Hunks and Babes. The world is full of beautiful people who excel at attracting others. You know that kind of person who has both a flirty personality and physical appeal. The world is full of attractive people who attract other attractive people and together they make such attractive babies.

 I am not one of those types who attract the beautiful people (although I do have a beautiful son thanks to genetic flukes).  No, when God handed out “attraction” qualities, I got the one that attracts mosquitoes  I can walk into a summer patio party and every man looks down at his feet, while every mosquito revs up its engines and screams towards me.

 I have the scars to prove it. I get an allergic response to mosquito bites which makes them itch like crazy. Then I start scratching. Then, I cannot stop. Then I lay in bed at night, scraaaaatching until they bleed. Then the bites scab over and start itching all over again. The little white dots on my arms and legs are archaeological evidence of this history.  Since we don’t have many mosquitoes in arid, southeastern Wyoming, I don’t suffer much anymore. Besides, I use essential oils now as repellent and/or to stop the itching.

 Still, I declare every summer at every outdoor party, that I am a mosquito magnet. At this comment, another person will say, “me too, mosquitoes just love me, if there are 10 people at a party I will be the one the mosquitoes swarm”.  At which point my new comrade and I wonder if there is any scientific basis for our dilemma.

 Well, research now proves our claim. Someone actually did a study about why some people are more attractive to mosquitoes.  As it turns out, “One in 10 people are highly attractive to mosquitoes,” according to Jerry Butler, Ph.D., professor emeritus at the University of Florida

And so WHY are some people more attractive to mosquitoes? Scientists are working on some theories. One reason is that a taller and/or bigger person emits more CO2, which apparently is the margarita of mosquito land. Another attractant, as you might guess, is smell. The research suggests that “acetone and estradiol released in your breath” are attractive to mosquitoes.

Well, I have been called many things, but never “acetone-breath”. And, if I am not mistaken, I don’t have too much estradiol these days. I am bigger/taller than others, so perhaps I give off more CO2.  Whatever the reason, mosquitoes just love me.

And why not fish? I can’t catch fish for anything. Is it possible that the acetone and CO2 attract mosquitoes and repel fish? I hope a researcher somewhere has nothing better to do than find a correlation here. My summer fun depends on this!