When approaching this there are two things we need to prepare, firstly a repellent and secondly a skin relieving blend in case they still manage to get through our defenses.
Essential oils that have traditionally been classified as insect repellents include citronella, bergamot, tea tree, litsea cubeba, cedarwood, melissa, peppermint, aniseed and patchouli.
When we look at many of the essential oils that are considered to be particularly good against mosquitoes, like Citronella, Eucalyptus citriodora (lemon eucalyptus), Lemongrass, Litsea Cubeba (May Chang), Leptospermum petersonii (lemon scented tea tree) and Melissa, we see that they all contain the aldehyde citronellal. This aldehyde is known to have insect repellent qualities so it would be a good idea to include oils containing it in an insect repellent synergy.
The first building block of essential oil chemistry are the hydrocarbons. In a hydrocarbon, like monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes, diterpenes the structures are made up entirely of carbon and hydrogen atoms. However once an additional atom or group of atoms links onto one of these carbons it causes the molecular structure of the hydrocarbon to change. It is the part of the structure that links onto the carbon which is more vulnerable to change than the rest of the structure and this vulnerable or ‘reactive’ part of the structure is called its functional group.
A functional group is a small part of an organic molecule consisting of a single atom or group of atoms that substitutes for a hydrogen atom and has an effect on the properties of the molecule as a whole. It is the chemically active centre of the molecule. For example in the alcohol family the functional part of its structure is the –OH part. You will therefore immediately know that if a chemical constituent is an alcohol it will have this –OH in its structure and that it is likely to react chemically in a certain way. Chemists classify chemical constituents into families according to their functional groups. Therefore knowing the chemical family will give one information about the chemical constituent’s likely chemical behavior. Functional groups include phenols, alcohols, aldehydes, ketones, esters, ethers and oxides.
Citronellal is an aldehyde with the chemical formula C10H18O and has a lemony odor. It is obtained especially from citronella oil and is used in perfumery and as an insect repellent.
As mentioned the aldehyde citronellal, pictured here, is found in citronella (around 35%), melissa (around 7%) and lemon eucalyptus (around 80%). It has a strong, citrus and coarsely rose-like odor that is characteristic of citronella and has antiseptic, bactericidal, embryotoxic, insectifuge, perfumery, sedative properties.
Citronellal has insect repellent properties, and research shows high repellent effectiveness against mosquitoes.
Jeong-Kyu KIM, Chang-Soo KANG, Jong-Kwon LEE, Young-Ran KIM, Hye-Yun HAN, Hwa Kyung YUN (2005). "Evaluation of Repellency Effect of Two Natural Aroma Mosquito Repellent Compounds, Citronella and Citronellal". Entomological Research 35 (2): 117–120.
Research has also shown that citronellal has strong antifungal qualities.
Kazuhiko NAKAHARA, Najeeb S. ALZOREKY1 , Tadashi YOSHIHASHI, Huong T. T. NGUYEN and Gassinee TRAKOONTIVAKORN (2003). "Chemical Composition and Antifungal Activity of Essential Oil from Cymbopogon nardus (Citronella Grass)". JARQ 37 (4).
The one caution one needs to keep in mind when working with aldehydes is that they can be irritating on the skin so it is a good idea to include some oils in the synergy with skin healing type properties. One of the reasons that Patchouli makes a good addition to any Insect Repellent synergy is that the Patchouli alcohol (around 32%) found in this oil is thought to contribute to the anti-itching properties of the oil. Also beta-caryophyllene (around 20%) has known anti-inflammatory effects.
Are you ready to learn more about the use of essential oils? As always the self-directed home study Aromatherapy Courses are available. When you are ready they are only a click away, a click that will lead you into a world filled with information, self-growth and delight! Perhaps they will be a gift you give yourself this year!
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1 comments:
Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus (OLE) is another alternative for repellent. OLE is the only plant based product approved by the EPA and CDC for use as a repellent. It is proven to work as well as DEET, but since it is naturally derived it is much safer. Cutter and Repel both make an Oil of Eucalyptus product and they work great!
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