If you’ve ever felt like you’re a mosquito magnet while your friends remain untouched, you’re not imagining it. Scientists have long known that mosquitoes are selective in who they bite. Factors like body odor, genetics, and carbon dioxide levels all play a role. But a growing body of research now suggests that your diet might be part of the equation too. From bananas to beer, what you eat may actually shape how attractive you are to these tiny bloodsuckers.
What Science Is Starting To Show
One of the most talked-about links between food and mosquito bites is alcohol, specifically beer. Several studies have shown that beer drinkers seem to attract more mosquitoes than non-drinkers.
The exact reason isn’t fully understood, but it might have to do with subtle changes in body odor or temperature after drinking. A 2021 review in Current Research in Parasitology and Vector Borne Diseases noted:
“It is still necessary to investigate whether the consumption of other alcoholic beverages…has the same effect on the attractiveness to mosquitoes.”
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Bananas have also made headlines. A 2018 study in the journal Insects found that people who ate bananas were more likely to be approached by the biting insects. The effect didn’t increase with the number of bananas consumed, which suggests that even a small amount might be enough to trigger something in the body that mosquitoes pick up on.
Green grapes, tested in the same study, didn’t show the same result, making them a safer snack choice if you’re trying to steer clear of bites.
Fermented and dairy-based foods are another area of interest. A 2023 study in PLOS One revealed that people whose body odor contains high levels of carboxylic acids, like butyric, isobutyric, and isovaleric acids, tend to attract more the blood-feeding insect. These compounds are often linked to foods like milk, butter, yogurt, cheese, and fermented vegetables such as kimchi or sauerkraut.
Herbs, Smells, and Mosquitoes: What Really Works?
While some foods seem to attract mosquitoes, others may do the opposite. Garlic and onions have long been believed to act as natural repellents. The idea is that the strong sulfur compounds they release might deter mosquitoes in the same way they repel people during a conversation. But the evidence is weak.
More promising results have come from research into herbs and spices. Dr. Conor McMenamin, assistant professor at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, observed that they tended to avoid people with higher levels of eucalyptol in their scent.
This compound is found naturally in ingredients like mint, basil, rosemary, sage, and cardamom, and it even appears in things like cough drops and herbal teas. While it’s not strong enough to work as a repellent on its own, it might influence how these tiny bitters perceive certain individuals, especially in outdoor settings.
Based on current research, cutting out certain foods that seem to increase your appeal to mosquitoes might help a little, but don’t count on it to make a dramatic difference. Eating garlic, for example, isn’t going to act like some kind of natural mosquito repellent. As Dr. Sonia Swiger, professor of entomology at Texas A&M University, explained:
“While some of these things can alter the attraction of a mosquito to you, I don’t think any of them have a large enough impact that we would want to completely alter our diets in a way that would be like, ‘Oh, this will keep mosquitoes from biting me.’”
