How does the percentage of DEET in a product relate to the amount of protection it gives?
A. Based on a recent study: • A product containing 23.8% DEET provided an average of 5 hours of protection from mosquito bites. • A product containing 20% DEET provided almost 4 hours of protection. • A product with 6.65% DEET provided almost 2 hours of protection. • Products with 4.75% DEET and 2% soybean oil were both able to provide roughly 1 hours of protection. Choose a repellent that provides protection for the amount of time that you will be outdoors. A higher percentage of DEET should be used if you will be outdoors for several hours, while a lower percentage of DEET can be used if time outdoors will be limited. You can also re-apply a product if you are outdoors for a longer time than expected and start to be bitten by mosquitoes.
The percentage DEET affects the amount of time that a single application of the product will last. Lower percentage products give the same level of protection as more concentrated products, but do not last as long. Some studies indicate that the optimum concentration is around 30%, with higher concentration products not providing much additional protection.
