West Nile Virus, Anyone Else Worried?

I am not worried at all. Just use common sense. The media always goes nuts with things like this. Statistically the chances are incredibly small that he would contract it. Most people do not have symptoms at all.

I live in the DFW and we have a nasty outbreak. I think you are being wise to be cautious. My son's friend had the virus a few years ago and still suffers the effects.
I personally am not worried. I haven't had a mosquito bite in almost 20 years. I don't think either of my boys have ever had one. I bathed them and myself in Shaklee's Basic H and we take B complex and garlic.
You may think it is because we haven't lived near mosquitoes, but that is not the case. Before this regimen, I was a magnet for them.
I would never put poison on my children-- I hate the bug spray. If that were the only option, I would avoid going outside when mosquitoes are active.

oh my dear, you just can't keep the child in. the world is a hazardous place. always has been. but the hazards of trying to avoid its pitfalls are far greater than the pitfalls you're trying to avoid.
get him a hat, and tuck a dryer sheet into it. (i have one in the hatband of my straw hat whenever i'm doing barn chores or gardening, but then i'm an eccentric old bat!) you can even get ones that have a little screen mesh that can cover his face if you're really panicked, but i promise you he won't keep it on until he's older!
reasonable precautions. bug spray on his clothes (not his skin!), make sure you don't have mosquito breeding spots on your property, citronella candles burning on your patio and so forth, but not hiding inside! you're lucky you have beautiful wooded walks, take advantage of them.
khairete
S.

I am in the DFW area where there have been deaths, aerial spraying as well as trucks spraying. No specific spraying in my town though.

I am on a large wooded lot, backup up to a nature preserve with wildlife.

NO, I have not changed my routine, NO I do not worry about this. Many of the people who have died from it are older and have other issues as well.

Use some bug spray on your little one and enjoy life without worrying about all the what if's. You can't keep him in a bubble all his life.

I also believe a HUGE amount of this is media hype just to pur fear in those prone to live in fear. They have to make money somewhere!!

Like someone else mentioned, educate yourself and drop the worries. There will always be something that the media is hyping up.

One thing you want to do is *not* be frightened by what's in the media. It's their job to make the news big and scary so you'll keep watching that station.

Yes, West Nile is nasty and there's a lot of it, but your expert adviser on this should be your doctor. He or she can tell you how bad it is in your particular area and how best to protect your family. Most doctors' offices certainly don't mind getting calls with questions like yours. They've probably had several already.

Garlic, huh? I never knew!

It's defiantly getting more press right now than it has over the last 10 or 15 years but it's nothing new.
People are more anxious over this than your average flu and I think flu can be more dangerous to a wider range of people.
If you catch WNV, most people don't even know they have it or they feel like they have a mild flu.
If your immune system is weak (you have HIV or have had a transplant) then sure, be really careful and stay inside.
We use Off, we eat a lot of garlic anyway and try to stay inside during peak mosquito times (dawn and dusk) but that's all we do.
We're outside and gardening and doing what we normally do and sometimes we get bit.

I'm a little worried -- especially since there have been confirmed cases of West Nile in my area.

But most people don't die from the virus. In fact, I would be willing to bet that a lot of peope have/have had it, and they think it is just another ordinary cold or flu. I think the elderly, very young babies (like younger than 3 months old), and people with compromised immune systems are the most vulnerable.

I'd say I'm more worried about getting bitten by ANY mosquito since they love me, and I tend to get allergic reactions to their bites. Same goes for my daughter.

Have you seen those Off! mosquito repellant fans? Maybe you can attach one or two to your son's stroller to see if that helps. Good luck!

It has been in the news a LOT lately. But I seem to recall somewhere in the midst of all the reporting that Texas has been the hardest hit with it, because the mosquitos that are carriers are more plentiful there for some reason.

There have been a few cases where we are (southern GA) over the past couple of years, but since our family all has healthy immune systems and are not immunocompromised in any way, I don't worry too much. I also don't have a toddler or elderly persons to worry about day to day here.

You probably are worried beyond what is reasonable. Just take precautions (like Suz T mentioned) and live your life. :)

I'm not concerned. If there is something going around that suggests less time outside or to take a cancer-causing substance to try and avoid it (DEET), I just plain ignore it because I will not alter my lifestyle for something like that. I've gotten bit a lot this year- in one day I counted 18 bites a couple weeks ago (yuck). My kids have gotten bit a little as well. In our county (Prince William county, VA), there have been several mosquitoes that tested positive for West Nile. I refuse to fear it, and refuse to change my plans because of it.

It is rare that West Nile does anything to someone that gets it in the first place... Something can happen anytime in our lives, when it is my time, it is my time... I won't be careless, but I also won't be a frightened hermit.

We use DEET-free insect repellant... and we do try and stay away from times/places that have a lot of mosquitoes... but that is mainly so we don't have to deal with the itchy bites. We have not changed our habits this year from the last year or the year before.

BTW, They hate garlic... If you eat a good amount of garlic, they will most certainly stay away from you ...but possibly, people will stay away, too- garlic can be smelled through your pores if you eat enough:)

For an immediate effect, give him a garlic pill. Since I sarted taking a garlic pill, I have been almost ignored by mosquitos.

I had a house on the border of a 400 acre park. The park was in Arkansas and it had springs, ponds, and a creek. The mosquitos were so numerous you could actually see swarms of them. They were like a cloud of mosquitos. I bought a large bugwacker. (get half acre or larger size) Hang the bug wacker between your house and the source of the mosquitos. Place the bugwacker about face high. I had a 100 foot extension cord and that enabled me to hang the bug wacker about 75' from my home. I went to my local butcher and bought some fresh beef liver and I asked for extra blood. (Yes, the butcher looked at me like I was crazy.)

I put the liver, the beef blood and its styrofoam tray and attached it to the bottom of the bugwacker. I then plugged the bugwacker in. The next morning, I couldn't see the light in the bug wacker for all the mosquitos in the grid. I unplugged the bug wacker and cleaned out the grid. Then I plugged it back in. Over the next two weeks, I cleaned two or more cups of mosquits out of the bug wacker grid EACH DAY ! By the end of two weeks I could see just a little of the bug wacker light. At the end of the month, I could walk around outside after dark and not be constantly bothered by mosquitos.

No mosquitos = No west nile virus. If you get your neighbors together and everyone set up bug wackers like I described above, you'll find the change amazing.

Good luck to you and yours.

I have never tried this but I have heard that mosquitoes will stay away if you spray Listerine around you. You must use the original flavor. I would dress my kids in lightweight long sleeves and long pants if I was concerned. Keep enjoying your walks, its good for both of you.

Regards,
R.

i just figured we should make sure and wear mosquito repellant...

but i'm still trying to figure out how it's become so prevalent, with this huge draught? cuz don't mosquitoes breed in standing water? there IS none.

so i don't think i'm going to freak out about it...it could be something like, the mosquito population is 1/10th of what it was, but the percentage of WNV infected mosquitoes is up to 20%....or something. they can find numbers for anything, you know?

in the end we can either hide inside, or go outside and take the precautions that make sense. ya know?

I would not stop my routine. First if I was as worried as you sound I would educate myself on the many ways to protect myself and children. What else can I do.

Then I would educate myself on the symptoms so that in the event prevention just didn't work I would know immediately that I need to go to the doctor for assistance.
I do this for any illness that seems to be on the rise.

Then I would go have fun the same way we do all the time. Which is sounds like you are doing the first above by already using spray and asking here.

ETA: It has only rained less than two inches in our city in two months...we don't have standing water for them to flourish with...I've hardly seen any this year...but then it's been so hot that we have not spent a lot of time outside. So no not too worried here. Enough thought that we use bug spray just in case.

I would say in NY you're being paranoid. The cases are happening in the south, and even where they're happening, they're extremely rare. I heard the most serious "outbreak" is in Dallas, where 6 people have died (41 have died in the country); more than half of the cases have occurred in Texas alone. Don't get me wrong, it's horrible, but 35,000 people die every year from the flu, just to put it in perspective. Your chances of getting West Nile are pretty much your chance of getting struck by lightening. I try to avoid getting bitten by mosquitoes in general, but I haven't taken any different precautions this year.

I would not change my routine but use some kind of bug spray. I don't worry about things like this, the media makes everything worse then it really is.

I don't think you are being paranoid. I read the report yesterday where there were around 1100 something cases so far this year. August is peak season and most of those cases will not be reported until next month. Out of the current 1100, 75% of the cases are in Texas, Louisiana, & Mississippi. Well I live in Louisiana :) Yay!

I am being much more cautious this year. But I'm not changing myy schedule or my sons (he's 4 and loves to play outside). I just make sure he always has bug spray on, lots of it. I also keep the fans on that are on my back porch. For some reason they keep mosquitos away :) If it is in the evenings, I light the tiki torches and use the bug repellant in them.

Try using the adult repellant on him instead of the baby stuff. I assure you it isn't going to hurt him. I started using it on mine whenever I saw the baby kind didn't work. I use the Cutter brand now. Or Off Deep woods.

I skimmed through that article and yeah, I'm a little worried about it. My kids love to play outside and I have been putting on OFF Deep woods on them. The mosquitos here by my house are just awful. If you miss even a speck of spray on you, they will flock to that area and attack! I have been putting it on my son on his arms and legs and right now he has about 6 or 7 bites on his face because I don't want to spray his face :( I have around 7 bites on my feet right now too and that is even WITH the bug spray on. I wish I could move back to CA right now just because they bugs are horrible here. No mosquitos where I used to live!

Try some of those clip on bug repellants. My sister lives in a very rural setting with the Sacramento River right behind her house. The mosquitos are horrible! We clip the clip-on repellant to our chair and we are not bothered by the mosquitos!

I should be, but the season is almost over here. Funny thing is that if my hubby is outside with my son and I, the bugs never bother my son and me. They are too busy feasting on my hubby! Cant' figure out why, since we all eat garlic.The only thing my son and I eat, that hubby doesn't, is oregano.