Mosquitos may be attracted to people using the most common brands of soap, researchers have claimed, with flowery and fruity scents being the most popular among the bugs.
Volunteers who washed with three out of four popular soaps were found to be more attractive to the biting pests, who enjoyed feasting on them.
The study suggests that rather than helping you go incognito, the fragrances within the soap could make you a more attractive target.
The study, published in the journal iScience, used four volunteers who submitted fabric samples they had worn as a sleeve while either unwashed or after washing with four different brands of soap – Dial, Dove, Native, and Simple Truth.
Washing with Dove, Dial and Simple Truth increased the attractiveness of some, but not all, volunteers, while washing with Native soap tended to repel mosquitoes.
The scientists believe the mosquitoes may be attracted to soap because, when they are not feeding on blood, they supplement their sugar intake with plant nectars.
Clément Vinauger, who led the work at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, said: “The fact we are taking those flowery, fruity smells and putting them on our bodies means that now the same object smells like a flower and a person at the same time.
“It would be like waking up and smelling something that was like both coffee and muffins. Very appealing.”
The study also found that soaps had different effects on different people, so an individual's odour may still be a deciding factor on whether you end up with bites or not.
Dr Vinauger said: “It’s remarkable that the same individual that is extremely attractive to mosquitoes when they are unwashed can be turned even more attractive to mosquitoes with one soap, and then become repellent or repulsive to mosquitoes with another soap.”
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