Garlic, perhaps because of its strong odor, has long been said to be the magic food. But studies so far have found that claim is not true. Eating it may keep other humans away , but not mosquitoes.

One study illustrating this was published in 2005 by a group of researchers at the University of Connecticut Health Center. The scientists asked groups of subjects to consume large amounts of garlic on some days and a placebo on others and exposed them to mosquitoes on each day. The number of mosquitoes that fed on them and the number of bites they suffered did not seem to differ under the two conditions.