Ticks give us the yuck. And tis the season. According to the CDC, tick exposure can occur year-round, but ticks are most active during warmer months (April-October). More concerning, is that the CDC estimates that 476,000 people will be diagnosed with Lyme disease each year in the U.S.
Personal Note: Ticks can be active year-round in some parts of the country. I found multiple small ticks on my dog in Loudoun County, Virginia on December 31st!!
For starters, it’s important to know where to find ticks and how they bite us.
One of the most common myths is that ticks fall from trees. If we could put this on a billboard, we would!
Ticks don’t fall from trees, they crawl up.
More specifically, ticks attach to their hosts by either crawling up, or “questing”, which means they hang out on the tips of tall grass and bushes with their legs extended, waiting to attach to passersby like velcro. If you find them on your head, that’s because they crawled up.
Here are 5 tips to prevent tick bites on your next outing:
1. Walk in the center of trails – Ticks are most typically found in shady leaf litter and on tall grasses and shrubs. They’re also know to hang out at the edge of lawns and around old stone walls. Stick to the middle of the trail and away from tall grasses to prevent them from latching on.
2. Treat your clothing and gear: According to tick expert
Tom Mather of the University of Rhode Island, “clothing with built-in tick repellent is best for preventing tick bites”. In fact, they find it is especially effective for protecting children. You can shop our line of tick repellent socks
here!
3. Apply Repellents to Exposed Skin – The CDC recommends
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-registered insect repellents. While we love natural, chemical-free alternatives in most areas of our life, be weary as most "natural" alternatives have not been tested for effectiveness. When it comes to ticks, just one bite can change your life and that's a meaningful risk to take.
4. Wear Light-Colored Clothes so that you can quickly spot ticks on yourself or your kids. And while you’re at it, tuck your shirt into your pants, and your pants into your socks. The more you can create a physical barrier, the more you can keep them from attaching to the skin.
5. Be Vigilant About Tick Checks – It’s a good habit to frequently perform tick checks immediately after being outdoors. The
U.S. Department of Agriculture recommends that parents “check their children for ticks under the arms, in and around the ears, inside the belly button, behind the knees, between the legs, around the waist, and especially in their hair.”
