Sugar, by any other name, would still be delicious

When I was little, my mom used to tell me that my blood was sweet from all of the sugar I ate. Now when I say I ate a lot of sugar, I mean I ate a lot of sugar. I used to snack on sugar cubes, eat a tub of frosting, eat pieces of cake bigger than my head, etc. Whenever I would complain about my many mosquito bites, she would give me that look and say “if you didn’t eat so much sugar, maybe your blood wouldn’t be so sweet!” It used to bug me to death (no pun intended, bahaha)

As I grew older and started consuming less and less amounts of sugar, I got into science. As a scientist, I learned that mosquitoes are attracted to people and animals based off of their scent. Generally, one who has a higher metabolism will have more CO2, carbon dioxide, near their skin, making them easier to identify. Also, perfumes, sweat, and other things are attractors. But still!! I was shocked to find out that the saying my mother had (and is apparently common for Arab mothers) had a factual base!

Now, thankfully or sadly (not sure which) I’m not that big of a fan of sugar. I’ve gone from being able to eat nothing but sugar all day to just needing to have it in front of me to be satisfied. I will never know how I wasn’t hugely obese as a child. Maybe being outside all the time on my bike, on the swing set, playing games, climbing trees (aka all the things children should be doing instead of sitting and playing video games) really does make a difference!

So as the summer approaches (and in some cases, summer temperatures have already arrived) be careful when being outside and use bug sprays that won’t cause cancer. Or just eat less sugar 😉