[moderation_is_not_a_bad_thing]

You might be right or wrong here, but the guy sounds reasonable. He wasn't screaming that the sky is falling or that we should ban DEET; he just urged caution especially around children. Seems sensible to me.

[eno_]

DEET is funny stuff. It works really well, but it isn't clear how. It is a repellent, not an insecticide like permethrin. One reason why DEET works so well is that it soaks in to your body and gives you effectively 100% coverage even if you did not spray it on every square inch of your body. It also melts plastic!