This can be accomplished through the use of DEET containing insect repellent, application of insecticides to clothes and bedding, as well as using mosquito nets to cover beds.
Other commercial products offered for household mosquito control include small electrical mats, mosquito repellent vapor, DEET-impregnated wrist bands, mosquito fogging, and mosquito coils containing a form of the chemical allethrin.
Insect repellents containing one of the following active ingredients are recommended: DEET, catnip oil extract (nepetalactone), citronella oil or eucalyptus oil extract.
The prevailing theory was that DEET effectively blinds the insect's senses so that the biting/feeding instinct is not triggered by humans or other animals which produce these chemicals.
People can prevent mosquito bites by wearing clothing that fully covers the skin, using mosquito netting while resting, and/or the application of insect repellent (DEET being the most effective).
Moreover, in a behavioral test, DEET had a strong repellent activity in the absence of body odor attractants such as 1-octen-3-ol, lactic acid, or carbon dioxide.
