What protects Anton del Rosario vs dengue

MANILA, Philippines - Athletes don’t leave any stone unturned. Take football hero Anton del Rosario for instance. The 31-year-old booter, who currently plays for Kaya (a team under the United Football League) and used to be one of the more prominent faces in the national football team Azkals, is already on the soccer field even before sunrise. With training that lasts until late in the afternoon six times a week, there is no question with regard to Anton’s commitment in being the best in the game.

But being outdoors for such a lengthy period of time and in various weather conditions — from scorching heat to pounding rain — poses a host of challenges, such as heatstroke and physical injury. Another is being bitten by dengue lamok and contracting the dreaded disease. The risk inevitably increases when athletes have to compete in various venues across the country and Asia. Because of dengue, his ex-teammate from Azkals OJ Porteria missed the AFF Suzuki Cup, the tournament which Anton played in 2010.

He may have been born and raised in the US, but Anton, who has lived and played football in the Philippines for more than a decade, is aware of the threat of dengue. “Dengue is out there; it could reach anyone,” he says. “Athletes, although we are in shape and supposedly fit, are still vulnerable to those fatal mosquito bites.”

Dengue recently hit close to home when Anton’s little niece contracted the dreaded disease. “She was actually given a 10 percent chance of survival,” Anton says. “She got lucky because she pulled out of it.”

Because of his personal encounter with dengue, Anton considers it as “scary” and “nothing to be messed around with.” With dengue having no vaccine and being indiscriminate of its victims — from a young girl to a robust athlete — Anton maintains that “protection is very important. You have to take all your precautionary measures to avoid it.”

This is why Anton, who hopes to play again for the Azkals next year, regularly uses Green Cross Insect Repellent Lotion Active Protect. It is designed for people like Anton who are always outdoors, travel a lot and work hard. “It’s something that people should be using, especially those who are active,” he says. “Falling ill during a football season could make you lose a game, even a championship.”

Anton likes the fact that Green Cross Insect Repellent packs an unbeatable maximum 10-hour protection against both Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus — the two dreaded dengue vectors that bite during the day and night.