Blood, sweat and beers: People who drink pints are more attractive to mosquitos, scientists reveal

There’s nothing more frustrating than being bitten alive by mosquitos while your friend remains completely untouched.

But scientists have worked out why some people may be more attractive to the bloodsuckers than others – and it’s all down to your drink of choice.

A team from Radboud University in The Netherlands^[1] recruited 500 people at a music festival to be exposed to thousands of female mosquitos.

All participants filled out a questionnaire about their hygiene, diet and behaviour at the festival, before placing their arm into a custom–designed cage filled with the pesky insects.

The cage had tiny holes so the mosquitos could smell the person’s arm but couldn’t get to them, while a video camera recorded how many of the insects attempted to bite them.

In bad news for those who enjoy a pint, participants who drank beer were 1.35 times more attractive to mosquitos than those who didn’t.

The insects were also more likely to target people who had slept with someone the previous night, but avoided people who wore sunscreen or who had recently showered.

‘We found that mosquitos are drawn to those who avoid sunscreen, drink beer and share their bed,’ the researchers said. ‘They simply have a taste for the hedonists among us.’

As part of the study, participants were asked to place their arm in a specially–designed box that allowed them to measure how attracted the mosquitos were to their skin without the threat of being bitten

The paper, uploaded to the bioRxiv^[2] preprint server, reads: ‘We live in a world split between mosquito magnets and those lucky enough to remain (nearly) untouched.

‘The reasons why some people attract more mosquito bites than others remain largely mysterious.

‘Among the participants, mosquitos showed a clear fondness for those who drank beer over those who abstained from the liquid gold.

‘Attraction was also contagious: participants that successfully lured a fellow human into their tent the previous night also proved more enticing to mosquitos.’

They explained that mosquitos typically start to search for blood by detecting the carbon dioxide that we exhale.

However, who they decide to bite – and how frequently – is more likely down to individual smells, which could be influenced by blood alcohol concentration.

‘The general picture that emerges from our study suggests that a sober lifestyle — abstaining from drugs and alcohol, sleeping alone, and applying sunscreen regularly — lowers one’s chances of getting bitten by mosquitoes,’ they concluded.

‘While we found no evidence supporting popular myths such as blood type influencing bite frequency, we were unable to assess the existence of so–called ‘sweet blood.’

The Culex pipiens mosquito (pictured) is among the most common in Britain. However, experts warn species that carry illness like dengue fever could soon arrive in Western Europe

‘Ultimately, enjoy the next festival or camping trip as you like—but it seems mosquitoes may have a soft spot for those making less responsible choices.’

Apart from being the source of annoying bites, mosquitos can be a public health hazard as they can spread diseases such as malaria and dengue fever.,

Last month, scientists warned mosquito–borne illness could spread to major UK cities thanks to climate change.

While dengue fever is typically found in tropical and subtropical regions including the Caribbean, Central America, South America, Southeast Asia and the Pacific Island, warmer weather could create the perfect conditions for the Asian tiger mosquito in Western Europe.