Does baking soda kill fleas?

Summary

Baking soda does not kill fleas. Flea larvae weren’t affected when their substrate was treated with 2-5% sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO₃). However, 2-5% calcium carbonate (CaC0₃) was effective, killing 85%-88% of larvae.

Only flea larvae were tested. They’re the free-living stage found in the environment. Adult fleas live on their host. It wasn’t stated, but presumably it would be difficult to continuously treat an animal with baking soda. However, there was a similar study done against adult cockroaches. Baking soda was not highly insecticidal, but did kill a significant number of the roaches by the 24 hour mark. Calcium carbonate did almost nothing against adult cockroaches.

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