risks of a tick bite, how to lessen your risks of tick bite and what promising, new and cutting edge information is becoming avail- able to us for more effective diagnosis, which means better and faster treatment options. A few common symptoms to look out for: flu-like symptoms, fever, aches and pains, diarrhea, vomiting, headache, red spot, bullseye rash, neck soreness and more. Prevention is the first line of defense against tick bites. It certainly does not mean you have to give up your love of the outdoors, but it does mean you should be aware of a few things that can help possibly prevent a tick bite. According to the CDC (Center for Disease Control), avoid brushy/tall grass and wooded areas in warmer months. When you do go in these high risk areas, wear long pants, long sleeves and wear an effective tick spray (at least 10% DEET), then do a thorough tick check as soon as you can during/afterwards. Further tips can include treating your clothes with peremethrin (not to be used on the skin and spe- cific instructions must be followed for treating clothes), tucking pants legs into socks, spraying DEET on ankles and wrists or exposed skin (never under clothes, putting it on under your clothes creates a steam room reaction casuing the Deet to be quickly and powerfully absorbed into your skin), on your hat (wear a hat, preferable wide brimmed, to prevent ticks falling from trees into your hair) and on your hands to wipe your face avoiding the eyes. Avoid lying in grass and brushing up against trees, leaves etc. during warmer months and in known infested areas. Also, note that you cannot combine sunscreen and Deet together, as it causes a chemical reaction that is dangerous for us. So, the best bet is to wear lightweight, long-sleeved shirts and pants—this minimizes how much Deet and sunscreen you have to use. Some clothes come with bug repellent already in them but you need to check to make sure they repel ticks specifically. Treat your gear (bags, tents, hammocks etc.) with peremethrin as well, if manufacturer instructions say it is safe to do so. Make sure your animals are treated (specific for them; cats are very sensitive to medicines/repellents) and keep them groomed and brushed and treated for ticks so you don’t get ticks from them. Keep your dog/cat in areas with short cut grass and don’t allow your grass to get tall. If you live in a tick infested area, research environmentally friendly (i.e. won’t kill bees or lightening bugs)
treatment for your yard. It is a good idea to wash all your clothes as soon as you return (again, check manufacturer’s labels; some treated clothes should not be washed in hot water or dried in the dryer or used with fabric softener) and take a shower yourself, especially checking for ticks in the groin, armpits, belly button and head. If you do find a tick on you that is attached, the proper re-
moval technique according to the CDC is to: 1. Use fine tipped tweezers to grasp the tick as close to the skin’s surface as possible
2. Pull upward with steady, even pressure. Don't twist or jerk the tick; this can cause the mouth-parts to break off and remain in the skin. If this happens, remove the mouth-parts with twee- zers. If you are unable to remove the mouth easily with clean tweezers, leave it alone and let the skin heal.
3. After removing the tick, thoroughly clean the bite area and your hands with rubbing alcohol, an iodine scrub, or soap and water.
4. Dispose of a live tick by submersing it in alcohol, placing it in a sealed bag/container, wrapping it tightly in tape, or flush- ing it down the toilet. Never crush a tick with your fingers.
Some outdoor experts recommend submersing the tick in alcohol until it is dead, then tape it with clear tape to a calendar on the day you found it. If you start to get symptoms (look up symptoms for different tick diseases, including headache, fever, vomiting, sore muscles, achiness etc.) you can tell the Dr. ex- actly when you were bitten and give them the tick. Some dis- eases can take up to a month for symptoms to manifest. Speaking of your doctor, there is currently quite a debate in
the medical world (actually much larger than we can delve into in this short article) about diagnosis and treatment of tick dis- eases. One issue is that when a physician tests Lyme disease, which is the tick disease we really have most of here in our area, the results are quite often a false negative in the first MONTH of testing. So by the time treatment has begun, long term horrible
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