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Old 26-12-2015, 03:54   #1
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Where to get 'Skin So Soft' in Bahamas?

This Avon product is the only thing that seems to be effective against noseeums here in Bahamas. Some pubs and restaurants have a bottle at the counter for patron use, but none of the locals seem to know where to get it.

Alternately, if anyone has ideas on what else might work against these blood-suckers, I'm all ears!
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Old 26-12-2015, 04:01   #2
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Re: Where to get 'Skin So Soft' in Bahamas?

Bug repellent works just as well. Anything with deet in it.
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Old 26-12-2015, 04:47   #3
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Re: Where to get 'Skin So Soft' in Bahamas?

I don't have a Skin So Soft source for you, but there have been a few good threads on alternative bug repellents over the years. Plenty of good ideas:

http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...ive-93231.html

http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...da-105019.html

http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...ar-101672.html

http://www.cruisersforum.com/forums/...lp-120980.html
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Old 26-12-2015, 04:47   #4
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Re: Where to get 'Skin So Soft' in Bahamas?

Rare to find it locally. Had friends bring SSS into the Bahamas, and other venues. We now have several large bottles aboard. We fill smaller spray bottles from those.

Have also learned that almost any scented oil has an effect. We have experimented with several mixtures. You can get coconut oil locally. Add some aromatics to that and it is just as effective as SSS.

Advantage over DEET is that you aren't applying pesticide to your body, but its not effective as long, so you have to reapply.
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Old 26-12-2015, 05:01   #5
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Re: Where to get 'Skin So Soft' in Bahamas?

Avon ceased operations in Antigua, Aruba, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, Bonaire, Curaçao, Dominica, Grand Cayman, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, St. Kitts and Nevis, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago, as of February this year (2015).

Avon Closes Operations in Caribbean | PanamericanWorld
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Old 26-12-2015, 05:07   #6
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Re: Where to get 'Skin So Soft' in Bahamas?

Can you not get it shipped in, as you would boat parts, or other items?
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Old 26-12-2015, 05:18   #7
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Re: Where to get 'Skin So Soft' in Bahamas?

The nuisance or discomfort of an occasional mosquito bite is bearable.

However, as this linked article on Snopes points out, the risk of contracting a deadly or debilitating disease from a single mosquito bite has increased due to the spread of West Nile Virus (several deaths in Texas within the last few years) and more recently, Chicken Gunyea disease in the Caribbean (another potential killer).

Most importantly, as the Snopes article points out, Avon Skin So Soft and several commonly suggested "scented oils" or "homemade recipe" bug repellent products have been SCIENTIFICALLY PROVEN INEFFECTIVE or much less effective than DEET based bug repellents.

Read the article. Also do a search and read the related Consumer Reports article and others which have shown the inneffectiveness of products that do not contain DEET.

In short, "conventional wisdom" "folk remedies" and anecdotal stories or testimony are unlikely to have the scientific evidence to support buying NON-DEET products. Don't fall for the internet stories like "the Royal Marines buy Skin So Soft" and similar myths.


Read this article:

Mosquito Repel Lore : snopes.com

Excerpt:

"Usually such forays into the realm of lore result in nothing worse than solutions which might not work all that well (if at all), but in the case of combating disease-bearing mosquitoes, a less-than-effective solution could prove a deadly choice. Perhaps in those halcyon days before West Nile Virus it might have seemed reasonable to take a chance on non-DEET solutions to the mosquito problem, when all that was being risked was the transient discomfort of a few bug bites, but no longer. In this instance, placing one's faith in lore over science is a dangerous error to make."
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Old 26-12-2015, 05:28   #8
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Re: Where to get 'Skin So Soft' in Bahamas?

chickingunya doesnt kill unless you are immune system impaired. dengue in caribbean is however another story. west nile is also a nasty one.
goo dluck.
avon doesnt work against these things anyway. do some real abatement.

ps. if you think ckikingunya is bad, doNOT get west nile..friend been sick with that one now 3 years . yes YEARS, nasty painful an d ridiculous to get when thereare ways to prevent this. avon is not one of those ways.
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Old 26-12-2015, 05:32   #9
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Re: Where to get 'Skin So Soft' in Bahamas?

On our first trip south we took SSS. You could buy it at the flea market in Ft. Lauderdale. Didn't like it, felt just as bad as bug repellent. Now we use bug repellent (in the squirt bottles) sparingly if ashore at sunset. Mostly we're back aboard before the pesky critters come out. Nothing like a good breeze to keep them away.
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Old 26-12-2015, 06:13   #10
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Re: Where to get 'Skin So Soft' in Bahamas?

Avon sells a version of skin so soft that contains....DEET.

That speaks volumes.

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Old 26-12-2015, 06:18   #11
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Re: Where to get 'Skin So Soft' in Bahamas?

Catnip oil? Any pet store has the spray.

I'm a chemical guy, love DEET, and distrust anything herbal, but the USDA and EPA list this as the most effective agent against biting flies (they researched it for stable flies). This summer we tried it ont he Chesapeake Bay an agree. Better than DEET. However, it is not very effective against mosquitoes (which is what the USDA also found). We don't get no-see-ums, so I don't know.

You have to re-apply often, but it is cheap and not messy. The smell is not noticeable and our cat, a catnip junky, ignores it.



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Old 26-12-2015, 06:58   #12
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Re: Where to get 'Skin So Soft' in Bahamas?

Still on Gr Bahama?
Try the Cost Right (between Cedar and East Mall just south of Queens Hwy). Couple of pharmacies - Health Enhancing (West Mall at Explorers - near the Burger King) or Sav More (East Mall at Adventurers - near another BK). Either of the hardware stores - Dolly Madison (Oak at Queen's Hwy) or Kelly's (bottom of Cedar) might also carry it.
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Old 26-12-2015, 08:06   #13
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Re: Where to get 'Skin So Soft' in Bahamas?

Quote:
Originally Posted by Steady Hand View Post
The nuisance or discomfort of an occasional mosquito bite is bearable.

However, as this linked article on Snopes points out, the risk of contracting a deadly or debilitating disease from a single mosquito bite has increased due to the spread of West Nile Virus (several deaths in Texas within the last few years) and more recently, Chicken Gunyea disease in the Caribbean (another potential killer).

Most importantly, as the Snopes article points out, Avon Skin So Soft and several commonly suggested "scented oils" or "homemade recipe" bug repellent products have been SCIENTIFICALLY PROVEN INEFFECTIVE or much less effective than DEET based bug repellents.

Read the article. Also do a search and read the related Consumer Reports article and others which have shown the inneffectiveness of products that do not contain DEET.

In short, "conventional wisdom" "folk remedies" and anecdotal stories or testimony are unlikely to have the scientific evidence to support buying NON-DEET products. Don't fall for the internet stories like "the Royal Marines buy Skin So Soft" and similar myths.


Read this article:

Mosquito Repel Lore : snopes.com

Excerpt:

"Usually such forays into the realm of lore result in nothing worse than solutions which might not work all that well (if at all), but in the case of combating disease-bearing mosquitoes, a less-than-effective solution could prove a deadly choice. Perhaps in those halcyon days before West Nile Virus it might have seemed reasonable to take a chance on non-DEET solutions to the mosquito problem, when all that was being risked was the transient discomfort of a few bug bites, but no longer. In this instance, placing one's faith in lore over science is a dangerous error to make."
Exactly. DEET is proven effective and safe for more than 70 years now. It works. Use it.
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Old 26-12-2015, 08:13   #14
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Re: Where to get 'Skin So Soft' in Bahamas?

Taking garlic supplements actually does help against bug bites. Learned it from friends who grew up in South Africa. I guess those pesks don't much like the smell, as long as your friends don't mind.
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Old 26-12-2015, 08:30   #15
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Re: Where to get 'Skin So Soft' in Bahamas?

Quote:
Originally Posted by sneuman View Post
This Avon product is the only thing that seems to be effective against noseeums here in Bahamas. Some pubs and restaurants have a bottle at the counter for patron use, but none of the locals seem to know where to get it.

Alternately, if anyone has ideas on what else might work against these blood-suckers, I'm all ears!
We have/had big infestations with "noseeums" every year on our property and tried about everything one can think of.

The very best we found (thanks to a CF member)without DEET is Victoria Secret's "Amber Romance".

This sounded like a joke but in our desperation we tried it and it works best. It sticks way longer than SSS and it makes ya smell well.
You can find it in a spray bottle (atomizer) and it is easy to apply and always worth a trip to the Victoria Secret's store (of course you can order it online)

We can not say that it helps against mosquitoes but the noseeums seem to hate it.

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