Jenaveve Tucker

Jack Later
Biology 1615
November 16, 2016
Insect Repellent in Pregnancy
Introduction: One in three people in the United States apply insect repellent containing a
substance containing N-diethyl-m-toluamide, also known as DEET, at least once a year. This
substance has a warning sign for pregnant women against prolonged use. The reason being,
possible deformities of fetus, low birth weight, or premature deliveries. However, the parameters
have never actually been tested.
Reason for Research: The purpose of this experiment is to discover if DEET is dangerous to
women in their second and third trimester of pregnancy and at what point.
In recent studies it has been discovered that when DEET is applied less than 10% of the
of the substance is absorbed by the body. What is absorbed is quickly metabolized. Studies on
rodents have shown they have similar metabolisms to human, meaning they are the perfect
beginning test subjects. In these experiments, rats given high doses of DEET transdermally were
found to have increases in embryo mortality, decreased birth-weight, delayed development, and
high postnatal death rates. That being the case, no teratogenic effects have been reported with
repeated applications of DEET on rabbits at levels up to 1,000 mg/kg/day.
The Thai-Burmese border, where there is limited treatment options in the case of malaria
in pregnant women, have become very concerned with the effects of DEET during pregnancy.
This is due to the fact that a mosquito repellent containing DEET is widely used in this area in
order to prevent malaria.

Method & Materials: Using the scientific method: Question/Purpose, Observation/Research,

Hypothesis, Experiment, Analysis, Conclusion, these scientist discovered under what condition a
pregnant women could and could not use insect repellent with DEET in it. Their purpose was to
determine the safety of applying DEET daily during the second and third trimester of pregnancy.
The observation or research was what they found out concerning the effects on rats, rabbits, and
past subjects that used DEET. Their hypothesis was that DEET would not affect the fetus of
pregnant women in their second and third trimester of pregnancy.
The longest process was the experiment. The experiment consisted of 897 women who
had attended weekly antenatal clinics, doses of a mixture of DEET and thanaka and of thanaka
alone, and watching these women until delivery. Each woman was instructed to apply the
mixture daily after their evening shower and to apply it to the exposed areas of the arms and legs.
A new bottle was delivered to them each week. The effects of the repellent were assessed by
asking the woman if they were experiencing any symptoms weekly. These symptoms included
skin warming, skin rashes, headache, dizziness, nausea, or vomiting or if they had and other
complaints from the previous week.
Results: After the experiment had ended, the women gave birth to their babies, the scientists
analyzed the two test groups. The subjects that had the doses of DEET and thanaka versus the
subjects that only had thanaka. All the newborn babies were assessed for gestational age, tone,
movement, behavior, and visual and auditory alertness. Out of the 897 pregnant women tested,
449 were placed in the DEET and thanaka group and 448 were placed in the thanaka only group.
Conclusion: The results from both groups were very similar. The newborn's growth parameters
were similar. There was no significant difference in the optimality score. Lastly the survival rate,
cumulatively one year, were also similar. Once they analyzed the effects they concluded that the

use of 20% DEET solution in the second and third trimesters of pregnant women appears safe.
Although, they did not test women in their first trimester so that remains a mystery. Another test
for that trimester specifically would be required to know the effects on the fetus.
Limitation of this study: This study was done on a population that already puts on a lot of bug
repellent. It is possible that the people of this population have already developed an immunity to
the negative responses of DEET. In order to get a more accurate conclusion the experiment
would need to be done in more areas.
Bibliography: http://www.ajtmh.org/content/65/4/285.full.pdf+html