Catnip Oil - 2 fl. oz.

This high quality golden colored catnip oil is pure and organic with 80-90% nepatalactone, which is the highest quality and produced on farms in Canada.

• Natural insect shield
• Catnip oil also repels cockroaches

Catnip is a perennial herb belonging to the mint family and grows wild in most parts of the United States, although it also is cultivated for commercial use. Catnip is native to Europe and was introduced to this country in the late 18th century.

Catnip Use: Recently found to be an effective insect repellent when used on the skin. Some people use the leaves in tea, as a meat tenderizer and even as a folk treatment for fevers, colds, cramps and migraines. It is well known for the stimulating effect it has on cats.

More Catnip Information: Researchers report that nepetalactone, the essential oil in catnip that gives the plant its characteristic odor, is about ten times more effective at repelling mosquitoes than DEET — the compound used in most commercial insect repellents. Reasearch was done using so-called yellow fever mosquitoes (Aedes aegypti) — one of several species of mosquitoes found in the United States — researchers says catnip should work against all types of mosquitoes.

According to research findings, nepetalactone is about 10 times more effective than DEET because it takes about one-tenth as much nepetalactone as DEET to have the same effect. Most commercial insect repellents contain about 5 percent to 25 percent DEET. Presumably, much less catnip oil would be needed in a formulation to have the same level of repellency as a DEET-based repellent.

The finding was reported at the 222nd national meeting of the American Chemical Society, the world’s largest scientific society, by the same Iowa State University research group that two years ago discovered that catnip also repels cockroaches.

Reasearch was conducted by, Entomologist Chris Peterson, Ph.D., with Joel Coats, Ph.D., chair of the university’s entomology department, led the effort to test catnip’s ability to repel mosquitoes. Peterson, a former post-doctoral research associate at the school, is now with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, Wood Products Insects Research Unit, in Starkville, Miss.

Brand: Alternative Health & Herbs Remedies
Catnip Oil - 2 fl. oz.