biting gnats help!

[Edensmum]

I hate them, hate them, hate them! I looks like I have chicken pox and I am just as itchy. They love me, I go outside for 15 minutes and wind up with at least as many bites. I have tried Brighter Day's no gnats, it works some, and California baby, which works some, but I need something that really works and won't kill me. I am pregnant and so need to be even more careful. When I get bitten they last for weeks,getting inflamed and really itchy every few days. They scare too. I can't do this and it's way to nice out to stay in.
Any advice?

[MontrealMum]

Are you sure they're gnats and not black flies? They are also very small and look like gnats, but they bite and most people itch and swell up quite a bit from it. Do you have black flies in your region? Your reaction sounds much more like that. In any case, there isn't much you can go about black flies except try to minimize all scent - shampoo, perfume, laundry detergent. People I know who work in the bush also use Avon Skin so Soft, but they also have years worth of tolerance built up (from being bitten so often), so this may be a placebo effect, I don't know - you might try it, in any case.