People loveBombshell , the substantially - selling fragrance atVictoria ’s Secret , for its summery blend of fruity and floral billet . Not everyone is a huge devotee , though : AsQuartzreports , the perfume is astonishingly good at warding off mosquitoes . In fact , it ’s almost as effective as DEET dirt ball repellent , according to the effect of a 2014experimentby researchers at New Mexico State University .
Researchers took 10 products that are commercially available and tested their ability to disgust two different specie of mosquitoes : the yellow fever mosquito ( Aedes aegypti ) and the Asian tiger mosquito ( Aedes albopictus ) , both of which are know to convey diseases like dengue fever , chikungunya , and chickenhearted febricity . In doing so , volunteers subjected their own build to the test by placing their hands on either side of a Y - shaped tube comprise the profligate - suck critters . One deal was compensate in a synthetic synthetic rubber glove , while the other hand was sprayed with one of the mathematical product but otherwise allow for bare . Researchers memorialize which burrow the mosquito flew to , and how long they avoided the other goal .
Three of the products contained DEET , while four mathematical product did n’t . In addition , there were two fragrances ( include Bombshell ) and one vitamin B1 skin patch . The DEET production were the most effective , but Bombshell proved to be nearly as good , keeping mosquito at bay for rough two hours .
“ There was some previous lit that said fruity , floral scents draw mosquitoes , and to not don those , ” Stacy Rodriquez , one of the study ’s writer , say in astatement . “ It was interesting to see that the mosquitoes were n’t actually attract to the person that was wearing the Victoria ’s unavowed fragrance — they were beat back by it . ”
This is n’t the first time a perfume has had an unintended impression on the natural world . It turn out that Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam are obsessed with Calvin Klein’sObsession for hands cologne , part because it bear a celluloid version of civetone , a pheromone that ’s secreted by secretory organ located near acivet ’s anus . This substance was once used tocreatemusky aroma , but now the scent is mostly reproduced in a lab . Still , the phony stuff must be pretty convincing , because big cat go mad when they catch a puff of it .
[ h / tQuartz ]
