As temperatures soar across the UK this summer, many households are opening doors and windows to let in a cooling breeze, creating the perfect opportunity for ants and other pests to enter homes. However, a simple £1 item from the kitchen cupboard can keep them at bay.
Cinnamon as a Natural Ant Repellent
Cleaning specialist and TikTok content creator Chantel Mila, known as Mama Mila, has shared a pest-prevention technique using cinnamon, a common spice that costs £1 from Asda. Instead of resorting to chemical solutions, she recommends mixing water and cinnamon in a spray bottle and applying it around windows and access points to deter ants.
Nathan Kruger, proprietor of D-termination Pest Control, told The Spruce: "This aromatic spice acts as an olfactory deterrent, repelling ants without causing them immediate harm."
How Cinnamon Works
The effectiveness of cinnamon lies in a naturally occurring compound called cinnamaldehyde, which interferes with the way ants communicate. According to The Spruce: "Cinnamaldehyde disrupts these trails, making it harder for ants to navigate and coordinate. Without a reliable scent path to follow, they get disoriented, lose track of food, and ultimately abandon the area."
Cinnamon can also be used in stick or ground form. Simply sprinkle ground cinnamon along visible ant trails, windowsills, and doorways, or place cinnamon sticks in pantries, cupboards, or corners where ants gather.
Additional Tips and Benefits
TikTok user Georgia, known as Clean with Georgia, recommends placing cinnamon sticks or oil at various entry points. She said: "It's a hot spice and they do not like it. This also deters ants as well, so it's a great little hack."
Beyond pest control, cinnamon offers antibacterial and deodorising qualities, making it useful in homemade cleaning solutions. Its potent antibacterial and antifungal properties can destroy or inhibit the spread of microbes, acting as a natural disinfectant, while its distinctive scent masks unpleasant odours.
