If you’re like us, you’ve been hearing the same claims for decades: Why waste your money on bug repellents with harsh chemicals when you can simply pickup some Avon Skin So Soft and shoo away all pests while keeping your skin moist and sweet smelling?
For years, there have been folks who swear by this skin moisturizer as the last repellent you’ll ever need.
“Got our annual supply of ‘mosquito repellent,'” trumpets one reviewer on Amazon. “We have yet to find anything that works better.”
“Best bug repellent ever!” declared another.
“My family and I have been using it for almost a month now and no mosquito bites,” reported yet another reviewer. “Last night on our porch, we literally watched the mosquitoes fly around us all and never once land on us. Definitely buying again!”
On and on it goes, with every other Skin So Soft buyer asserting the wonders of the product for keeping mosquitoes and ticks away. Those claims have been so loud and so ubiquitous that Avon representatives had to come out and remind its customers that their product is for relieving dry skin, not for keeping the bugs at bay.
“Skin So Soft Bath Oil is not an insect repellent,” the company wrote on its website. “It is a moisturizing bath and body oil product.”
In 2017, Consumer Reports conducted a study to see if Skin So Soft had any bug repelling properties at all. The results? Just kind of so-so: The reported concluded that the bath oil kept deer ticks and two kinds of mosquitoes away for about two hours.
“That would put it among the worst-performing insect repellents we tested,” according to the report. “The products we recommend generally protect for upwards of seven hours.”
Still, two hours of bug repelling AND your skin will feel smooth and kissable? It’s kind of easy to see why so many people stick by the stuff.
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