I was discussing some things with my Brown Bear guide today and the use of a ThermaCell came up. This is what he said in an e-mail.
Has this ever happened to any of you or have you heard of this happening to anyone? I have used one on occassions for a few years with out issues.
Thoughts????
Tom
Just as a heads up on the Thermacell: They are wonderful bug chasers, there is no doubt about that, but please consider the following information.
When I first started using thermacells I provided one to my hunter as well. He started complaining about his face feeling flushed, and getting an odd sort of a head ach. I noticed my face was flushed as well, and I attributed my own head ach to dehydration. I also noticed that my feet were swelling, but I thought that had to do with walking on huge rocks all day, because we were camped up on a rock slide so we could watch for bears on the trail below.
We were both using the devices outdoors, under a camp tarp, but slightly separate from each other.
The next day we went down the slide, and my hunter started complaining of an odd sensation, including more face flushing, then the next morning he died from a massive heart attack, right in front of me, in camp.
I used the thermacell device at the same camp again, up on the rock slide, over a period of two spring hunting seasons. Both times my feet swelled, and I again attributed that to walking on the rocks.
Last spring I used the device again, while sitting in a ladder stand with my hunter beside me. We also had a large sun umbrella over us, and that is where the thermacell was located...overhead.
That time not only my feet, but my hands swelled to the point that my fingers and toes resembled sausages sticking out of a swelled balloon. Maybe not that dramatic, but you get the point. Both myself and my hunter got a flushed face, as if we were in the hot sun, but we did not burn or get a rash. It took almost two weeks for my hands and feet to return to normal.
There is more to those thermacells than meets the eye. The stuff they use to deter the bugs is also an insecticide, even if it is a natural plant ingredient. Keep in mind that arsenic and poison mushrooms are natural ingredients as well, but we don't use them for bug repellant for a reason.
I suggest that you use your thermacell with caution, and if I am anywhere close to you, I will ask that you not use it.
It is my opinion that there is going to be a great deal of controversy surrounding those devices in the near future.
Al
Has this ever happened to any of you or have you heard of this happening to anyone? I have used one on occassions for a few years with out issues.
Thoughts????
Tom
Just as a heads up on the Thermacell: They are wonderful bug chasers, there is no doubt about that, but please consider the following information.
When I first started using thermacells I provided one to my hunter as well. He started complaining about his face feeling flushed, and getting an odd sort of a head ach. I noticed my face was flushed as well, and I attributed my own head ach to dehydration. I also noticed that my feet were swelling, but I thought that had to do with walking on huge rocks all day, because we were camped up on a rock slide so we could watch for bears on the trail below.
We were both using the devices outdoors, under a camp tarp, but slightly separate from each other.
The next day we went down the slide, and my hunter started complaining of an odd sensation, including more face flushing, then the next morning he died from a massive heart attack, right in front of me, in camp.
I used the thermacell device at the same camp again, up on the rock slide, over a period of two spring hunting seasons. Both times my feet swelled, and I again attributed that to walking on the rocks.
Last spring I used the device again, while sitting in a ladder stand with my hunter beside me. We also had a large sun umbrella over us, and that is where the thermacell was located...overhead.
That time not only my feet, but my hands swelled to the point that my fingers and toes resembled sausages sticking out of a swelled balloon. Maybe not that dramatic, but you get the point. Both myself and my hunter got a flushed face, as if we were in the hot sun, but we did not burn or get a rash. It took almost two weeks for my hands and feet to return to normal.
There is more to those thermacells than meets the eye. The stuff they use to deter the bugs is also an insecticide, even if it is a natural plant ingredient. Keep in mind that arsenic and poison mushrooms are natural ingredients as well, but we don't use them for bug repellant for a reason.
I suggest that you use your thermacell with caution, and if I am anywhere close to you, I will ask that you not use it.
It is my opinion that there is going to be a great deal of controversy surrounding those devices in the near future.
Al
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