With monsoons in full swing and the mosquito population booming what can you do to protect your family?
Researchers have developed the Kite Mosquito Patch which is being touted as a safe way to ward off the blood sucking bugs.
The wearable patch and could prove to be an effective measure to combat malaria in the developing countries. According to the creators, it has the potential to make the wearer invisible to the mosquitoes for up to 48 hours.
Grey Frandsen, chief marketing officer at ieCrowd, the company behind the patch, stated, “It will provide a new level of protection for children in Uganda, for young families in South Africa, and hikers in Seattle or Wyoming or Florida seeking a safer, socially-responsible solution.
“We built Kite to be simple and affordable — a small colorful sticker that will appeal to children and adults and survive the rigors of extreme climates, play time, or outdoor recreation.”
Working of the patch
Experts have used a mechanism that blocks the mosquito’s ability to track humans through their sense of smell. Unlike the repellants currently found in the market, the patch has no toxic and dangerous chemicals. It utilizes three groups of compounds approved by the FDA for human consumption to repel the bugs. Simply stick the Kite patch to your body, and you will be mosquito free for up to 48 hours.
The small colorful patch is applied to clothing which subsequently provides protection against the pesky insects for up to 48 hours.
The creators stated, “Each group of chemicals works a little differently to confound its target. The first actually mimics carbon dioxide, and could be used to lure mosquitoes away from their human targets and into insect traps; the second prevents the mosquitoes from detecting carbon dioxide altogether; and the third actually switches the CO2-sensing machinery of the mosquitoes into overdrive, overloading the mosquitoes’ senses to the point of confusion.”
The indiegogo campaign
The technology sponsored by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the National Institutes of Health was developed by Olfactor Laboratories and the University of California at Riverside.
The inventors launched an Indiegogo campaign to raise $75,000 which it collected within just four days. As of July 23, the company raised more than $150,000, with 38 days still remaining.
They are now hoping to send 20,000 Kite patches for large-scale testing in Africa where malaria rates are over 60 percent.
