Spending Time Outdoors?
Spending Time Outdoors?
Anyone spending time outdoors should first plan on enjoying their experience; and second they should take sensible precautions to avoid tick exposures. An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of antibiotics!
Larval and nymphal deer ticks often hide in shady, moist ground litter, but adult ticks can often be found above the ground clinging to tall grass, brush, trees and shrubs.
Ticks also live in lawns and gardens, especially at the edges of woodlands, on fallen trees and around old stone walls. No natural, vegetated area can be considered completely free of infected ticks.
Ticks have been known to drop from an overhanging branch or tree limb, making people think they can fly, but they have no wings. There are many potential hosts for ticks, which include all wild birds and mammals, domestic animals and humans. Once a tick comes in contact with a human it generally climbs upward until it reaches a suitable site, often the back of the knee, groin, navel, armpit, ears, head or neck. It then begins the process of inserting its mouthparts into the skin until it reaches the blood supply.
To help prevent exposure, avoid contact with soil, leaf litter and vegetation as much as possible. If you garden, hike, camp, farm, hunt, work outdoors or otherwise spend time in woods, brush or overgrown fields, you should use a combination of precautions faithfully to reduce your chances of getting Lyme and/or other tick borne diseases.
When spending time outdoors make these precautions part of your daily routine
- Wear light-colored clothing to spot ticks easily.
- Scan clothes and any exposed skin frequently for ticks.
- When possible, stay on cleared, well-traveled trails.
- Make sure your pets do not carry ticks indoors.
- Use insect repellent faithfully.
- Don't forget, do a tick check!
Lucy Barnes