Simple Homemade Natural Bug Repellent | Safe for Kids and Pregnancy

This DIY natural bug repellent with essential oils is kid, pregnancy and breastfeeding safe.  It works to effectively repel insects while keeping your family safe from harmful chemicals.  Not only will it deter pests, but it will help soothe and heal bug bites if they do happen.

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DIY Natural Bug Repellent

Mosquitos are the worst.

…But so are the chemicals in bug repellent. DEET has been used in bug repellent for years, despite studies¹ finding harmful effects, especially in children.

My husband and I have been using essential oils as an effective bug repellent for a couple of years now, but even some essential oils are not safe for young children.

As a mom, I want to have an all natural bug repellent spray that is be safe for my whole family to use.

That’s why I created this recipe using essential oils that are safe for kids and for use during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

I will note that I would not spray this directly on babies’ skin and I avoid using any essential oils during the first trimester of pregnancy.

This natural bug repellent is for use on skin and clothes. Please do not ingest.

This spray is effective against mosquitos, flies, fleas, gnats, nymphs, ants, spiders, ticks and lots of other pesky bugs!

It takes less than five minutes to make this bug spray and its made from things you probably already have in your medicine cabinet!

Bug Bite Spray

One thing I love about this spray is that not only does it repel bugs, but it works as an effective spray for relieving bug bites if they do happen.

The essential oils in this recipe each have properties to help reduce swelling, itching, and irritation caused by bug bites.

Witch Hazel is also a great anti-inflammatory and healing properties to help bring down swelling and inflammation as well as soothe painful bites.

I made this recipe with fractionated coconut oil, because it is an excellent carrier oil to safely apply essential oils to the skin.

What goes in kid and pregnancy friendly insect repellent?

There are a lot of essential oils that repel bugs. Citronella essential oil is a common bug repellent and one that we use often, but it can be irritating to children.

I chose three specific oils that are safe and effective in repelling a variety of insects, including mosquitos, flies, spiders, and ticks.

Lavender

Lavender is an effective mosquito repellent. In addition, its strong scent will repel most flying pests including gnats, fleas, flies, moths and nymphs.

It contains a substance called linalool that repels insects similar to DEET and is used in a lot of natural pest control products.

Studies show² that lavender is a highly effective insect repellent when used at a high enough concentration. It is important to use high quality essential oils to have an effect.

Lavender can also be used to treat bug bites. It is a powerful anti-inflammatory and can help soothe a bite while reducing the swelling.

Out of all of the essential oils, lavender has been one of the most well researched and is considered safe to use during pregnancy. It is one of the mildest oils and can even be used on kids and babies.

Tea Tree (Melaleuca)

Tea tree essential oil is powerful and we use it for everything at our house. It’s anti-bacterial, antiseptic, anti-fungal, anti-microbial, and it works as an insecticide.

One study³ showed that tea tree essential oil has repellent effects against flies as well as an effective insecticide.

Tea tree repels mosquitos and is a great deterrent for ticks and other insects, including ants.

In addition to preventing bug bites, tea tree is also great at treating bites.

As long as it is diluted properly, tea tree oil is safe for kids and for use during pregnancy. I should note that tea tree oil should never be ingested.

Lemon

Citrus is a natural bug deterrent and many pest repellents use some form of lemon.

In a study comparing DEET to lemon essential oil as mosquito repellent⁴, it was concluded that lemon essential oil (as opposed to lemon extract) has a significant repellent effect and was recommended as a replacement for DEET in mosquito repellent to prevent malaria.

My husband and I have been using lemon eucalyptus as bug repellent for a while now and it works great. While eucalyptus is safe for adults, it is not always safe for young children.

Lemon essential oil, however, is gentle and safe for kids and for use during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

Witch Hazel

Oh witch hazel. I used a whole lot of it to heal postpartum!

I used witch hazel in this bug spray to act as an emulsifier to help the essential oils disperse better in the liquid since water and oil don’t mix well.

A lot of DIY repellents use some form of alcohol, but I chose witch hazel since it is gentler on the skin.

I have heard that witch hazel is actually able to deter bugs on its own, but I have not read any research to back that up.

It is known to have potent anti-inflammatory properties and is frequently used to heal and soothe wounds. Just one more reason to keep this bug spray around in case of a bite!

Fractionated Coconut Oil

Coconut oil has so many great properties. It’s anti-microbial, anti-fungal, anti-bacterial and is healthy for your skin.

Fractionated coconut oils is liquid at room temperature and is an excellent carrier oil.

It helps disperse the essential oils in this spray and makes it safe to apply essential oils to the skin.

In 2018, the US Department of Agriculture put out an article⁵ about certain compounds in coconut oil actually being more effective at repelling bus than DEET.

This is the fractionated coconut oil I use and love.

Distilled Water

Distilled water is purified water that has had the contaminants and chemicals removed.

Using distilled water ensures that the bug spray it is safe and will stay potent for longer.

The water also helps dilute and disperse the oils so that they are safe to be sprayed on skin and clothes.

Tinted Glass Spray Bottle

I used a 2 oz glass spray bottle, because it is small enough to bring anywhere in my diaper bag or purse.

The sun will degrade the oils and will lessen their potency over time. The tinted glass will help them stay potent for much longer.

Always use glass instead of plastic to avoid plastic chemicals leeching into the spray.

You can get inexpensive 2 oz tinted glass spray bottles on amazon here.

Notes

• Always use high quality therapeutic grade essential oils. I personally use Revive Essential oils and have loved the quality and the price. You can get $10 off your first order through them using this link.

Have you tried this DIY natural bug repellent? Let me know in the comments how it worked!

Sources

1. Toxic encephalopathy associated with use of DEET insect repellents: a case analysis of its toxicity in children https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1191/096032701676731093
2. Repellency of Oils of Lemon Eucalyptus, Geranium, and Lavender https://academic.oup.com/jme/article/43/4/731/903066?login=truej
3. Insecticidal and repellent effects of tea tree and andiroba oils on flies associated with livestock https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25171605/
4. Repellent Effect of Extracts and Essential Oils of Citrus limon (Rutaceae) and Melissa officinalis (Labiatae) Against Main Malaria Vector, Anopheles stephensi (Diptera: Culicidae) https://ijph.tums.ac.ir/index.php/IJPH/article/view/1940
5. Coconut Oil Compounds Repel Insects Better than DEET https://www.ars.usda.gov/news-events/news/research-news/2018/coconut-oil-compounds-repel-insects-better-than-deet/#:~:text=In%20recent%20research%20published%20in,transmit%20diseases%20to%20humans%20and