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Why me?

C

Caezar

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Jun 9, 2004
270
2
Between a rock and a hard place
Mosquitoes are attracted to me like flies to a pile of dung. It does not matter how many people are surrounding me. If there is a mosquito in the room, I'll be the one that gets stung.

Why is it so? I did some research on internet, but I could not find ny explanation on why some people seem to attract mosquitoes more than others.

Has it something to do with body temperature? With the level of sugar in the blood? With a person's fragrance?

Caezar
 
MacBoobsPro

MacBoobsPro

macrumors 603
Jan 10, 2006
5,114
6
Mosquitos keep an online directory of good 'watering holes'. You must be 5 stars or something. I however must be 1 or not even worth listing. :D
 
Mitthrawnuruodo

Mitthrawnuruodo

Moderator emeritus
Mar 10, 2004
13,845
232
Bergen, Norway
I can sympathize with the OP.

I get mosquito bites all year round, I've actually gotten bites in both December, January and February, which should be impossible due to the climate in Norway, but if one frelling mosquito somehow survives the winter you can bet it finds me. :(

Regularly, during summer, I wake up with 5-6-7 (or even more) bites, while my girlfriend, sleeping in the same bed, gets none**... :mad:

I hate all mosquitoes... DDT should never have been banned... :p

** Not that I really wish for her to get 'bitten', but it's bloody annoying that all those mosquitoes have a feast on my blood and leaves her completely alone... ;)
 
mgargan1

mgargan1

macrumors 65816
Feb 22, 2003
1,218
0
Reston, VA
taken from wikipedia...

The females of blood sucking species locate their victims primarily through scent. They are extremely sensitive to the carbon dioxide in exhaled breath, as well as several substances found in sweat. Some people seem to attract mosquitoes more than others. Empirical studies of mosquito bites suggest that the risk of being bitten follows an approximately negative binomial distribution. Being male, being overweight, and having type 'O' blood may increase the risk of being bitten. Mosquitoes can detect heat, so they can find warm-blooded mammals and birds very easily once they get close enough.
 
lmalave

lmalave

macrumors 68000
Nov 8, 2002
1,614
0
Chinatown NYC
Everyone gets bitten, some just feel it more than others

A more likely explanation is that the people with you are getting bitten but don't have as strong a reaction to the bite. The reason a mosquito bite gets swollen and itches is basically because your body is allergic to the substance that a mosquito secretes into your skin right before they draw blood. So it sounds like in your case, your skin is just more sensitive.
 
comictimes

comictimes

macrumors 6502a
Jun 20, 2004
874
1
Berkeley, California
mgargan1 said:
taken from wikipedia...

The females of blood sucking species locate their victims primarily through scent. They are extremely sensitive to the carbon dioxide in exhaled breath, as well as several substances found in sweat. Some people seem to attract mosquitoes more than others. Empirical studies of mosquito bites suggest that the risk of being bitten follows an approximately negative binomial distribution. Being male, being overweight, and having type 'O' blood may increase the risk of being bitten. Mosquitoes can detect heat, so they can find warm-blooded mammals and birds very easily once they get close enough.
Click to expand...
Hm that's strange, I don't know about our blood types but in my family my dad and I (I'm a guy) never get bitten by mosquitos, while my mom and sister get bitten all the time. Very odd.
 
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