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Article: Dangers of both DEET and insect bites exaggerated, experts say.(Originated from The Providence Journal-Bulletin)
- Article from:
- Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service
- Article date:
- August 1, 1997
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1997 Knight-Ridder/Tribune News Service. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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PROVIDENCE, R.I. _ When you spray your kids with bug spray, or lather them up with one of the new sunscreens that include an insect repellent, are you keeping them safe from Lyme disease and Eastern Equine Encephalitis or are you exposing them to a far greater risk?
Experts agree that the most effective agent against mosquito and tick bites is DEET, (N,N-Diethyl-meta-toluamide) a chemical that has scared parents with perhaps the most feared side effect of them all: brain seizures.
But while the risk of contracting the lethal Eastern Equine Encephalitis is somewhat exaggerated in people's minds, so are the dangers of DEET, the experts say.
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