Why do mosquitoes bite me more than other people?

[hypatia]

I can be outdoors in a group of people..and get eaten alive..and when I complain, the people around me say "what mosquitos"? This has happened to me sense I was a child. WHY ME?

 

[Math Is Hard]

because you're sweet?

 

[Bystander]

It's all the fresh fruits and fruit juices in your diet.

 

[Moonbear]

I had just seen an article on this recently, suggesting it was genetic...I can't recall which way it worked though. I think it was that some people naturally produce something that is repellent to the mosquitoes while others don't. Those that don't get bitten by all the mosquitos, but I'd have to check on that. It could have been the other way around, that some people produce something mosquitoes find attractive.

Edit: Here it is...some people are naturally repulsive to mosquitos.
http://msnbc.msn.com/id/6847440/

 

[hypatia]

Thank you so much! That link does explain a lot, and I look forward to a less harmful toxic repellant.

lol@ being sweet

 

[PerennialII]

Great link ... explains the greatest inconvenience I've been always had when hiking ... ... just speed up the R&D.

 

[matthyaouw]

I hear some people are more prone to feeling bites than others, so it is possible that you and your friends get bitten the same abount, but you notice it more than they do.

 

[PerennialII]

Always a possibility, but for example when hiking you develop a sort of an "immunity" for the bites in a few days when getting loads of them, so the overall level of discomfort goes down ... the number of bites remains.

 

[Moonbear]

I didn't find it particularly comforting to know the reason I get mosquito-bitten is that I don't smell bad to mosquitoes.

Yes, I do think there are differences in how much people react to mosquito bites too, so even among those getting bitten, some get giant, almost painful welts, and others just little itchy bumps, and others don't even notice the bites are there.

 

[Bartholomew]

I've seen mosquitos hanging in the air in swarms as dense as swarms of gnats.

 

[PerennialII]

Yes, I do think there are differences in how much people react to mosquito bites too, so even among those getting bitten, some get giant, almost painful welts, and others just little itchy bumps, and others don't even notice the bites are there.

Being allergic helps quite a bit also in this department ... the initial bump size goes down like exponentially as a function of bites.

 

[Math Is Hard]

I've always wondered if you could get a mosquito bite on your mosquito bite.

 

[PerennialII]

I've always wondered if you could get a mosquito bite on your mosquito bite.

Personally attained experimental evidence suggests yes, however if the dump is large enough (as it typically seems to be) it seems they can't seem to be able to sting through the swelling (?) and they go and find a place right next to it (ouch). Information gathered from 1ks of bites, don't know whether has any general basis in reality ...

 

[heaven eye]

well first hi all
iam a new member in physicsfourms

i think mosquitos bite people be cause the follows:-
femals mosquitos only who bites people be cause it needs blood for delivery
but what i don't understand that why mosquito puts malaria into people


my regards heaven eye

 

[misskitty]

When a mosquito bites you, the reason you get a bump is because they inject poision into your body as they bite you.Thats why you swell up and an ichy bite forms. So when they bite multiple people blood and germs get mixed, so all of that gets transferred to others when they get bitten.

I'm pretty sure that's how it works.

 

[chroot]

When a mosquito bites you, the reason you get a bump is because they inject poision into your body as they bite you.

Not poison, exactly; it's saliva. It contains an anti-coagulant so your blood won't clot up while they're drinking. Your body is allergic to the saliva, and you get a bump.

- Warren

 

[arildno]

well first hi all
iam a new member in physicsfourms

i think mosquitos bite people be cause the follows:-
femals mosquitos only who bites people be cause it needs blood for delivery
but what i don't understand that why mosquito puts malaria into people


my regards heaven eye

Some mosquitoes are hosts for the malaria "bug" (a protozoon, actually).
When the mosquito bites you, the bug creeps over into you.
They like to live inside your red blood cells.

 

[beaverhausen]

A, seemingly, science based answer!

I did some looking into this because I get bit CONSTANTLY! Below is what I found (and yes, I have O+ blood).

Research in the Journal of Medical Entomology (1) demonstrated a preference by a particular type of mosquito (Aedes albopictus) for secretors of blood group O over all other blood groups, and significantly more than blood group A. The study also showed that skin treated with the blood group antigen of O blood (the H antigen, containing the disaccharide fucose) was also more attractive to the mosquitoes than skin treated with the blood group A antigen, which in turn was more attractive than skin treated with the blood group B antigen.


These mosquitoes appear to prefer one blood group in particular (blood group antigens are present in large numbers on the skin of secretors), but why is this information important?


Aedes albopictus (the Asian Tiger Mosquito) is now present in more than thirty states of the US. In the Northeast, it has been reported from York County, Pennsylvania to Cumberland, Salem, and Monmouth counties in New Jersey. The Asian tiger mosquito has demonstrated the ability to survive in states as far north as Minnesota and Delaware (2).


The Asian tiger mosquito has great potential to carry diseases into a substantial portion of the United States. In the Central region of the US, this species has been linked to the transmission of LaCrosse Encephalitis and the West Nile Virus (3). There have been several documented cases of Dengue Fever and Yellow Fever in southern Texas (4) due to the increased numbers of Aedes Albopictus in that region.


Most mosquitoes feed at dawn and dusk and rest in the foliage during the day, and will generally bite during the day only if you go into their shady resting spots. The Asian tiger mosquito however will readily leave its shady resting area to feed even in the direct sun. It is an aggressive day-biter and is most active from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. It is not a strong flyer so it does not travel far from its breeding habitat (5). It prefers to bite the foot, followed by the hand, then the face (6).


The Asian Tiger mosquito is thought to have arrived in the US in tyres (7): it is a 'container breeder', reproducing in artificial water containers such as tyres, flower pots, buckets and rain gutters, as well as natural containers such as bamboo, bromeliads, and tree holes (imported tyres are now checked for mosquitoes).


People living in certain areas of the United States may therefore be at risk of exposure to diseases not normally associated with mosquito bites, and in locations not normally associated with mosquitoes. Blood group O secretors may be at higher risk than others from bites from the Asian tiger mosquito, and should ensure that their feet, hands and face are well protected even during the day. Any recent mosquito bites should be reported to a physician when presenting with a fever.

 

[BoomBoom]

Research in the Journal of Medical Entomology (1) demonstrated a preference by a particular type of mosquito (Aedes albopictus) for secretors of blood group O over all other blood groups

Brings new meaning to the term "universal donor" eh?

 

[turbo]

There's more to this than meets the eye, though. When I go fishing the first couple of times during mosquito season, I get bitten, even though I put DEET on my shirt, hat, etc (I never put that stuff on my skin!), and after a while, it seems like I don't get bitten at all, and often don't bother with bug repellent, though people around me are getting bitten. I am O+ and mostly of French and Native American heritage, and it's almost like I develop a natural repellent against mosquitoes after getting bitten a few times.

 

[Schrodinger's Dog]

I've always wondered if you could get a mosquito bite on your mosquito bite.

I doubt mosquitos would bite the same place twice, after all the skin is now much thicker and probably impossible to penetrate, might well be harder to get blood no? No idea though really I've never got bitten in the same place twice.

I used to get bitten as a kid but when I reached adulthood I rarely if ever do? Another piece in an intriguing puzzle?

I'm A+ btw.

As to why you get bitten then not at all Turbo1? Maybe mosquitos like fresh fields, maybe they scent areas that have already received attention and avoid them, although I'm at a loss to think why, after all there's litres in us no? It's not like leeches are bothered by too much attention, or other blood suckers such as bats or fleas. They've been known to severely weaken animals, which may even kill them, which seems a disadvantage.

A really intriguing area of research I think. Me I'm just glad I got some odd immunity, because I got bitten a lot as a kid and it was not pleasant.

 

[turbo]

It's odd. I've been fly-fishing out of the same canoe with another person and they're getting bitten and I'm not. I can't explain it, though I do get bitten on my first couple of outings, usually.

 

[Monique]

It's not only mosquitos, but also fleas. When growing up there were a lot of pets around and in the summer months they'd get fleas. They'd ALWAYS bite me, while the rest of the house didn't know they were around. Mosquitos also always know how to find me and leave the person next to me alone I even manage to get stung right through the mosquito net that hangs over the bed

So in the future we'll just be injected with the insect-repellent gene that seems to protect certain individuals?

 

[Janus]

I grew up in Northern Minnesota, where it is sometimes joked that the mosquito is the state bird. I remember getting bit and getting welts.

Now, I don't react to mosquito bites at all. I can get bit and no welt will appear, nor will the site of the bite itch.

My wife, OTOH, is very sensitive to mosquite bites; one bite can produce a welt several inches across.