, we have to take for five, and now the doctors are talking about five years, a medicine that is changing the way our body works!
Deet damages synthetics, according to this article and many others. (outsideonline.com/2314296/c... and I have observed that it has damaged my compression sleeves.
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does the NHS have such a thing as a Lymphoedema practitioner? my local area health authority obviously havnt heard of it if they do!!
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