Debate of the decade: Does a sweet-smelling liquid that Avon has sold for nearly 30 years work best as a bath oil or as a mosquito repellent?

It’s a dandy little bath oil, say the people who use Avon’s Skin-So-Soft for its intended purpose — to soften the skin.

It’s a mighty fine repellent, say out-of-door types who try to steer clear of mosquitoes, especially with the St. Louis encephalitis scare.

Just don’t look for that debate to be settled here. It has been nearly 10 years since scientists first tested the bath oil’s repelling strength and found it lacking, but people are still abuzz about its dual use.

Not that Avon is ambivalent in its stand: “Avon doesn’t make an insect repellent, it makes beauty products,” says Tedi Kleinman, in charge of Avon’s Broward County office. “Never mind that I get 400 calls a day about this.”

In theory, Avon products are sold only by company-trained salespeople, and business is conducted only in the home. But Skin-So-Soft’s popularity has made that kind of control impossible.

Several weeks ago, dozens of bottles were spotted for sale at a flea market in Brevard County. And three years after the Lee County Tourist Development Council encouraged hotels and motels to stock Skin-So-Soft to combat no-see- ums, the stuff still is found in some hotels — and Bailey’s General Store — on Sanibel Island.

Throughout mosquito country, folks slather it on themselves, their children and — yes — even their dogs. For the most part, enthusiasts swear by the regular scent that has been around since 1961, not the Light Bouquet scent, which was introduced later. And though the line has expanded to include other products, such as hand cream and body lotion, it’s the bath oil — in a plain or pump container — that reputedly does the trick.

Its backers say it works as well as other bug repellents on the market. And they consider it safer. But consensus stops at its flowery fragrance, which one man describes as “smelling like a den of women.”

Despite that distinctive odor, today’s users can thank the rough-edged, tough-skinned outdoorsmen who apparently discovered its magic early on, though no one can pinpoint when.

Kleinman recalls that about 10 years ago, when her son was a Marine and stationed at Parris Island, S.C., his drill sergeant suggested more than guns and guts to tackle what lay ahead. Her son would need to stock up on Skin-So- Soft.

FOR BEAUTY, NOT BUGS

Alas, this image of toughened leathernecks and outdoorsmen smelling of fresh fish and old sweat is as much a bugaboo to Avon as it is a boon to sales.

“We’re in the business of helping women look and feel better,” says Kathleen Walas, a spokeswoman at Avon’s New York headquarters, who never lets “mosquito repellent” slip from her lips.

“This other use,” is how she describes it, adding, “We don’t sell the product as such or even acknowledge it.”

Local rep Kleinman says sales do increase during the mosquito season, but that’s not official because Walas says the company doesn’t release sales figures. It is, in Walas’ view, a strong product line because it’s a good beauty product.

(For the record, a 4-ounce bottle of bath oil in a spray container sells for $5, including tax and delivery charge. A 3 1/2-ounce pump container of Off! ranges from $2.89 to $3.69, depending on the concentration of its active ingredient.)

All things considered, Avon has no reason to jump into the anti-bug business when, as one government regulator explains it, “they have the best of both worlds.”

Because bug repellents are categorized as pesticides, they’re regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency. Testing to meet EPA standards takes an average of five to seven years and costs $5 million to $20 million, says Al Heier, a Washington-based EPA spokesman.

Cosmetics, on the other hand, are regulated by the Food and Drug Administration, and rather loosely at that — at least in comparison to the watchdog role the government takes with pesticides.

“The responsibility for cosmetics to be safe rests with the manufacturer,” says an FDA spokesman.

So, if consumers don’t complain, the government doesn’t get involved.

SAFETY FIRST

The big plus for Skin-So-Soft is that users do perceive it as safe, and with good reason. Some enthusiasts say that doctors recommend it for people and vets recommend it for pets.

“I started using it six years ago after my pediatrician recommended putting it on my daughter,” says Susan Toth, an educator at Pine Jog Environmental Education Center in West Palm Beach. “The idea was, if she sucked on her hand, she wouldn’t be sucking on something poisonous.”

The safety issue arises because most mosquito-fighting products use a repellent commonly known as DEET, which was developed by the Army during World War II. Last year, the EPA isain ingredient is plain ol’ mineral oil. Its remaining components include nothing known to act as a repellent or marked by the government as potentially harmful, according to one researcher who has studied the bath oil.

BUZZ OFF

So much for the safety factor. Scientifically, how does it work?

It doesn’t, says Donald Barnard, a Gainesville researcher with the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

As long ago as 1981 and as recently as 1989, his office did studies on Skin- So-Soft that showed its staying power against mosquitoes was good for only 30 minutes.

“And that’s mainly because they get mired in the oil,” he says. (Though some scent detractors swear it’s the strong scent that keeps the bugs at bay.)

DEET, on the other hand, scared off mosquitoes for 10 hours.

“Though I’m not sure anybody knows why DEET works,” Barnard says.

What is known is that mosquitoes are attracted to heat and to carbon dioxide, different kinds of mosquitoes bite different animals and different people, and body chemistry can affect whether you’re bitten or not.

The latter probably accounts for why some swear by other offbeat repellents, including garlic and B-12, in addition to Skin-So-Soft. And why some insist, despite government research, that Skin-So-Soft really does make mosquitoes buzz off.

The one thing that’s clear is that this debate could live in South Florida as de County, call 1-305-759-1508. For more information, call Avon at 1-800-858-8000.