Find out why mosquitos are choosy biters

See if this sounds familiar: You and your friends are hanging out in your backyard having a good time, perhaps eating some burgers, maybe enjoying a cocktail, when all of a sudden you feel that familiar sting. You slap your arm, but it’s too late; you’ve been bitten by a mosquito. You notice that a few of your friends are also battling the buzzing insects, but not all of them. What gives?

Well, it turns out that mosquitos are actually picky about who they decide to bite. While most of us would probably make a good meal (or our blood will, anyway), some of us taste better than others. If mosquitos are constantly biting you, it could be for any of these six reasons:

You do a lot of exercising (or at least sweating)

When we sweat, we expel lactic and uric acids as well as ammonia, which mosquitos are attracted to. The little buggers are also more likely to get you if you naturally have a higher body temperature.

You have their favorite blood type

If you have Type O blood, sorry, but mosquitos love you. A study found that mosquitos landed on folks with Type O blood almost twice as much as those with Type A blood. In addition, if you secrete a chemical signal indicating which type of blood you have (which about 85 percent of people do), mosquitos are more likely to pick you, no matter which type you are.

You’re a beer drinker

According to one study, a 12-ounce bottle of beer can make you very appealing to a mosquito (drinking it, not offering it to the mosquito). Why this is the case, nobody really knows. Researchers initially thought it was because the beer increased the amount of ethanol in sweat or due to the rise in body temperature, though neither factor was found to play a role.

You wear colors that make you stand out

In addition to scent, mosquitos also use their eyes to scout out their victims. And if your wardrobe consists of colors like black and red, it is making you stand out like a flashing roadside diner.

You breathe a lot

When we exhale, we emit carbon dioxide, which is something mosquitos use when they decide who to go after. Plus, they can smell it from over 160 feet away. One of the reasons why kids don’t get bit as much as adults is because they don’t exhale as much.

You’re pregnant

Research has shown that pregnant women get about twice as many mosquito bites as everybody else. This is due to a couple of factors. First, pregnant women are typically warmer than other people, and they also exhale more carbon dioxide.

While there are a few lifestyle changes you could possibly make to ward off mosquitos, you can’t fight genetics. This is why you need to be proactive about controlling mosquitos in your yard. A misting system is an excellent solution because it pretty much operates on its own. All you have to do is turn it on and your backyard barbecues won’t get any unexpected bitey visitors.

For more information on having a misting system installed at your home, get in touch with Platinum Mosquito Protection.