Wednesday, January 2, 2013
Staying Summer Safe: Preventing Lyme Disease
By Mia Bolaris-Forget
Summertime translates into fun in the sun and exploring the great outdoors. It also means extra caution needed, especially when it comes to outdoor pests that can be a health threat. Among these are infected deer ticks that can cause Lyme disease if you’re bitten, resulting in some serious flu-like symptoms and, if not treated, arthritis and a slowed heart rate.
If you experience any of these symptoms, or notice a tick embedded in your skin, remove it with fine tweezers. Be careful not to crush the body and immediately seek medical attention.
To prevent tick bites:
• Wear light colored clothing.
• Keep hair pulled back and sport a hat.
• Use insect repellent with 20 percent DEET on exposed adult skin and 10 percent DEET on children.
• Check yourself, family members and children daily, especially if you are outdoors a lot. Check in areas ticks feed; such as the scalp, armpits, and groin.
• Take daily showers to rid yourself of ticks that may be loosely attached.
