How to Avoid Chiggers

Chiggers are not insects, but tiny mites that are approximately 1/50 inch long. Even though they're hard to see, they can do plenty of damage if they attach to your body, leaving itchy, festering red welts.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

• Long Pants
• Long-sleeved Shirts
• Socks
• Antibacterial Soaps
• Insect Repellents
• Rubbing Alcohol
• Sulfur Powders

1. Wear a long-sleeved shirt and long pants. Tuck the pants inside your socks, and tuck the shirt into your pants. Also, be sure your shoes don't have any spots with mesh ventilation, or chiggers could get in there.
2. Spray insect repellent containing DEET (diethyl toluamide) on your shoes and around your ankles, socks and waist.
3. Buy 100 percent sulfur powder at a pharmacy. Before heading outside, sprinkle some sulfur powder around your ankles, waist and underarms. This is remarkably effective against chiggers.
4. Avoid walking through waist-high weeds, brushing against thickets and tall grass, and sitting down in the grass.
5. Undress immediately after your exposure to chigger habitat and take a warm, soapy shower. Pay special attention to scrubbing the areas around your ankles, waistline, underarms and anywhere there are folds or creases in your skin.
6. Wipe the "chigger hot spots" (ankles, waistline) down with a bit of rubbing alcohol.
7. Have someone examine you for chiggers. Remember that they're extremely tiny, but if you find one soon after being outside, you can remove it before it starts biting.
8. Wash the clothes you wore outside before putting them on again.

Tips & Warnings

• Chigger season in the United States generally runs from early spring to late summer.
• Chiggers are also called red bugs because of their bright red-orange color. It's the larvae that attack humans.
• Although chigger bites are extremely irritating, chiggers are not known to cause any diseases in the United States.
• If you've been bit by a chigger, the site will typically start itching like mad after a few hours. The irritation can last up to two weeks. See "How to Recognize Chigger Bites," under Related eHows, for information on how to recognize and treat the bites.
• Fill an old sock with sulfur powder, tie it off at the top, and pat the sock against your ankles and waist to leave a small amount of powder without making a mess.
• Some commercial products to use for chiggers are Chigg-away and Chigarid.
• Read the label carefully on insect repellents containing DEET. Generally, repeated application is not recommended for a child, and other cautions may apply.