So I have been doing some reading about hammocks, bugs, and bug netting, the same as most of you do and one thing I kept seeing was that on websites and here on the forum that y'all are spraying your hammocks...etc. with Permethrin, so I thought I would do some digging in to what Permethrin really is and this is what I found.
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Permethrin acts as neurotoxin, slowing down the nervous system through binding to sodium channels. This action is negatively correlated to temperature, thus generally showing more acute effects on cold-blooded animals (insects, fish, frogs...) over warm-blooded animals (mammals and birds):
* permethrin is extremely toxic to fish and aquatic life in general so extreme care must be taken when using products containing permethrin near water sources
* permethrin is also highly toxic to cats and flea and tick repellent formulas intended and labeled for (the more resistant) dogs may contain permethrin and cause feline permethrin toxicosis in cats [6]
* very high doses will have tangible neurotoxic effects on mammals and birds, including human beings.
(Permethrin does not present any notable genotoxicity or immunotoxicity in humans and farm animals.)
Permethrin is classified by the US EPA a likely human carcinogen, based on reproducible studies in which mice fed permethrin developed liver and lung tumors.
Recent studies have linked permethrin exposure to Parkinson's disease, including very small exposures.
Symptoms of Permethrin Exposure from the International Chemical Safety Cards (ICSC):
Inhalation: Cough
Skin: Redness. Burning sensation.
Eyes: Redness. Pain.
Ingestion: Burning sensation. Diarrhoea. Vomiting.
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After reading all of that I don't know if I want that all over something I would be sleeping in/on... I know they say Permethrin is safe for humans but how many other things have we been told were safe only later to find out they were not?
Am I way off here? Thoughts? Comments?
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