Deet is king. Until now, at least. A homegrown catnip cream turned out to be just as good in Uganda.
“Just as effective.”
That was the headline finding. Trials showed this stuff works. The culprit is catnip, or Nepeta cataria. It’s a common herb in the mint family. You know what it does. Felines lose their minds over nepetalactone, the chemical inside the plant. Turns out, insects hate it. But nobody really tried to bottle it before.
Malaria kills. Every year about 282 million get infected. In 2024 alone, 610,00 people died. Most were small kids in African countries. The bad news is rising resistance. Insecticides stop working. So do some front-line drugs. We need new tools. Now.
Dr Simon Scofield from Cardiff University worked with a team in Uganda. They went to Florence recently. Presented findings at a biology conference. The result: mosquitoes just weren’t interested in landing on people wearing the catnip lotion.
Scofield had some specifics.
We found that a 6% catnic oil was just as effective as DEET. The 2% version was only slightly weaker.
Here’s the problem. DEET is too expensive. Most rural farmers in Uganda can’t afford it. Buying commercial repellents isn’t really an option for them. The goal was simple. Make something that works. Keep the price low. Let local people make it.
What about the cats? Did volunteers turn into living litter boxes?
Scofield laughed about it. He admitted they didn’t test it.
Given that the active ingredient has well-known cat-attractive properties… I would expect they’d quite like it.
Lab tests came first. Proved the oil repelled bugs. Then field tests. Eastern Uganda. Volunteers sat there. Researchers watched mosquitoes try to bite legs. Some folks wore DEET (15% concentration). Others used 2% catnip. Or 6%. A placebo group got nothing but cream.
It worked. Locals can make the lotion themselves. Community enterprises. Grants paid for early free distribution. The next phase changes things. Sell the product. Build income for the workers.
Scofield wants a loop. Money in, money out.
That should generate a self-sustaining. Money flowing back at every stage.
The DEET used was the standard cheap kind found in Ugandan shops. Just 15%. UK travelers are told to use at least 50%. Bigger threat out there? Higher dose. But for local use, this low dose catnip matches the standard DEET availability.
Not everyone is sold on scaling up yet. Swai Kyeba is an entomologist in Tanzania. He wasn’t part of this study.
New tools are necessary… cheap and locally produced to improve accessibility.
He has a doubt. Topical repellents fade. People have to keep putting it on. Compliance is low. Nobody likes rubbing sticky cream on sweaty skin all day. Every hour? Unlikely. It stays a backup plan. Not a silver bullet.
Kyeba suggested looking closer first. How are households currently using the stuff? Scale up later. Check habits now.
Mosquitoes land on you. They don’t care about your budget. Whether you smell like mint or chemical rain. But a cheap solution exists. Right under our feet. Literally.
We’ll see if people actually use it. Or if it stays on the shelf. Waiting for a better day. 🦟
