Perhaps taking inspiration from popular fiction, there are also those who swear by garlic as an excellent repellent against the winged bloodsuckers. According to the researcher, though unsubstantiated, this strategy may not be entirely fruitless:

　　也许可以从流行小说里得到一些启发，也有些人宣称大蒜是一种可以用来对付蚊子很好的防虫剂。据研究人员透露，尽管还未经证实，但这种方法也并非完全无效：

　　“As far as I know, there is no scientific proof that eating garlic works. But there may be something to the theory that it’s possible to mask your scent with garlic,” he says.

　　“就我所知，目前没有科学依据证明吃大蒜会有效预防蚊虫叮咬。但在理论上它也许是行得通的，可以用大蒜来掩盖你的气味。”詹森说。

　　The only reliable method of protection against mosquitoes is to use one of the effective repellents that are sold over the counter. Mosquito repellent contains some smells that confuse the mosquitoes. The first thing a mosquito does when looking for prey is to see if there are any animals or people in the vicinity.

　　唯一有效的免于蚊虫叮咬的方法是使用在柜台处买来的对付蚊虫的强效防蚊剂。防蚊剂包含了一些让蚊子产生混淆的气味。蚊子寻找猎物要做的第一件事是查看附近有没有动物和人。

　　“When the mosquito comes closer, it uses smell, heat and carbon dioxide to decide whether to bite. But if it is confused by a repellent, it will never get that far,” says Jensen. However, even repellents do not provide complete protection against the persistent insects.

　　“当蚊子靠近时，它会根据气味、热量和二氧化碳来决定是不是要叮咬。但如果它被防虫剂弄迷糊了，它不会轻率行动。”詹森说。然而，即使是防虫剂也没有为人们提供保护，让我们完全免于蚊虫频繁袭击。

　　“Repellents reduce the number of bites by as much as 70 percent. That’s all well and good, but you’ll still get bitten once in a while.”

　　“防虫剂可以减少蚊虫的叮咬次数，最多能降低70%。这样的效果也算很不错了，但你仍会时不时地被咬上一口。”