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Opinion_
Are mosquito coils good or bad for our health?
20 December 2017
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How do mosquito coils work? Are they dangerous for your health? Medical entomologist Dr Cameron Webb explains.
The sight and smell of smouldering mosquito coils is a mainstay of summer. But is all that smoke really keeping away the swarms of mosquitoes, and is breathing in the smoke worse than mosquito bites for our health?

The burning of aromatic plant material to keep away swarms of mosquitoes is an integral part of many cultural traditions around the world. But it wasn’t until the early 1900s that the distinctively shaped mosquito coil was born, thanks to Japanese entrepreneurs Eiichiro and Yuki Ueyama and their katori senk (mosquito-killing incense).

While traditional coils and sticks were made from a pyrethrum paste, modern mosquito coils mostly contain either pyrethroid insecticides or plant-derived substances such as citronella. They’re cheap, portable and generally effective at reducing mosquito bites, but do they actually reduce the risks of mosquito-borne disease?

How do they work?
Mosquito coils contain a mix of substances. Along with the products that deter mosquito biting, there are also products that hold the coil together and enable it to smoulder slowly.

Mosquito coils work in one of two ways. Those that contain insecticides will kill (or at least “knock down”) mosquitoes, while those that contain aromatic substances (such as citronella) will repel mosquitoes or reduce the likelihood they’ll bite.

Mosquito coils and their role in killing or repelling mosquitoes has been well studied. Despite differences between the chemical constituents of products and the ways in which they are tested, they will generally reduce the ability of mosquitoes to bite people.

The problem is, less nuisance-biting by mosquitoes is good but when there is a risk of disease, you need to stop all mosquito bites. Are mosquito coils doing enough?

Preventing bites and disease
Mosquito-borne pathogens kill more than half a million people a year and make hundreds of thousands of people sick. Malaria is the worst of these, with recent reports from the World Health Organisation suggesting the steady improvements in the burden of disease are slowing, and the situation may even be getting worse.

Dengue continues to have wide ranging impacts. Australia has also seen record-breaking epidemics of Ross River virus disease in recent years.

To prevent public health risk associated with mosquitoes, most people have to rely on “covering up” with long-sleeved shirts and long pants, sleeping under bed nets, applying topical insect repellents or burning mosquito coils.

While there is general consensus among experts that mosquito coils may be useful in preventing mosquito-borne disease, proving mosquito-borne disease prevention is missing. A review of 15 previously published studies showed there’s no evidence burning insecticide-containing mosquito coils prevented malaria. Similar studies indicated there was no strong evidence that routine burning of mosquito coils prevented dengue risk, either.

Health concerns
There’s growing concern about the adverse health impacts associated with the burning of mosquito coils and sticks indoors. The insecticide products used are generally considered safe, but it’s the particulate matter produced from a smouldering mosquito coil that poses the greatest risk. Is it correct to conclude “burning one mosquito coil in a closed room amounts to smoking roughly 100 cigarettes” as some have claimed?

The link between smoking cigarettes and poor health outcomes is clear. What about mosquito coil smoke, especially if there’s almost daily exposure, as there is in some countries?

One study estimated the particulate matter produced from burning one mosquito coil was equivalent to burning 75-137 cigarettes. This amount of exposure poses a health risk, but there is a lack of clear evidence that the long-term exposure to mosquito coil smoke increases the risk of more serious health impacts such as lung cancer. In the face of this uncertainty, the key message should be to avoid prolonged exposure, especially in enclosed spaces.

Balancing risks
In Australia, all products that purport to kill or repel mosquitoes must be registered by the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority. Check the packaging for a registration number. There are dozens of variations on “mosquito coils”, including sticks, coils, candles and a variety of “smokeless”, plug-in devices. Fortunately, some of the more dangerous chemicals found in mosquito coils are not used in products produced and sold locally in Australia.

There’s enough evidence to show that when used outdoors, burning a mosquito coil will assist in reducing mosquito bites, but should be used judiciously. Using them in combination with topical insect repellents probably provides the best protection. Their use in closed rooms is best avoided – “smokeless” devices are worth considering as an alternative.

Recently, consumer products have been made available in Australia that contain the insecticide Metofluthrin, an insecticide shown to hold great potential for managing mosquito-borne disease. Products of this nature are better suited to indoor use than mosquito coils so may be important in controlling outbreaks of disease.

They also may help knock off that one stray mosquito in the bedroom whose annoying buzz is keeping you awake at night.

SC Johnson provided integral industry and product expertise, manufacturing, and market access, particularly in the development and production of the Mosquito Shield products used in the University of Notre Dame clinical studies.

About Mosquito Shield
The spatial repellent product was designed to be easy to use with minimal handling, which may help to increase compliance. It can be hung in semi-enclosed and enclosed spaces to continuously repel mosquitoes. Transfluthrin, the active ingredient in Mosquito Shield, passively emanates using natural airflow to protect people from mosquitoes in a specific area. This active is registered with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and is used globally in pest control products.

dean wrote:Someone was nice enough to bring down several mosquito repellents so I could test them.     Santiago is allergic to deet, so with the issues going on i wanted to find something for him.    well again thanks to you northerners bringing things to us residents of the sur.   well i can recommend  this product which is deet free.     I did a test with two people me and another friend who are both mosquito magnets to the AE dangerous mosquito in our town.    we stood there and had mosquitos all over our legs uncovered.     then we one at a time put it on and it was like magic.    

I had tried another one that did not work this morning.    

but here is the one o buy if you do not like deet.  again what is important is this works for two of us against the mosquito that can carry dengue.     $6.99


http://www.amazon.com/Guardian-Wilderness-DEET-Free-Mosquito-Repellent/dp/B00LEPD1A6/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1414203318&sr=8-1&keywords=guardian+deet+free

Guardian™ Wilderness DEET-Free 8-Hour Mosquito & Tick Repellent, 4 fl. oz. Pump Spray
by Tyratech, Inc.


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Prof. Willem Takken with one of the solar-powered traps (Credit: Wageningen University) View gallery (2 images)
Although the Zika virus may be in the headlines a lot lately, malaria is still a much more common mosquito-borne illness. That's why in many parts of the world, insecticides are used to kill the disease-carrying mozzies. Unfortunately, however, the insects can develop a tolerance for the chemicals, plus there are environmental factors to consider. Now, solar-powered traps are showing great promise, in a pilot project that took place in Kenya.

The recently-completed three-year "SolarMal" project was led by Prof. Willem Takken of the Netherlands' Wageningen University, working with colleagues from the Kenyan International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology, and the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute. The village in which the study was conducted is located on the island of Rusinga, in Lake Victoria.

Each trap was situated in a family home, and was baited with a chemical that simulates human body odor. This initially drew the mosquitos close. They were then sucked up by a 12-volt fan, and were captured in a net within the trap. There, they ultimately died of dehydration.


Because Rusinga lacks a central electrical infrastructure, the fans in the traps were powered by solar panels that were added to the roofs of the homes. These panels additionally provided power for lighting, and the charging of mobile phones.

Overall, use of the traps resulted in a 70 percent decline in the population of the most significant malaria mosquito on the island. Additionally, the proportion of people suffering from malaria was 30 percent lower in houses with the traps, than in houses that had yet to receive them.

A paper on the research was recently published in the journal The Lancet. More information is provided in the following video.

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