The Science Of Why Bugs Are Attracted To Certain People

Biting insects (bugs, fleas, flies, mites, mosquitoes, ticks) locate and bite their blood host targets from the chemical cues they release. Such cues are Volatile organic compound (VOC) produced by their skin microbes after they metabolize human skin gland secretions, i.e., an individual's VOC profile is largely the product of their Skin flora. Thus, biting preference is the outcome of how each biting insect's odorant receptors detect the VOCs unique to the individual it bites.