UKC

Caffeine is apparently highly toxic to insects and arachnids, and slightly less toxic to humans. Ticks and midges should keel over when exposed to levels of caffeine that humans would shrug off (or at least survive).

So, my question is this: Is it possible to drink enough coffee to make your blood poisonous to creepy crawlies, while remaining alive and functional.

Or am I safer sticking with deet?

In reply to davidbeynon:

It probably isn't safe drinking enough DEET to make your blood poisonous.
hth

I drink tons of it and have yet to notice any effect on midges and ticks. Caffeine stimulates the sweat glands apparantly, so probably likely to attrack more midges to you.

In reply to Milesy:

Seen as midges are attracted to exhaled carbon dioxide I doubt your caffeine induced sweat fest has any influence.

In reply to Cameron94:

Except that carbon dioxide is also excreted from your sweat glands as well.

In reply to davidbeynon: As far as I know it's only the exhaled carbon dioxide that attracts them.

Although I've never seen anything to say otherwise I could be wrong!

In reply to deepsoup:

That's funny - surely it's fine with the right mixer... to take away the nasty deet taster :-0

In reply to davidbeynon:

In human cells, caffeine inhibits two of the main kinases involved in DNA damage signalling, ATM and ATR. I find it very surprising that caffeine isn't apparently more toxic to humans, but it may be that its use is so ubiquitous its impossible to elucidate any toxic effects on humans.

In reply to davidbeynon:
I like to smear myself with crushed Pro-plus mixed into skin cream. but that's another story.

If extracting caffeine is desired, you might want to check this video out - it clearly plays havoc with your hair mind you.
http://www.periodicvideos.com/videos/mv_caffeine.htm